17. Chapter 17
seventeen
“Ooh, people!”
Amanda pointed to the RV parked at the next slot.
Gene watched as she and Loki ran ahead of him to the family returning from the water with their young kids. The woman surprised him yet again with another side of her—the insightful one.
It was funny she’d reminded him he couldn’t save all his patients when she’s determined to find one girl she’d seen for mere seconds. He would hate to be the one to tell her the same thing if they couldn’t find any leads.
However, it was her simple statement that he could fill in Dr. Bloom’s shoes if he wanted that humbled him. She obviously thought highly of Dr. Bloom, which made her statement mean more to him. He wanted to be the kind of doctor who knew his patients inside out, not just as names on the charts which he’d forget once they left.
It was probably why he’d burned out at the ER, because he couldn’t file the patients away at the end of the day. But could he do better for patients in this small town than in Atlanta?
“Gene!”
Amanda waved him to come join her.
Shaking his thoughts aside, he sped up and met her and the family.
“This is Dr. Rowland,” Amanda quickly introduced him to the parents looking at them suspiciously.
Gene guessed she’d introduced him with the doctor title to gain some trust. He’d be cautious, too, if two strangers showed up out of nowhere in the middle of a wooded park.
“Hi. How are you doing?” he greeted them with a smile.
“Like I said earlier, I’m Amanda. I own the bookstore cafe in town called Sanctuary.” She established they were normal people. “We’re looking for a girl who might be missing. She was last seen a couple of miles from here. We were hoping someone might’ve seen her.”
“There were a few people on the beach,” the dad said. “The park is pretty quiet right now. That’s why we chose to come this time of year.”
“Where did y’all travel from?” Gene asked in a conversational tone.
“Missouri,” the dad answered.
Amanda took out her phone and pulled up the sketch.
“Does this girl look familiar at all?”
The dad squinted at the small picture on the phone. Gene wondered if they should’ve taken print copies to hand out.
“No, I don’t think so,” he said, then called his wife back. “Cary, have you seen this girl?”
Cary, who was minding her two children, told them to behave before coming closer. She took a few seconds more with the picture, but she shook her head.
“Yeah, no.”
“She’s about fourteen or fifteen, about five-five, blonde hair, brown eyes.”
Amanda added details, maybe hoping they’d make the girl more real.
“Most of the kids we’ve seen around in this park are about our children’s age or younger,” Cary said, shrugging. “Sorry. Who is she?”
Amanda sighed. “We’re not sure, but I think she might need help. She might be hiding, so she probably wouldn’t be out on the beach.”
“Mama, who are they?” The couple’s older child asked.
The girl seemed to be four or five years old.
“They’re just looking for their friend, honey,” Cary asked.
“Can I pet your dog?” the little girl asked.
Loki was sitting quietly by Amanda’s leg, but always alert. His eyes brightened when the girl looked at him.
“He’s friendly. Yes, you may pet him if it’s okay with your parents. His name is Loki,” Amanda said.
Gene smiled as the children ran their little fingers into Loki’s soft fur. The dog loved the attention.
Gene returned his attention to the parents and said, “Thank you for your time. If you see the girl, would you mind calling us?”
“Yeah, sure.” The dad took the paper with Amanda’s number. “You think she’s hiding in these woods?”
“We don’t really know,” Gene said honestly. “We’re trying every avenue.”
“You know, I thought somebody might’ve stolen some of our stuff,” Cary said. “That’s why we were kinda wary when you approached us. We’ve been here since Saturday, and everything was fine. But then I couldn’t find a blanket we left out after we sat outside one evening.”
“A blanket?” Amanda questioned.
“And a beach towel.” Cary nodded. “Also, our friends, at the next spot, said they must’ve forgotten an entire bag of groceries at the store. But they swore they’d put in the car. They brought in their supplies, but when they came back out to get the rest, one bag was missing. It was only a loaf of bread, jars of peanut butter and jelly, and some snacks in the bag. But they had to go back out to get more because those are the only things their son will eat right now.”
Amanda looked at Gene with hope in her eyes.
“Where is your friend’s spot?” Gene asked the couple.
“Just around this curve,” the dad said.
“Thank you.” Amanda grabbed the mom’s hand and squeezed it.
“Do you think it’s this girl? And she’s hiding?” Cary asked, concerned, like any mother would. “It gets kinda spooky in the woods at night. What kind of trouble is she in that she’d rather hide there?”
“That’s what I’d like to find out,” Amanda said, with a renewed determination etched on her face.
“This could be the lead we’ve been waiting for,” Amanda said as they hurried to the next RV. Her blood was pumping with adrenaline after their conversation with Cary and her husband, Lucas. Even Loki seemed to get a burst of energy in his paws.
“Maybe.” Gene’s reply was more restrained than her bubbling excitement.
Amanda turned to look at him. “You don’t think it is?”
“We have vagabonds like any other place. It could be anyone,” he cautioned. “I just don’t want you to be disappointed if it isn’t her.”
“I got a good feeling about this.”
She did, even if she couldn’t explain why or how.
“Do you always trust your gut feelings?”
Amanda didn’t even hesitate. “Yes.”
Like I know you’re a good man from the moment I met you. Like I know you should stay.
But Amanda didn’t say it out loud. Gene needed to figure it out for himself.
Gene held her arm to slow her down.
“Amanda, I think we need to be realistic here and manage our expectations.”
She stopped and turned to him. Loki yelped at the delay.
“It might be something, it might be not. I know that. Don’t worry about me. I know you tend to be cautious and make sure things line up before you decide on anything. It’s your training. But trust me on this. My feelings are never wrong.”
His left brow rose in amusement. “Maybe you should’ve gone the law enforcement route instead of baking.”
“And deprive people of my delicious treats?”
She threw him a side smile as she resumed walking.
They got to the next space where a shiny Airstream was parked. Gene whistled his admiration at the sleek silver trailer.
“That is nice,” he said.
Amanda gave him a surprised glance. “I didn’t think you’d be into trailers, Doc.”
“I’m not, but I can appreciate a beauty when I see one,” he said as they rounded the front end of the RV toward the side door.
It was open. A young girl of eleven or twelve wearing earbuds attached to an iPod was sitting on a canvas chair facing the lake. Amanda didn’t see an adult.
Amanda walked around her with Loki, giving a wide berth so as to not startle the girl. She gave a small wave.
The girl didn’t react much to Amanda and Loki, but she yelled out, “Mom! There are people out here!”
Amanda jumped at the unexpected announcement, but quick to recover.
“Oh good, your mom’s here.”
A woman showed up at the open door of the Airstream.
“Is there something you want?” she demanded, her wary eyes flicked from Gene to Amanda.
“Hi, we just talked to your neighbors at slot 20, Cary and Lucas,” Gene said, getting straight to the point. “I’m Gene and this is Amanda. We’re looking for a missing girl. Maybe you might have seen her around?”
“Missing girl?”
The woman frowned, but relaxed a bit. She stepped off from the Airstream and went to stand next to her daughter.
“Yes. We’re sorry to just walk up to your door like this,” Amanda said.
“No, that’s all right. I’m sorry for being rude. We just had some weird things happening around here. It’s had me a bit on edge.”
“That’s what Cary told us. We want to ask you about that. Maybe it’s related to the girl we’re looking for,” Amanda said. “She was last seen not far from here. We’re hoping someone might have run into her.”
“What are we talking about here? A little girl, teenager, an adult?”
“Teenager. Here.” Amanda quickly produced the sketch. “She has blonde hair, brown eyes, around five-five.”
The woman frowned at her. “You don’t have an actual picture?”
“We’re not really sure who she is,” Amanda answered.
“Then why are you looking for her?” the woman questioned.
Amanda sighed, thinking of the best way to explain the situation.
“We think she might be in trouble or running from a dangerous situation,” Gene said. “Amanda here saw her briefly but wasn’t able to get more information before the girl disappeared.”
It was stretching the story a bit, but Amanda thought it sounded better than I almost hit her with my car and she vanished into thin air.
“Cary told us they had a few things missing, a blanket and a towel. And you’ve lost some groceries,” Amanda said. “Did you figure out whether you just forgot them at the store or did they go missing?”
“No, I didn’t forget them, I’m sure,” the mom said. “We had a few other bags to haul in, and I asked Stella to get the rest.” The mom gestured to her daughter. “But one was definitely missing.”
Both Gene and Amanda looked at the girl.
“Did you see anyone when you took the groceries in, Stella?” Gene asked.
The girl shook her head but couldn’t meet either of their eyes. Young girls weren’t exactly great at eye contact, but there was that feeling again, nudging Amanda.
“Stella,” she said gently, showing Stella the sketch. “Have you seen this girl?”
Stella looked at the sketch for a second before averting her eyes to her mother.
“What is it, honey?” the mother asked.
“I’m sorry,” the little girl blurted out.
“What are you sorry for?” the mom asked, confused.
“I gave the bag of food to Mona.” The girl burst out in tears. “She and her brother were hungry and had nothing to eat. I’m sorry you had to go back and get more food for Andy.”
“Who’s Mona?” the mom asked, as she exchanged baffled looks with Amanda and Gene. “Stella, what are you talking about?”
The girl was now in full panic mode, worried about her mother’s reaction. She was gasping in breath.
“Ma’am,” Gene quickly took charge. “I’m sorry. What’s your name?”
“Trudy.”
“Trudy, I’m a doctor. May I help Stella catch her breath?” he asked for consent.
“Yes, yes!” the mom said anxiously.
Gene gestured for the mom to help her daughter sit on the folding chair. He crouched next to Stella and spoke gently to her.
“Stella, can you focus on my voice? Let’s take a deep breath together on my count, okay? Slowly, we inhale for four counts, then exhale for four. Can you do that with me?”
The girl’s eyes were bewildered, but she nodded.
“Is she allergic to dogs?” Gene asked Trudy. When the mom shook her head, he called Loki to sit by the girl. “Stella, you can pet Loki if you want. He’s a good boy.”
Amanda and Trudy watched as Gene guided Stella into a slow, deep breathing exercise, while the girl had an arm around Loki. After a few counts, the girl calmed. Trudy enfolded Stella into a hug, looking relieved.
“Thank you,” Trudy said to Gene.
Amanda blew an audible sigh as she threw a grateful look at Gene. The girl’s reaction was unexpected, but now she knew Stella was going to be fine, the girl’s revelation was a bombshell.
After giving Stella a few minutes to collect herself, Amanda tried again.
“Stella, can you tell us who Mona is? You won’t get into trouble, I promise.”
“I’m not mad at you, honey,” Trudy assured her. “But if you know about the missing girl, you should say something.”
“She said not to tell anyone,” Stella started speaking while still hugging Loki. “She doesn’t want him to find them.”
“Them?” Amanda asked.
“She and her little brother.”
Amanda gasped.
She’s not alone.
“Is this Mona?” Gene showed Stella the sketch again.
The girl nodded. “They’re camping in the woods. I don’t know which part, but away from the campground.”
Amanda locked gazes with Gene.
She’s real. And she has a name and a brother.
“Who’s him?” Trudy asked. “Who are they hiding from?”
The girl shook her head. “I don’t know. I saw her when I came back up here to get my book that first day we got to the park.”
“That’s Monday. We went shopping the next day.”
“They needed food. She said the food she brought ran out, and her brother was starving.”
“Have you seen the brother?” Gene asked.
Stella shook her head. “But I think he’s younger.”
“Stella, you did the right thing telling us about Mona.” Amanda covered Stella’s hand. “Thank you.”