Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
S he drew her bottom lip between her teeth and drummed her fingers against the desk. When she glanced up and saw that no other patients were coming in, Libby placed both arms on the table and brought her head to rest against the cool wood. Her laptop screen was still frozen on the same webpage.
Why had she installed that stupid update anyway? All it had done was change the interface and reorganize the order of things. A lot of her apps had been misplaced when she woke up this morning, and one app in particular was no longer there. Without the tracker app, Libby had no way of keeping tabs on Annie.
No way of knowing she was safe or what kind of trouble she was in.
Her heart hadn’t stopped hammering since she discovered the app was gone two hours ago. Since then, she’d almost burned her hand making coffee, held up the line at Decadent Treats , and arrived ten minutes later than she should’ve to work. Luckily, no one else was around to witness her humiliation, with the doctors coming in later in the day.
Her laptop screen flashed, and Libby jolted. She pushed her chair closer to the desk and held her breath. Then, she reached for the mouse and tried to ignore the tremor in her hands. When the web page loaded and she was able to move the cursor around, she breathed another sigh of relief.
Now that her laptop wasn’t acting up, she had a chance to find answers online.
“Please let me find what I need,” Libby muttered under her breath. “Come on, it can’t be that hard.”
Every minute that went by was another minute Annie was in danger.
Libby was filled with the urge to pick up her phone and bang it repeatedly against her desk, at least until it brought the app back.
The web page froze again, and Libby buried her face in her hands. She groaned and began to rub her temples in slow, circular motions.
“Bad day?”
Libby froze and hastily dropped her hands. She glanced up and did a double take when she found herself looking into Charlotte Hamilton Ricker’s familiar heart-shaped face and clear, almond-shaped, green eyes. Charlotte said something, and Libby blinked, the blood still roaring in her ears.
“I didn’t mean to startle you.” Charlotte shifted from one foot to the other and clutched her purse tighter. “I don’t think you heard me come in.”
Libby gave a slight shake of her head, and one corner of her mouth lifted into a smile. “Yeah, sorry, technical difficulties. You know how annoying that can get.”
Charlotte nodded, and her expression softened. “Yeah, I hate being such a slave to technology, but what are you going to do?”
Libby pushed her chair back and stood up. “Yeah, true. Um, do you have an appointment, or is this just a walk-in?”
Charlotte glanced over Libby’s shoulder and then back at her face. “I have a consult with Dr. Reese.”
Libby nodded and checked the schedule she had printed and pinned to the desk. “Yes, Dr. Reese is running a little late, but she’ll be here soon.”
Charlotte licked her dry lips, and her hands fluttered at her sides. “You’ve worked with her for a while, right? Is she nice? Is a consult painful?”
Libby stepped out from behind her desk and led Charlotte to the water cooler in the corner. Next to it, there was a foldable table set up with two boxes of tea and an assortment of Styrofoam cups. In silence, she filled up the kettle and pushed the button. When she spun around to face Charlotte, the drama teacher’s shoulders were hunched.
“Why don’t you sit down?” Libby took her arm and led her to the row of plush chairs. After making sure Charlotte wasn’t going to keel over, Libby went back to the table and clasped her hands behind her back.
“I don’t know why I’m here,” Charlotte admitted. “I’ve never been in a serious relationship. Never been a mom. I’m sure there are a lot of women out there who are more qualified.”
Libby frowned. “That doesn’t mean you aren’t.”
“I don’t know if I am,” Charlotte said in a smaller voice. “But I’ve been reading these brochures, and I have seen this friend of mine… She’s amazing, and she and her husband would make amazing parents, and I just really want to help them.”
Libby’s stomach tightened at the longing and yearning in Charlotte’s voice. “I think you’re doing a great thing.”
Charlotte lifted her gaze and grimaced. “They don’t know yet. I’m not even sure if they’ll accept me as a surrogate, but I don’t know…it just feels right.”
The kettle began to shake, and then it made a clicking sound. Libby spun around and poured the boiling water into two cups. She carried their chamomile tea over to where Charlotte sat. After handing her one of the cups, Libby went back to her desk and sat behind it.
As much as she liked Charlotte, she didn’t want to get in trouble with the boss, who had strict guidelines about where and how to interact with patients. Outside of these walls, Charlotte was her daughter’s drama teacher. Inside here, Charlotte was a patient. One who was in over her head by the looks of things.
Libby blew on her drink and sat up straighter. “I come from a foster home. My parents died when I was young, and none of my other family members wanted to take me in, so I went into foster care.”
Charlotte’s expression softened, and her eyes widened as she looked at Libby over the rim of the cup. “If you don’t mind my asking, what was it like?”
Libby’s stomach clenched as she saw her foster mom tucking her hair behind her ears. Then, she saw her foster dad patting her head before handing her some pocket money for school. Although she’d been quiet and reserved, the two of them had done their best to provide for her, and she stayed out of trouble to show them how much it all meant to her.
Over the years, Libby hadn’t gotten any better at expressing herself, but deep down, she knew the truth. Without the Bakers, she would’ve stayed in the same system or worse. She’d seen too many kids who ended up on the streets, doing anything and everything within their power to survive.
It was a broken and unfair system, but Libby hoped that wouldn’t always be the case.
“I loved my foster parents,” Libby said finally. “I’m not sure if I was able to convey that well, but they knew, and I guess that’s what really matters. All any kid wants to know is they’re wanted and they’re loved.”
Charlotte glanced down at her cup and sniffed. “Yeah, I guess so.”
“There’s still time to figure out what you want to do,” Libby continued in a softer voice. “No one would think less of you for changing your mind about this, you know.”
“I’m afraid I’ll get too attached to the baby,” Charlotte whispered, her voice catching toward the end. “Then it wouldn’t be fair to the parents or the baby.”
Libby’s throat closed up. “I think it’s better not to get ahead of yourself. You’re not there yet, and there’s no telling how you’ll feel.”
Based on everything she knew and had seen Charlotte do, Libby had a feeling the drama teacher was going to do the right thing, no matter how painful it was.
Libby was about to tell Charlotte something else when she heard the back door open and slam shut. Moments later, the phone on her desk rang, and Dr. Reese’s breathless voice came on. Libby listened to her for a few moments until the doctor hung up. A short while later, she got up and went around the desk to get to Charlotte.
She took both of her hands in hers and led her to her feet. “Here, why don’t I walk with you to the doctor’s office?”
Charlotte’s eyes were full of tears. “You won’t get in trouble?”
Libby patted her hand. “Don’t worry about it.”
Outside the doctor’s office, Charlotte lingered, and it took her a full minute to straighten her back and square her shoulders. Then, she offered Libby a small smile before the door swung shut. Libby lingered for a while longer and then hurried outside. The waiting room was still empty, and steam still rose from the Styrofoam cup on her desk.
Libby sat down and took a few tentative sips of her tea.
By the time the web page finally loaded, Libby was still thinking about Charlotte’s sad face and her own lonely childhood. She blinked, reached for the mouse, and skimmed through the information. With a frown, she picked up her phone, and her eyes kept darting back and forth as she followed the steps.
When the familiar icon for the app blinked on her screen, Libby let out a quiet whoop. Hastily, she leaned sideways in her seat to make sure no one heard her. Then, she straightened her back and jabbed her phone. It took a few moments, but once Annie’s familiar red dot appeared, Libby sagged in her seat.
According to the tracker, Annie was in the Falmouth Public Library next to Mullen Hall School. Frowning, Libby refreshed the app and zoomed in on the map. When it didn’t change, and the red dot remained unmoving, Libby set her phone down on her desk. She leaned back against her chair and stared at it.
It didn’t make any sense. Annie wasn’t a big reader, and she’d never shown any interest in any of the local institutions in Falmouth. On the contrary, she’d made her disdain for the small town known from day one, everything from mocking the name to rolling her eyes at any of the traditions. For weeks, Libby had barely been able to keep Annie’s scathing remarks from being heard by inquisitive ears. It hadn’t been easy.
During those first few weeks, Libby spent many nights curled up on the couch with a glass of wine in one hand and her phone clutched in the other. A few times, she’d even dialed the social worker, only to hang up before it even rang. Annie had tested her patience, her limits, and everything in between.
But something inside of Libby told her not to give up.
It was that very same voice that was begging her to hang on now, to cling to Annie by the skin of her teeth.
Whether she liked it or not, Annie needed her, and Libby wasn’t going to turn her back on her foster daughter. Even if it meant having to pry and spy.
As far as Libby was concerned, it was a small price to pay to keep her safe.
As soon as the thought left her mind, Libby’s phone pinged. She scrambled for it, and her heart missed a beat when she saw Annie move and cross the street, headed directly for Mullen Hall School. Then, she veered, and the dot blinked furiously when she stopped in front of Shivericks Pond. For a while, nothing happened, and Libby was gripping the phone so hard she thought it was going to leave marks.
Annie’s dot blinked up at her, taunting her.
She swallowed and wiped her hands on her skirt. Her heart was still hammering uneasily as she exited the app and went to her contacts. Libby’s fingers were sweating as she hovered over Annie’s number, her mind racing to come up with an excuse. Then, the door to Dr. Reese’s office opened, and she heard Charlotte’s heels click against the linoleum floors.
Libby dropped the phone and forced a smile on her face.
It fell when Charlotte walked past, nails digging into her palms and all of the color drained from her face. Libby called after her, but she wasn’t sure Charlotte heard her as she wrenched the door open and stepped out into the midmorning sun.
Frowning, Libby saw her stop on the sidewalk and run a hand over her face.
Then she crossed the street to her car and leaned against it. Libby was getting ready to walk out when Dr. Reese’s voice pulled her back to the present with a jolt. She snuck glances over her shoulder, but Charlotte remained immobile, with one hand on the car’s hood and the other clutching her purse.
What could’ve possibly happened during Charlotte’s consultation?