Chapter 28
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The house felt quiet and empty after Liliana and the kids pulled away.
Essie stood in the doorway for a moment longer than necessary, watching the empty stretch of street as if they might turn around.
Mattie’s voice still echoed in her ears, the feel of his little kiss still present on her cheek. Mira’s warm weight lingered in Essie’s arms even though she’d handed her back ten minutes ago. It had been a good visit. A full one. The kind that had left her tired in a satisfying way.
Amazing how much she missed them already. Just like she missed Frank. The idea of getting a pet returned, but she knew it wasn’t the sort of decision that should be made impulsively.
She closed the door, then turned and walked into the living room. She hesitated, feeling a bit lost. Maybe she’d have another cup of coffee. There was cleaning and laundry to do now that her family had left, but she wasn’t feeling all that motivated to jump into that just yet.
Instead, she took a seat on the couch and picked up her phone, turning it over in her hands before unlocking it. There was something she could do. Something she’d thought about doing last night as she lay in bed.
She unlocked the screen and tapped on an app, quickly locating the person she couldn’t stop thinking about.
Sophie’s TikTok account stared back at her, the profile photo familiar. Essie had watched plenty of the videos, but she hadn’t checked it since Sophie had disappeared. She hadn’t wanted to.
Sure enough, there was a new post. Uploaded late last night. Essie tapped it and held the phone a little farther away, bracing herself.
Sophie sat on what looked like the edge of a bed, her hair loose, face bare of makeup except for her lash extensions, which had to be a first. The lighting wasn’t flattering, which might have been on purpose.
Her voice wavered as she talked, circling the same thoughts again and again. It was all about how she didn’t know what to do next. About feeling stuck. About feeling like she was standing at the edge of something without any idea how to move forward.
Then she mentioned Ryan.
Essie’s breath caught, just slightly.
Sophie talked about the cheating. About finding out.
About how stupid it made her feel. How angry she was.
How she was the kind of tired that felt like it would never go away.
She didn’t cry, exactly, but her voice tightened when she said she felt like everyone always left her.
Like that was a pattern she couldn’t escape.
Essie watched the entire video, her stomach clenching as the seconds ticked by. When it ended, she just sat there, phone resting in her palm, her heart heavy. She prayed immediately that God would watch over Sophie and keep her from doing anything irreversible. That He would keep her safe.
Essie prayed for Cece, too, because she was having a procedure today. Essie could imagine how scared her friend might be.
When Essie opened her eyes, she thought about everything Sophie had said.
And the way she’d said it. Then Essie thought about what Sophie hadn’t mentioned.
She hadn’t said a word about the lawsuits.
Or about the way Essie had tried to reach out to her.
Tried to include her in their family time.
How, at least for a brief span of time, Sophie had interacted with them almost normally.
Had those things hurt more than they’d helped? Had Sophie realized how much she was missing out on by pulling away from her dad and brother?
Essie set the phone down on the coffee table and folded her hands in her lap.
She didn’t know how to reach Sophie. Not yet. But at least she understood something now that she hadn’t before. Sophie wasn’t pushing people away because she didn’t care.
She was doing it because she was afraid of being left again.
Essie sat there in the quiet living room, letting that wash over her. She wanted to help Sophie, but she genuinely didn’t know how. And she was afraid Sophie could be on the verge of doing something stupid.
Essie felt like there was only one option left to her. She had to call Frank. She reached for her phone again and tapped Frank’s name.
It rang longer this time. Once, twice, then rolled into voicemail. She didn’t hang up right away, listening to the familiar recorded greeting before it ended.
“It’s me,” she said after the tone. “Nothing urgent, but please call me when you can. I saw something about Sophie, and I want to fill you in.”
She ended the call and sat there, thumb resting against the edge of the phone. She knew Frank was busy. He probably had meetings stacked on meetings. And then there was the time difference in Italy, which didn’t help. Still, she didn’t like sitting on information that felt this important.
Essie scrolled and tapped Chad’s number instead.
He answered quickly. “Hey, Essie.”
“Hi,” she said. “Do you have a minute? I couldn’t reach your dad.”
“Yeah. We’re nearly wrapped up for the day but he’s still talking to one of the managers. What’s going on?”
Essie chose her words carefully. “I just watched a new TikTok Sophie posted last night. It was…not great. She looked and sounded really lost. Talked about the breakup with Ryan and feeling like everyone leaves her.”
Chad was quiet for a beat. “That sounds very much like her, but I’m surprised she’d post something like that. Kind of goes against her brand,” he said finally. “She hasn’t been answering my texts lately. I’ve been wondering what’s going on with her.”
Essie closed her eyes briefly. “She left the house yesterday while we were at church. Took all her things. No note. Nothing. Just gone.”
“Yeah, Dad mentioned that. That doesn’t surprise me,” Chad said, his voice tightening. “She tends to disappear when things get too real. When there’s a chance she might actually have to explain her decisions. She did the same thing to me when she came to visit, remember?”
“I do. It’s ironic that she’s upset about being left and yet she runs when she can’t handle the situation.” She blew out a breath. “Well, I left a message for your dad. Would you let him know?”
“I’ll tell him,” Chad said. “He’s still talking with that manager, but I’ll make sure he knows you tried to get him.”
“Thank you,” Essie said. “I didn’t want him blindsided. And I didn’t want to overreact, either. I just thought it was something he should know.”
“You did the right thing,” Chad said. “I know this hasn’t been easy for you. Hasn’t been easy on any of us, but you’ve been trying to reach her when you didn’t have to do anything. I appreciate that, Essie.”
“It was the right thing to do.” Essie looked around the living room, listening to the quiet left behind after the kids’ visit. “I just don’t want her thinking she’s on her own,” she said. “Even if she’s chosen to be elsewhere right now.”
“I get that,” Chad said. “She may not say it, ever, but it matters that you care.”
Essie hoped that was true. “Please let me know when you talk to him.”
“I will,” Chad said. “And Essie? Thanks for calling me.”
“Of course,” she said.
“You know, you should really get yourself a pet. With how things are going over here, I don’t know when my dad and I will be back.”
“I’ve actually been thinking that same thing myself, but I need to talk to Frank about it first.”
“I’m sure he’d say yes. Anyway, thanks again. I’ll talk to you soon, I’m sure.”
They hung up, and Essie set the phone down beside her. Outside, the light had shifted a little as the morning sun rose higher. She still didn’t feel like cleaning, so she got her book out and read, hoping it would take her mind off of Sophie and this feeling of helplessness that Essie despised.
She’d just finished her second chapter when her phone rang. Frank.
She answered immediately. “Hi.”
“Hey,” he said. The time difference seemed evident in his voice by the weariness it held. “Chad filled me in. He tried to show me the post Sophie made but apparently she deleted it. Anyway, I wanted to hear your voice.”
Essie leaned back against the couch and told him what she’d seen on TikTok, about the rambling way Sophie talked, the part about Ryan cheating, the distinct loneliness threaded into every word. She did her best to keep her own feelings out of it.
He was quiet while she spoke.
“Maybe it’s good I can’t watch it,” he said when she was through. “Sounds like she’s spiraling.” He sighed. “When she’s overwhelmed, she doesn’t know how to ask for help. Never has. She just kind of implodes.”
“That’s what it seemed like she was on the verge of,” Essie said. “Like she was at her wits end.”
“I’m sorry you’re dealing with this while I’m halfway across the world,” he said. “The timing couldn’t be worse.”
Essie smiled faintly. “That’s just how life is sometimes. We’ll manage.”
“I’ll call her. Maybe she’ll answer for me.”
“That would be great.”
There was a short pause, then Frank said, “Chad also mentioned something else you said. About getting a pet? He said it was his suggestion, but you agreed.”
Essie smiled a little, surprised Chad had said anything.
“That’s true, I did. I’ve been thinking about it for a while, actually.
This house gets very quiet when it’s just me.
Which I guess I’m really noticing right now since Liliana and the kids left this morning.
It was great having them here, but now that the house is empty, well… it seems emptier than ever.”
“I can imagine,” Frank said. “What kind of pet are you thinking about?”
Essie bit her bottom lip. “I’d really like a dog. Nothing too big or too small. One that I could take for walks. One that would be good company. I don’t think I’d want a puppy. Maybe a slightly older dog who’s a little calmer.”
“I think that sounds like a great idea,” Frank said immediately.
“You do?”
“Of course I do,” he said. “You’ve been on your own a lot lately and with how the business is shaping up, there will be more trips to Italy for me. A dog makes sense.”
Essie smiled. “I thought so, too, but I didn’t want you to feel like I was making a big decision without you.”
“You’re not,” Frank said. “You’re making a sensible one. And I trust you.”
She laughed softly. “That helps. I promise I’ll do my homework and get the right one.”
“I have no doubt about that. I only have one request,” he added.
Her smile wavered. “What is it?”
“Just make sure the dog is housebroken,” Frank said. “I’m very open-minded otherwise.”
“That’s reasonable,” Essie said with a little laugh. “I’d want that, too.”
They talked a bit more, about his meetings, about Italy, about when he might be home, and when they hung up, Essie went out onto the porch to look at the beach.
It would be so nice to have a dog to walk. Of course, a dog wouldn’t change everything. She knew that.
But it would help how she felt. She wouldn’t be alone anymore. She smiled.
It was time to start looking up local rescues and figuring out what kind of dog was right for her.