CHAPTER 36
ALEX PULLS OUT HIS PHONE.
“Who are you calling?” asks Bree.
“I need a touch of home.”
He puts the call on speaker. A few seconds later, Jannie’s voice comes through. “Dad! What have you found out? Do you know where Damon is?”
“Not yet,” says Bree. “We just found his bike, left on a trail in a nature reserve. We’re putting up flyers around campus and setting up a search party for later today.”
“What do the police say?” asks Jannie.
Alex speaks up. “They say there’s no evidence that Damon’s been harmed or in danger. They’re following their own policies and procedures. As far as they’re concerned, Damon is an adult and if he wants to go somewhere on his own without telling anyone, that’s his right.”
“Those by-the-book fools!” Nana Mama’s reedy voice crackles all the way from DC. “You can bet if it was a white boy, maybe the son of the mayor or something, they’d be following some different …procedures.” She spits the last word like it’s an obscenity.
“Anything we can do to help?” Ali pipes up.
“Just stay home and take care of one another,” says Bree. “Don’t be wandering around outdoors. Knowing you’re safe will make our job easier.”
“Nana,” says Alex, “we heard about the bomb at the Vietnam memorial this morning. How are things in the city?”
“Crazy,” says Nana. “I’m keeping the children inside today. John left from here to check things out. Haven’t heard back from him yet.”
A girl’s voice comes through, sweet and high-pitched: “I know my daddy will find this guy and stop him. He promised!”
“Willow!” says Bree. “It’s good to hear your voice, baby. You stay there with Jannie and Ali and Nana, okay?”
“I will. I promise. No bomber is gonna get me!”