14. Chapter 14
fourteen
Aflit of temper colored Gene’s face as he gritted his teeth at Amanda’s silence. She watched him take a deep breath and probably count in his head as he met her eyes. He wasn’t happy about something and was trying hard not to let it out.
Is he mad about having to apologize?
“I wish you would at least consider my suggestion instead of shutting it down right off the bat,” he blurted. “I think taking a risk with your health is short-sighted.”
“Are you suggesting I’m short-sighted?” Amanda asked with more calm than she knew she had.
“You don’t take a chance with head injuries, Amanda.”
“Are you here as a doctor?” she asked.
“There’s no way for me to shut down that part of me who is a doctor, but I care about you. We don’t want to miss something we could’ve prevented. I’m sure you, of all people, would understand that.”
“Of all people?” Amanda frowned. “What does that mean?”
“Wouldn’t you want to know if you could’ve prevented your mother’s illness?”
Amanda’s spine tensed at the question.
“Nobody could’ve predicted my mother’s illness. We still don’t know how she developed it. I never even heard of Myasthenia Gravis before.”
“I know.” Gene’s voice gentled. “But if you could, wouldn’t you want to?”
Seeing how her vibrant mother had been limited by the disease over time had been torture for her.
“Of course,” Amanda quietly admitted.
Gene took a few steps closer to her.
“That’s all I’m asking you to do. Just be cautious. There’s a chance they’ll find nothing. But then I can breathe easier knowing you’re okay.”
Amanda sighed and dropped her arms to her sides. She was never the type to hold on to anger. Why would she start now with this man?
Maybe because he can actually leave a mark if I let him?
Gene reached for her hand. “Having said that, I’m sorry I hurt you.”
“I made an appointment for a consult with Dr. Bloom,” Amanda confessed.
“You did?” Gene’s face lifted.
“Just for a consult, a second opinion,” she added quickly. “Doesn’t mean I agree with you.”
“Of course.” Gene nodded and quelled the smile on his lips.
“Having said that…” she copied his earlier words and pulled her hand away from him. “… I think we need to take a step back from each other.” His brows rose in surprise, obviously not expecting her to say that of all things. “This is happening too fast,” Amanda added.
“Right,” he said and literally took a step back. “I understand.”
Amanda was conscious of her decision, but she still felt disappointed at Gene’s instant acceptance. But it was the right thing to do. What did they have in common, anyhow? And if he told her not to risk her health, why would she risk her heart on someone who might not stay, anyway?
Gene turned his back on her as if he was about to leave, but he stopped. “I also got a consult. A second opinion, per se.”
Amanda frowned. “On what?”
“The girl.” He glanced back at her. “I went to see Patrick Alden. Do you know him?”
“Yes. He comes by here once in a while.” Amanda added, “Cinnamon bun and black coffee with a splash of cream.”
Gene’s left brow almost touched his hairline as it rose so high.
“You remember his order?”
“I try to remember my regular customers. And I’ve seen him volunteering in the soup kitchen. What about him?”
“He’s a police detective. I figured he’d know better about how to find a missing person; if we’re assuming she’s missing.”
She knew Patrick was a cop, but she asked, “The police didn’t believe me. Why even bother?”
“Patrick isn’t just a cop. He’s a friend. I know how important it is to find this girl for you, so I asked him to check if there were any reported missing girls in the database who match the descriptions you gave.”
Amanda’s chest expanded in anticipation. She wasn’t sure if it was hope or something else.
“And?”
Gene shook his head with regret. “We didn’t find one between the ages of eleven and eighteen, but there are three that matched—blond hair, brown eyes—but they’re in their early twenties.”
“Oh.”
Amanda’s heart sank. She was sure the girl was an adolescent, closer to the younger side than the older side. But could she be wrong?
“It might not help, but maybe you can look at their pictures to be sure,” Gene suggested.
She nodded slightly. “Yeah.”
“Patrick also suggested that you should sit down with a sketch artist.” He looked at her with hope in his eyes. “Do you think you can do that?”
“Yes,” Amanda replied firmly. “I can do that. I was thinking the same thing.”
Gene smiled and took out his phone. “Great. I’ll set it up with him.”
He was about to leave the office when Amanda stopped him.
“Gene, why are you doing this if you don’t believe me?”
“It’s not that I don’t believe you,” he said. “I think it’s important to make sure you’re a hundred percent okay. But I also understand your instinct. I know you need to find that girl as much as I want you to get that CT. Different things, same needs.”
“So what are you saying?” she asked, still unsure.
Gene’s gaze locked with hers. “If she’s out there, we’ll find her.”
“Thanks, brother,” Gene told Patrick over the phone. “I know you’re going out of your way to set this up.”
“It’s nothing. Buy me a beer and we’ll call it even.”
“You got it.”
Gene went back inside and headed to the counter to pay for his pie when Amanda came out of the kitchen with a baked goods box. Liam was about to ring the pie for him when Amanda stopped him.
“It’s on the house,” she said.
“No.” Gene handed Liam his card. “I can pay for my purchase.”
Amanda pushed his hand back. “Your money’s no good here, Doctor.”
“Amanda, if this is about you—”
“Let me give you a pie, Gene,” she said, handing the box to him. “It’s the least I can do after everything you’ve done for me. Let’s call it a peace offering.”
“For what?” Gene frowned.
“For last night,” Amanda said. “I didn’t have to be that upset.”
“You’re entitled to feel what you felt, Amanda.”
She nodded. “Thanks for that.”
“By the way, you’re all set to meet with the sketch artist at nine tomorrow. Patrick will be expecting you.”
“You’re not coming?” Amanda looked surprised.
Carefully searching her face, Gene asked, “Do you want me there?”
“Yes, she does.” Jo jumped in from out of nowhere. “I’d go with her, but I’ll need to be here. The sketch artist is a great idea, Doc. We were just discussing how we needed something to start our search. Right now, the only person who knows what this girl looks like is Amanda. If we have a sketch, we all can help.”
Liam, who was watching them the whole time, chimed in. “I texted all my friends with a description of the girl, but a sketch will be better, for sure.”
Recruiting the teenagers to look amongst their own. I’m impressed.
“Good thinking.” He nodded at the boy. “Have you heard back from anyone?”
“Anita mentioned a classmate of hers hasn’t been in school this week,” Liam said. “But Anita said it wasn’t unusual for her. Apparently, her parents pull her from school often. They say they’re traveling. They’re loaded.”
“Huh, so maybe not her,” Jo said.
Amanda’s face deflated, but she said, “We should probably still check. Can you ask for the girl’s name, Liam?”
“Yeah.”
“How are we going to check?” Jo asked. “Even the police can’t just go knock on people’s door without a reason.”
“You’re right. We are literally grasping at straws without any clues,” Amanda said, her eyes unfocused, but Gene could see her gears working.
“I can bring our last yearbook. Maybe we’ll find her there,” Liam suggested, but then his face fell. “But if she’s a freshman, she won’t be in it yet.”
“That’s good thinking, Liam. Bring it anyway,” Amanda said. “She may also be a runaway, and from the way she looked that night; probably a recent runaway.”
“We can check the shelters,” Gene suggested, needing to infuse hope back into Amanda’s eyes.
“Yes!” Jo pointed at him, agreeing. “I can do that when I drop off our baked goods donation tonight.”
“We’ll go together. You don’t know what she looks like,” Amanda said.
“You supply food to the shelters?” Gene asked, admiration in his voice.
He knew she volunteered, but he didn’t know they donated food, too.
“Homeless folks need sweet treats, too. We bring them once a week,” Amanda said. “We also sponsor little libraries in the centers. Jo makes sure they have access to books for all ages.”
Gene smiled, his eyes locked on Amanda. “That’s commendable.”
“We do what we can,” Amanda said humbly, but her cheeks turned almost as pink as her dress.
They all went silent as Jo glanced at Amanda, then to Gene, before turning to Liam, and pulled him away with her into the kitchen.
“Liam, I need your help to get something down.”
That move left Gene alone with Amanda, and a couple of customers who were, for once, minding their own business.
“Thank you for the pie,” Gene said, smiling. “I’ll enjoy it tonight.”
Amanda’s cheeks reddened even more.
He frowned. “You okay? You’re not feeling feverish, are you?”
“Oh, hush. You know what you’re doing,” Amanda said under her breath, but there was a twitch at the corners of her lips she could barely hide. Gene smirked in triumph, but it died fast. “I meant what I said. We need to pause whatever we started last night.”
“We barely started anything.”
She shrugged. “Maybe once you’re certain about my head, and I get some answers about this girl…”
“Right.” Gene wasn’t sure if there was more to say. The lady had made up her mind, and she was probably right not to get involved with him. What could he give her but perhaps some fun time while he was around?
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Gene picked up the pie box, ready to leave, though his heart was dragging his feet.
But before he reached the door, his eyes caught on a framed map of Lake Lanier and the surrounding area on one of the cafe’s walls. He walked to the map and studied it closely. A few seconds later, Amanda came to stand next to him, looking at the map, too.
“What is it?” she asked curiously.
Gene pointed to the area on Browns Bridge Road. “This is where you saw her, right? Where you crashed.”
“There about,” Amanda agreed.
He traced his fingers over the surrounding area and woods.
“If your gut is right about the girl being a runaway and terrified about something, she may not seek help at a shelter. The nearest one is here.”
He pointed at almost dead center of town. “That’s a long way to walk.”
“True, but I’m still going to check.”
“Sure, that’s smart,” Gene agreed. “But maybe she’d seek shelter where she could stay hidden, but could still find food.”
“What are you thinking?” Amanda looked at him.
“Here.” He pointed at River Forks Park. “There are campgrounds for RVs, restrooms, and showers. It’s not high season for travelers yet, but I bet there are enough of them around. Perhaps she’s a camper.” Gene turned his gaze to Amanda, seeking her thoughts. She looked unsure. “It’s a stretch, but we have nothing else to go on,” he said.
“No.” She shook her head. “It’s a possibility. That’s all we have right now, possibilities. She could be the girl Liam’s friend mentioned, a runaway, or a lost camper. Hell, she could be a figment of my imagination if you were right.”
“Amanda…” Gene wanted to gather her into his arms and soothe the uncertainty from her face. “Until we have proof of anything, we go with your gut.”
She gave a solemn nod.
Though he still believed his confabulation theory had merit, Gene hated he’d put doubt in Amanda’s mind about her own memory. He’d rather have the angry Amanda again than the unsure one.
“Are you up for a hike tomorrow after the sketch artist?” he suggested, gesturing at the map.
“It’s a needle in a haystack,” she said, but her eyes lit up. “Don’t you have better things to do?”
“More important than finding a missing girl?”
And spending time with you? No.
The conviction in Amanda’s smile returned, and she nodded.
“I’ll pack the supplies this time.”