Chapter 2
Two
Callie
“Mom, we have to find her.” Alexandra’s voice is high pitched and panicked. I don’t blame her. Alice is her dog. The two of them connected immediately when we found her at the shelter.
“We will.” I reassure her. “We’re just waiting on Uncle Miles to get here. We don’t have a vehicle that can go off-road. Who knows where Alice could have run off to.”
It’s not an exaggeration either. There are miles of fields behind surrounding our new house. Talk about a way to bring in the new year. Single and now with a missing dog.
“It’s all my fault.” Alexandra buries her face in her hands. “I thought they were done popping fireworks. She needed to go potty. I didn’t think the silence was only an intermission.”
“It’s okay sweetie. We’ll find her.” Or maybe someone else has and I should be watching my phone. “I should have warned you about how it can be in the country when it’s time for fireworks. It’s one of the few places you can set them off without getting a ticket.”
“Well, that sounds like a them problem,” She huffs.
I pull my teenager into my arms and rock her back and forth. It worked when she was a baby, and I’m hoping it has the same effect at soothing her now. At least until my brother gets here to search for our dog.
I don’t remember the last time I was on this road prior to buying this house, and I’d have no idea where to look. Hurry up, Miles.
There’s a knock at the door, and Alexandra jumps out of my arms to answer it. You’d think at fourteen she knows the whole stranger danger thing, but apparently, I’m going to have reiterate the lesson. Especially since we’re in a newish area. Well, new to her, not me. I grew up here.
“Uncle Miles…finally!” Alexandra is still panicked. Her voice is loud and shrill. It hurts even my ears and I’m in another room.
“What do you mean ‘finally’? I live on the other side of town. With all the parties happening tonight, it took me a bit to get here.” His arm is around Alexandra’s shoulder, comforting her as best he can, as he walks into the living room. “How long has Alice been gone?”
“A few hours?” I’m not really sure. We searched all around our property and part of the way down the road. “We didn’t want to be on the road in the dark with the possibility of getting hit by some drunk driver.”
“That’s smart. I will drive the back area of the property along the trees. If we’re lucky, she’ll come back home on her own.”
“But how will she know this is home?” Alexandra sniffles. “We just moved here. The only scent she truly knows is our house back in Oklahoma.”
“Then we’ll have to hope someone finds her.” Miles glances over at me. “Did she have on a collar with your number?”
All I can do is nod. It kills me to see my daughter this heartbroken. But I know exactly how she feels. We’ve had Alice since she was a puppy…she’s family.
“Can I go with you to search the tree line?” Alexandra leans into her uncle. “I don’t think I can sit here and do nothing much longer. Maybe if I’m with you, she’ll hear my voice and come to me.”
“That’s a good idea.” Miles smiles down at her. “While we’re out looking, I need you to do something, Callie.”
“Whatever you need.” I’m also feeling pretty useless.
“Get some of your clothes and Alexandras and place them around the yard. It’ll help Alice find your scent.”
“I can do that.” I grab my phone off the coffee table and wave it in the air. “If she comes back, I’ll give you a call.”
I watch my brother and daughter rush out of the house.
As much as I didn’t want to move back home, in this very moment, I’m glad.
There’s no way I would have known the thing about the clothes.
I mean, I guess I could have searched online for things to do, but I don’t think I would have had the inkling to do it.
Crap. I don’t know what kind of clothes and I don’t really want to put any of the clean ones out there. I just finished getting almost everything washed. Clothes being in boxes smell stale and I couldn’t handle it.
I dial my brother’s number.
“Is she back?” Not even a hello. Not that I blame him.
“No, but I have a question. Do the clothes need to be clean?”
“Dirty clothes work best. Your scent is fresher.”
“Thanks. Good luck.” I don’t even bother waiting for him to reply. I’m sure Alexandra is driving him bananas.
At least I haven’t gotten around to washing the clothes in our suitcase.
We took a couple of detours on our way down here.
Completely unnecessary, but I needed to do something to ease Alexandra into the move.
She wasn’t happy about leaving her friends behind.
She didn’t seem to mind not seeing her dad on a regular basis.
Not that she did anyway. He found any excuse he could to shirk his responsibilities.
Shoving my phone in my pocket, I rush to Alexandra’s room and dig through the pile of clothes on her floor. I’m not sure how far away from the house I need to place the clothes, so I grab an armful.
Next stop is my room. My dirty clothes are in a basket at the foot of my bed, and I drop Alexandra’s on top. I rummage through the boxes against the wall for a flashlight. I may have grown up in the country but I don’t want to encounter any of the wildlife.
With the flashlight and basket in hand, I head toward the front door.
I’ll start at the front of the house and work my way around.
I open the door, but don’t bother closing it.
What if Alice comes back while I’m in the back?
I don’t want her getting scared again and running in the opposite direction.
Miles didn’t say how far out to put the laundry. I set one piece down close to the house, walk out about five feet and set another one. Then another few feet and set down a third piece. I want Alice to have multiple pieces of our scent. Anything to make it easier for her to find her way home.
I continue this pattern all the way around the house.
There’s no way in hell I’m going to leave a section unguarded.
If Alice doesn’t come back, my daughter will be heartbroken.
The thought of someone finding her and keeping her for themselves creeps into the back of my mind.
She’s a pittie and I know people use the breed for nefarious reasons, but she’s such a sweetheart.
All I can do is hope the people in Asheville now aren’t assholes.
A lot could have changed since I lived here.
Let’s face it, keeping a dog without trying to find the owner is a pretty shitty thing to do.
With the basket empty, I go back inside, closing the door behind me. A quick search around the house deflates any hope Alice came home while I was outside. I hope Miles and Alexandra are having better luck.
The only left to do is wait, as useless as it feels.
Pulling my phone from my pocket, I take a seat on the sofa.
Maybe I can find a picture of Alice to put on social media.
Not that I have very many friends from here on my list. I kind of wrote Asheville off when I moved away.
I don’t miss the irony in running back home when I need a fresh start.
Anything to get me away from all of my ex-husband’s friends and family.
I finally find a good picture of Alice to post and open up my social media app. As I’m uploading, the front door bangs open and I hear stomping.
“She’s not out there,” Alexandra sobs. “What if something awful happened to her?”
As much as I want to tell my sweet girl her pup will be fine, I don’t. False hope isn’t something I’ve ever given her. “All we can do is hope someone found her and will contact us.”
“Why did we have to move? It’s been one thing after another.” She stomps off to her room.
My brother runs a hand through his hair. “Is this a normal occurrence?”
Shrugging, I scoot over on the sofa to make room for Miles. “It depends on the day. She hasn’t taken this move easily.”
“I can tell.” He sits down beside me, phone in his hand scrolling. “Is it because she won’t see her dad?”
“Not really. She won’t see her friends, and according to her it’s the end of the world. But she doesn’t understand all the other reasons. You remember how it was being a teenager.”
He’s already shaking his head. “Not really. I’ve partied a lot since then.”
Of course that would be his response. He’s definitely not the responsible sibling in the family. Well, he wasn’t back then. Now he’s pretty successful.
“What are you doing?” I watch his fingers move fast over his phone screen.
“Posting this picture of Alice on my social media. Alex sent me a photo. I was going to ask you do it, but the last time I checked, I was the only friend you had in the area.”
“Thank you.” I lean my head on his shoulder. “I had the same thought. Also, sorry this how you’re bringing in the new year.”
“No worries. You know I’d do anything for you and my niece. Y’all are my favorite people in the world. Peter is probably a close second.”
The sound of his name warms me inside and out. I remember following Miles and him around everywhere when we were kids. Not just because I didn’t want to be left out, but also because I may have wanted to be as close to him as possible.
“Wow, we managed to beat out women for a top spot. I’m impressed.”
“You should be.” He grins. “Not that I have much time for dating. We’ve been pretty busy at the ranch.”
“Can I make one request?”
My brother eyes me warily be nodding. He’s never liked when I make requests of him. It usually meant taking me wherever he went because I didn’t want to be home.
“Since we’re back in town and Alexandra isn’t used to your playboy ways, can you maybe not bring them around her unless it’s something serious?”
“Callie, she’s a teenager.” He rolls his eyes. It’s pretty much his automatic response anytime I say something he thinks is ridiculous. “She probably knows her uncle dates.”
“I know, but she needs some stability right now. She hates that we moved and I don’t want to do anything else that may upset her.
” For once I’d love for my big brother to understand where I’m coming from.
It’s hard because he doesn’t have kids, but he should want to protect her because he’s, her uncle.
He doesn’t say anything for a few moments and then he leans back against the cushions. “Okay.”
“Really? Just like that?”
“Do I think you’re a little overprotective? Yes. But I’ll respect your wishes because you’re her mom. Plus, I don’t want to be another reason she hates it here. Maybe I can get her to love Asheville as much as we do.”
He’s going a little far with the “we”. If I loved it so much, I never would have left. I’ll take this small victory, though. At least one thing has gone my way tonight. “Thank you.”
“No problem.” His grin is still like the one he used to give all the girls when we were younger. It’s the one that will make you forgive him for anything. Maybe that’s what it is, he’s advance apology for if he screws up this one thing.
My phone vibrates in my hand. A text from an unknown number pops up.
Unknown: Hi, I think I may have found your dog. It was on Starlit Road in the field. But the address doesn’t seem like a local one. Are you missing a dog?
“Oh. My. God.” I screech and immediately start typing a response.
Callie: Yes. Thank you so much for finding Alice. If you send me your address we can come pick her up.
My brother is staring at me in confusion. I don’t have time to explain. Our smallest family member is coming home.
The phone vibrates again.
Unknown:
No need. Send me your address, and I’ll bring her by.
I do as he asks and send him our address. I guess she didn’t get as far as I thought she would.
“Can you please tell me what’s going on?” My brother throws his hands in the air exasperated with my lack of explanation.
“Someone found Alice. They are bringing her to us now.”
“I’m not leaving until they’ve come and gone. Let me see your phone.”
Kind of a weird time for him to play the overprotective big brother, but whatever. I hand him the phone and he studies the message.
“Well, that makes me feel a bit better.”
“What does?”
The fact someone found her should make him feel amazing.
“Peter is the one who found her. So, she’s in good hands.”
Holy shit. That’s not what I was expecting. Now he’s coming here. To my house. And I look terrible. If I try to change Miles will ask me why, but if I don’t, I’ll look like a hot mess while seeing Peter for the first time in well over a decade. Damn it.