Chapter 7 – Presley
PRESLEY
After spending most of the morning in a state of anxiety while changing clothes more times than I cared to admit, I arrived at the clubhouse a few minutes after two.
Just like Ink said, I gave my name to a young man at the gate, and he buzzed me through.
Once I parked, I took a deep breath and sent a text to Ink.
Assuming it would take him a few minutes to get the text and make his way to the front, I took my time gathering my things and checking my appearance in the rearview mirror, which is why I flinched and let out a small yelp when he tapped on my window.
He held his hands out while he tried to hide his amusement. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“I should’ve been paying attention,” I said as I opened my door and got out of my car.
Ink immediately took the large container from my hands. “What’s in here?”
“Cookies. I wasn’t sure how many to bring, but I didn’t want to show up empty-handed.”
“You didn’t have to bring anything, but you’re definitely going to make some friends with these,” he said.
He led me into the clubhouse and over to a table where Ember was putting out bowls of chips and other snacks. “Got room for cookies?” he asked.
Ember gasped dramatically. “Oh, thank you! I forgot to order sweets, and we didn’t have a lot here to choose from.”
Ink pointed at me. “The credit goes to her.”
“Thank you, Presley. I’m glad you could make it. Is Ariel here?” she asked.
“No, she’s spending the weekend with my parents.”
“Well, for future reference, she’s welcome at any of our cookouts. I can promise those are always family-friendly events.”
“Thank you,” I said. “I’m sure she’ll be disappointed she missed out on the fun.”
“If you don’t need any help, I’m going to introduce Presley to some of the members she hasn’t met,” Ink said.
“I’ve got plenty of help around here,” Ember said and waved her hand at the numerous people standing around talking. Then she looked directly at me. “Don’t worry about remembering the guys’ names. It’s on their chest,” she said and pointed to a patch on Ink’s chest.
“Thank you,” I said. I’d been trying not to acknowledge the large number of people in the room.
“It’ll be fine,” Ink said. “No one expects you to remember everyone’s names the first day.”
“The first day? You say that like there’ll be a second.” What was I doing? Trying to flirt was what I was doing, and I sucked at it.
“There will be,” he grinned.
We were about to start a game of pool with Dice and Daphne when my cell phone rang. I smiled when I saw Ariel’s name on the screen. “Excuse me just a moment,” I said before answering her call.
“Mom.” The sound of her shaky voice had me instantly on alert.
“What’s wrong?”
“We can’t find Nana,” she cried.
“What? Where’s Papa?”
“He’s talking to the police. Nana took Frisco for a walk, but they were gone a lot longer than usual. When we went out to look for them, we found Frisco, but we can’t find her.”
“You stay with Papa and do what the police say. I’m on my way.”
“I’m scared, Mom,” she said quietly.
“I know, baby. Stay with Papa for right now. I’ll call you back once I’m in the car.”
“Okay,” she sniffled.
“I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
When I ended the call, I realized the music had been turned off, and everyone in the room was watching me. Ink had moved closer to my side and placed his large hand on my back. “What happened?”
“My mom is missing,” I told him and swallowed thickly. “I have to go.”
“I’ll drive you,” Ink said. “You’re upset, and so is Ariel. You can talk to her while I drive.”
“They’re not close.”
“I don’t care,” he said.
I didn’t have the time or energy to argue. “Deal. Let’s go.”
When I saw Phoenix approaching, I thought for sure he was going to stop us, and I really didn’t want to bulldoze their president to get to my daughter, but I would. Thankfully, he fell into step with Ink and talked while we walked. “Where are your parents?”
“Crestview Nature Park and Campground.”
“Can we join you and help search for your mother?” he asked.
My steps faltered, but Ink caught my arm and steadied me before I hit the ground. “Yes,” I said as tears filled my eyes. “We’ll take all the help we can get.”
He smiled kindly. “We have a couple of dogs that are scent-trained. We’ll get them loaded up and be right behind you. What’s your mom’s name?”
“Thank you,” I croaked and cleared my throat. “Her name is Alice Calloway.”
He nodded in acknowledgment and jogged back to the clubhouse while Ink guided me to an SUV I didn’t recognize. As we were getting in, I heard a man shout, “Wait!” I turned to see Dice and Daphne running toward us with their dog, Diablo, beside them.
Dice opened one of the back doors, and the three of them hopped in and took their seats in record time. “Let’s roll,” Dice said.
Ink hit the gas and peeled out of the forecourt with a spray of dirt and squealing tires. I wiped the tears from my face and turned in my seat. “Thank you for coming.”
“You don’t know it yet, but these two,” Daphne said and gestured to Ink and Dice, “are a package deal. Where one goes, the other goes.” Then she patted Diablo’s head. “And this one has been scent-training, so he might be able to help better than any of us.”
I couldn’t help it. The tears started flowing again. “I can’t tell you how much this means to me. That you all are willing to drop whatever you were doing and help look for a woman you don’t even know. Especially the president of your club.”
“Phoenix’s oldest son and his now wife were lost in the mountains many years ago. The kindness of strangers saved both of them. So, if there’s any way he can be the kind stranger for someone else, he’s going to do it,” Ink said and squeezed my hand. “Call Ariel back. Tell her the cavalry’s coming.”
With shaking hands, I tapped my phone and called my daughter.
“Mom, are you on your way?” she sniffled.
“Yes, and I’m bringing some friends with me to help.”
“Is it Ink?” she asked, sounding hopeful.
“Yes, it’s Ink, and some of his friends. I don’t know if you remember Phoenix.”
“It’s hard to forget the leader of the tough guys,” she said in a way only a teenager could.
“He’s coming with some other people, and they’re bringing some of their dogs that can track people by scent,” I told her. “How’s Papa? What did the police say?”
“Papa’s still talking to one of the officers, but there are some others here that are walking around and calling her name,” she said.
“I know you want to go out and look, but it’s important that you stay put so we don’t lose you, too.”
“That’s what Papa said,” she grumbled.
“He’s a smart man.”
“Do you think she’s okay?” she asked, and I could hear the fear in her voice.
“I hope so.” I really didn’t want to give her false hope, but I could tell she needed some kind of reassurance or something to cling to while she waited.
“If I had to guess, I’d say she probably fell while she was walking the dog, maybe slid down a ravine or something, and is just waiting for someone to find her. ”
“What if she’s hurt?”
“She might be, but that’s okay. We’ll find her, get her back to the campground, and then get her to the hospital.”
“Ariel, we need to show this officer the route you and Nana took yesterday when you walked Frisco,” I heard my dad say through the phone.
“Go with Papa and tell him I’m on my way. You can call me back if you need to,” I told her.
“Okay, Mom. Love you.”
“I love you, too.”
Sighing, I relaxed into my seat and closed my eyes.
“Anything new?” Ink asked.
“No. The police are there and looking. It sounded rather casual from what Ariel described.”
“What exactly happened?” Dice asked.
“My daughter and parents are camping for the weekend. My mom took their dog for a walk and didn’t come back. When Dad and Ariel went to look for her, they found the dog, but not my mom.”
“Do we know if anyone put Shaker on standby?” Dice asked.
“I don’t even know what that means,” I said.
“Shaker has a helicopter,” Daphne explained. “If need be, he can fly over the area to search in places we can’t see.”
I turned around and gaped at her. “You’re serious?”
“Yes,” she nodded. “He flew us to the hospital when our daughter was born.”
“She makes it sound special,” Ink added. “He flies that helicopter whenever he has a chance.”
“But I’m not one of you.”
Daphne grinned. “That’s what you think.”
Dice nudged her with his elbow, but before I could ask what she meant, Ink’s phone rang through the speakers. “Hey, Phoenix. You’re on with me, Presley, and the three Ds.”
“Hello, people that rhyme. Any news?”
“The police are there and looking. It sounds like they’re just getting started and maybe aren’t very exuberant in their efforts thus far,” Ink said.
“Well, I’m sure things will pick up when our crew arrives,” he said. “We’ve got Shadow and Moose with us, and Shaker is on standby. Jacquelyn is, too, in case she needs to coordinate any medical attention.”
“Thanks, Prez.”
“Yes, thank you,” I said. “Thank you so much.”
“No problem. You guys drive safe. We’ll see you soon,” he said and ended the call.
“Who is Jacquelyn?” I asked. And why would she need to coordinate my mother’s medical care?
“She’s Shaker’s mom,” Ink said.
“That’s not what she’s asking,” Daphne said. “She’s on the Board of Directors for numerous hospitals, and I think she owns some of them, too.”
“Hold on,” I said and turned around once again. “Are you talking about Jacquelyn Marks?”
“The one and only,” Daphne confirmed.
“So Shaker is—”
“Her billionaire son,” Daphne finished for me.
“They don’t act like billionaires,” I mused. “Shaker and Keegan, I mean. Jacquelyn’s wealth is obvious, but I’ve only ever heard good things about her.”
“That’s part of what makes them so great. They act just like everyone else,” she said.
“Except that one time,” Dice and Ink said in unison.
“What one time?” I asked.