ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝟛𝟠 #2
People slowly settled into their chairs. News cameras switched on as bright red recording lights blinked to life.
I looked toward the entrance again. Still no Dixie.
6:19.
Okay.
She probably got held up at work. Maybe a client, or that demanding boss of hers, Ted.
I didn't actually know where she was working today. She'd said she had something important.
I should've asked more questions.
No- that wouldn't be fair.
She'd told me she'd come afterward, and I believed her. There was no reason not to.
Dad appeared beside me, straightening his tie. "You ready?"
"As I'll ever be." I tried smiling for him.
He rested a hand against my shoulder. "I'm glad you're here, son."
I nodded, smiling at him.
One of Ralph's assistants approached. "Mr. West."
Dad turned.
"We're live in sixty seconds."
He nodded once. "Great, thank you."
The assistant hurried away. I checked my phone again.
6:21.
I frowned slightly. Maybe her phone was on silent. That had to be it.
She'd probably walk in halfway through, find me afterward, and everything would be fine. I repeated that in my head like it was a fact.
A man I've never seen before stepped toward the microphone. "Ladies and gentlemen. Thank you all for being here this evening."
Hundreds of people fell silent.
"I wish we were gathered under happier circumstances."
Behind the stage stood an enormous banner.
Her smiling school picture stretched nearly six feet tall. I looked away. I couldn't bear to see her right now.
"The West family has spent the last several weeks searching tirelessly for eleven-year-old Molly West." The man continued.
"Tonight isn't only about raising awareness, but about bringing a community together. If one person leaves here remembering Molly's face, then that means tonight mattered."
Polite applause rippled through the crowd.
I looked toward the entrance again.
Why wasn't she texting? Dixie always texted if she was running late.
Even if it was just one word. Anything.
I pulled my phone out again as the police chief stepped forward.
He spoke calmly, explaining search areas, volunteer efforts, and the undergoing investigation.
I tried to listen- I really did.
But every time someone walked near the entrance, my eyes snapped toward them.
But they didn't have dark hair, long dress or tall heels.
Every woman became Dixie for half a second, then they didn't.
My stomach started twisting.
Stop it Cameron. You're being ridiculous.
She's coming, she literally said she would. I shoved my phone back into my pocket.
The mayor spoke next.
The mayor came?
Dad knew everyone. politicians to business leaders, and police commissioners. I wouldn't be surprised if he pulled the president up next.
The mayor talked about community, hope, and unity. Refusing to give up until Molly came home. I nodded at the appropriate moments, but my eyes kept searching.
6:41.
Now I was worried.
Maybe she'd gotten into an accident.
No, don't think like that. Maybe traffic had completely stopped- her phone probably died.
Why was I making excuses? She wouldn't just not come.
That wasn't Dixie.
Dad's name echoed through the speakers. Ralph West walked onto the stage. The applause lasted almost thirty seconds. Everyone knew he was speaking as a father tonight.
Not a businessman who owned several of the largest companies in the state.
He stepped behind the podium, removed his glasses and looked out across the crowd.
For nearly ten seconds he couldn't speak.
Mom quietly walked beside him, slipping her hand into his.
Only then did he find his voice. "My daughter... she should be home."
The audience fell completely silent. He spoke about Molly's laugh, how he raised her. People smiled through tears.
I looked toward the entrance.
6:54.
My chest felt tight.
Mom stepped forward. Unlike Dad, she didn't stumble over her words- but cried while speaking.
She thanked every volunteer, and every detective. Every stranger who'd shared Molly's picture.
Then Jonathan climbed onto the stage.
He barely reached the microphone. One of the technicians had to quietly lower it for him. Jonathan looked impossibly tiny standing beneath the bright television lights.
Why were they making an eight year old give a speech about his missing sister? Sounded nuts to me.
He swallowed hard. "Hi."
"I..."He looked toward Dad who was backstage, then back at the audience.
"If Molly can hear me, please come home."
"I miss you." His breathing became uneven.
"And..I don't like sleeping without you there."
A tear rolled down his cheek. "Mom cries every day, Dad is exhausted."
His tiny shoulders shook. I looked away for one second. I couldn't bear seeing my little brother liked that, c'mon.
When I looked back toward the entrance, there still wasn't any Dixie.
Jonathan burst into tears before he could finish. A security officer gently walked onto the stage, kneeling beside him.
"It's okay, buddy." He told him.
Jonathan buried his face against the man's shoulder as he was quietly guided backstage. The cameras never stopped rolling.
"Cameron." I looked up.
Dad stood beside me. "It's your turn."
My turn, already?
I nodded. My microphone pack was clipped into place. One of the technicians adjusted the headset.
"Can you hear me?" I tested.
"Loud and clear."
"Perfect." I took one slow breath.
I didn't realize how many people were here until I came up front. As I stepped toward the stage, my eyes still found the entrance.
6:58 PM.
She had to be here. Maybe she was standing somewhere in the back.
I stepped behind the podium. The lights were brighter than I expected.
There were rows and rows, full of faces, hundreds of faces. I searched for only one with the dark curls and elegant dress, but none of them resembled her.
My heart skipped.
No, I had to keep looking. She's here. She has to be.
My eyes moved farther back. She probably stayed near the entrance. She wasn't there.
I cleared my throat. "Good evening..."
The words caught. I blinked before looking again.
Where are you?
"My..." I swallowed. "My name is Cameron West."
My voice sounded strange, even to me.
I kept looking every few seconds.
I saw women with dark hair, but none of them were her. I saw navy dresses, but none of them were hers.
I saw people checking their phones, people exchanging glances, I saw people crying. I saw everything except the one person I needed to see.
I can't cry in front of all these people.
Save that for later, Cameron.
"I..."
I completely lost my place. The audience waited patiently. I glanced towards Dad who was watching from backstage.
His eyebrows furrowed and he frowned. I forced myself forward.
"My little sister..Molly.."
My eyes swept across the crowd one last time, but I didn't see Dixie. The one person I needed support from.
A strange hollowness settled in my stomach.
She's not here.
The thought came so quietly it almost didn't feel real.
Maybe she's parking, and she's outside.
Why hasn't she texted or called? Just why didn't she tell me?
"She really means everything to me." My voice cracked.
I looked down at my notes.
The words blurred under my glossy eyes. I couldn't read them.
I couldn't even think straight. I could only feel the awful, sinking certainty spreading through my chest.
She wasn't coming.
Or she was so late that it didn't matter anymore.
Either way, I was standing in front of hundreds of people talking about Molly. And the person who promised she'd be here wasn't.
I somehow pulled myself together and finished the speech.
I wasn't even sure what I said anymore.
I basically said what everyone else did.
Search, help, and bring Molly home.
The applause felt distant as I stepped off the stage to go downstairs.
People immediately surrounded me. "Cameron, wonderful speech."
"We're praying for you, Cam!"
I answered none of them properly.
Over every shoulder I was still looking toward the parking lot.
Waiting for one person.
My wife.
I stopped making excuses for her, and I stopped telling myself she was stuck in traffic.
I even stopped believing she was just around the corner.
The truth was standing right in front of me.
She wasn't here.I had no idea why.
Her being here would make this whole event better.
~