2. Emma
TWO
Emma
It took me a good five minutes to realize I was still holding the kitchen sponge, my hands dripping water onto the counter, and Daniel was staring at me.
I pressed the sponge down, wiped a final streak off the counter like that would solve anything, and took a second to pull myself back into the present.
“Come on,” Daniel said, voice pitched low, more of a rumble than a sound. “You need a second to breathe.”
I did. Or at least, my armpits did, and possibly everywhere else currently marinating in stress and stale adrenaline. “Fine,” I managed, and let him shepherd me into the hallway.
The stairs creaked under our weight. One of us really needed to put oil on those someday, and by one of us, I meant me, since Henry would rather reprogram the thermostat to play the Zelda theme every time I raised the temperature.
Upstairs, the air changed. My room was still a disaster.
Rumpled sheets, the comforter in a pile on the floor, and three different pairs of shoes tossed around.
I pawed through my dresser for yoga pants and something clean, and Daniel disappeared into the bathroom, where the pipes began their usual protest under the shower’s demand for hot water.
I flopped onto the bed and stared at the ceiling fan, waiting for my turn in the shower, hoping it would clear my head.
By the time I emerged from the shower half an hour later, I was a little less of a dumpster fire and a little more “woman who could pass for functional on a Zoom call.” Daniel had cleaned up and chosen a blue flannel shirt I loved.
The one that made his eyes even greener.
He sat on the edge of the bed, towel-drying his hair.
“Better?” he asked, eyes crinkling in concern.
I shrugged. I meant to say something light, but it came out wrong. “I’m not sure there’s enough soap in the world, but I smell less like lasagna.”
He smirked. The real, warm version, not the one he faked for polite society. “You always smell good.”
“That’s because you’re used to the smell of bear fur,” I said, trying not to smile and almost succeeding. “And if I ever smell like Henry’s old socks, just shoot me.”
“Deal.” He set the towel aside and patted the bed next to him. “Sit. You look like you need cuddles.”
No, what I needed to do was help find Alice, but I let myself drop next to him, legs sticking out, hair still damp. He didn’t say anything for a long minute, just took my hand and rubbed it.
“You think we’ll actually find her?” I asked, staring at the wall because looking at Daniel’s face would make it too real. “I mean, you think retracing her steps is going to get us somewhere or are we just—” I mimed a circular motion. “Running laps in a maze?”
He shrugged. “People don’t just disappear,” he said. “Not unless there’s a damn good reason. Somebody takes them, or they run because somebody’s chasing. Either way, what she did right before she vanished. That’s the thread we need to pull.”
He sounded so sure. It was almost enough to trick my brain into believing it, too.
“I just don’t want to let Henry down,” I whispered.
“You’re not going to.” Daniel grabbed my shoulder and squeezed, then smoothed down my arm, rough calluses catching on bare skin.
“If Alice left for a reason, that reason’s out there.
Somewhere. And we’re going to find it before anyone else.
And if someone took her, well, those clues are out there too. ”
He leaned down and pressed a kiss onto my shoulder.
I shifted until our elbows touched, then looked over. “What are you going to do after this? I mean, after you’re done babysitting us.”
Daniel snorted. “I’m going to head down to the station, see if I can get eyes on any more security footage. Stores, traffic cams, whatever’s watching the stretch between here and the next county. If anyone so much as blinks in Alice’s direction, I’ll see it.”
That wasn’t nothing. I tried to think of the right thing to say to thank him, but words all turned to syrup behind my teeth.
So instead, I blurted, “You’re the best ex-sheriff slash bear shifter slash armchair detective I could’ve asked for.”
He ran one big hand down his face. “Don’t let the current sheriff hear you call me that.”
“Sure,” I said. “Your secret’s safe with me.”
He squeezed my hand once more, then kissed my cheek and then we both jumped nearly a foot as the doorbell went off downstairs. The moment shattered.
“I’m going to scream,” I announced.
He was already on his feet. “After you.”
Getting dressed took about four seconds. My jeans still had a paint stain from an art project last year, but at least I’d grabbed a shirt without a stain on it. Daniel looked equally unbothered by his slightly rumpled clothes. We hustled back down the stairs.
I yanked the front door open, already composing my excuse for why we looked like sleep-deprived raccoons.
Instead, there they were. Beth in her favorite sage green cardigan, arms folded like she was about to take on the Supreme Court.
Carol with wild hair, wearing three clashing scarves even though it was warm.
And Deva, looking more awake than anyone ought to look after such a rough past few days, her bangles already at full chime.
“Um,” I said, before the rest of my brain caught up. “What are you guys doing here?”
Beth was the first to muscle in. “You texted about Alice. Obviously, we came.” She scanned my face, eyes narrowing. “You look like hell, by the way. I love it.”
“Thanks?” I shot a glance at Carol, who just grinned.
“I made muffins,” Deva announced, as if they were a life-or-death solution. “Chocolate chip, which cures all known ills. I also brought a backup banana nut, in case you’re in a health-food mood.” She shoved a plastic container into my hands like her magical muffins might just solve this mystery.
Beth looked past me into the entryway, eyes landing on Daniel. “We’re not interrupting anything spicy, are we?” Her eyebrow quirked almost high enough to touch her hairline.
“Only if you count existential dread as spicy,” I said.
Daniel hid a smile, and Beth snorted. “What’s the plan, Emma? We’re here. Use us.”
It took me a second to catch up. “You guys dropped everything, just like that? What about the fabric store? The restaurant? The psych business? Deva, weren’t you slammed today?”
Deva shrugged. “Lucas is running the kitchen. Trust me, he’d rather I not be there micromanaging the milk frother. Besides, you get one missing friend per year—might as well make it count.”
Carol chimed in. “Yards and Yarns won’t burn down without me. Hazel is there running things, and I left a hex bag by the register to keep everyone honest. And I told the regulars there’s a sale on discontinued yarn, so the place will be emptied of wool by dinner.”
Beth just rolled her eyes. “There wasn’t any pressing business at the psych shop.
Python and Buster were fighting again, that damn cat is convinced that Python is trying to take over the world, just because he’s a mouse.
I can investigate Leo’s missing, talking, bike another day.
The conflict among the gnomes is always there.
I get another request for help from them every few months.
There’s a shapeshifter stealing pies from the bakery, I think.
Basically, all my little cases aren’t more of a priority than this. ”
I tried not to get emotional, but it was like someone had wrung out my insides. “Thank you,” I said, staring at their faces, even if my sight went a little blurry. “You guys are just so–”
“Don’t say thank you,” Deva cut in. “Say what we’re doing, because I’m burning daylight standing here and my shoes aren’t made for standing.”
Right. Focus. Time to put my big girl pants on and approach this like all my other cases.
“I have the list,” I said. “Hang on.”
I ducked back into the kitchen, grabbed Henry’s note from the table, and returned to the entryway, where everyone had already migrated to the bench by the door and pushed their way inside. I scanned the scribbled lines.
“So, this is everywhere Alice was supposed to go two days ago. Library, then Vale Provisions, the gaming store, maybe the movies, book club, coffee shop, and helping Krissy with her collectibles.”
Beth plucked the page out of my hand and squinted at it. “Library seems like the obvious starting point. But,” She tapped the paper. “Gaming store?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Apparently there was a new figurine release. Wicked Widow, or something. Alice never misses those. If she made it anywhere, it’s probably there.”
Deva nodded. “Okay. We hit these spots in order, see if anyone remembers her actually showing up. Maybe someone saw something weird.”
“I like weird,” Carol said, rooting around in her tote and producing a pair of sunglasses that looked one step away from Elton John cosplay. “Do we need disguises? Or is this more of a face-forward operation?”
Beth, ever the pragmatist, rolled her eyes. “Let’s just get in the car and go. If anyone’s going to spot a clue, it’ll be Emma’s crew of middle-aged lady commandos.”
Daniel, who’d been lurking in the background, finally spoke up. “I’m swinging by the sheriff’s office to check on security footage. I’ll text if I find anything big.”
“You’ll do more than the current sheriff,” Beth muttered.
He gave us a salute and headed out, but not before pausing at the threshold and catching my arm for a second. “Call me if you get anything?” His tone was gentle, but the steel underneath meant business.
I squeezed his arm back. “I will. Thanks, Daniel.”
He ducked his head, and then he was gone, the thud of his boots echoing down the front walk.
Back inside, I looked at my friends. “Ready?”
Beth squared her shoulders. “Let’s go, then. If Alice is out there, we’ll find her.”
Carol slung her bag over her shoulder and aimed for the door. “I call shotgun.”
“Fine, but you have to DJ,” Deva tossed over her shoulder, pushing past her.
I just shook my head, overwhelmed in the best possible way. “You guys really are the best,” I muttered, grabbing my keys and notebook.
Outside, sunlight glared off the hood of Beth’s still-new-to-her Pontiac Catalina, the paint so red it looked like a maraschino cherry in the heat.
We piled into Beth’s big car, arguing over music and snacks, and for the first time since Alice disappeared, I had hope that we might actually get somewhere.
We had a plan. We had muffins. And we weren’t alone.
It wasn’t much, but for now, it was enough.