Page 25 of Single All the Way

“Please, Skyler, come back. Be okay,” I pleaded quietly, desperately. Then I yelled her name again. Each time, I listened carefully, hoping to hear something in return, but there was no response. I could hear Ben calling out in the distance from time to time, but no little-girl answer.

My pleas turned to prayers to God, begging for her to be okay.

The day was cloudy but dry, so at least she wasn’t getting wet, but it was chilly, in the forties. It got dark early this time of year. The sun would set in another hour or so. If we hadn’t found her by then, I was calling in every law enforcement team I could think of.

Maybe I should call them now? Wouldn’t it be better to get them searchingbeforeit got dark?

I reached the county road and turned right, hurrying along the outside of the trees, nausea rising, hysteria making me want to scream things besides my daughter’s name, but I held it in because it wouldn’t help us find her.

I didn’t know exactly where Ben’s land ended, but I didn’t figure it mattered. I just kept going, futilely calling for Skyler, my panic growing with every minute that passed. I wouldn’t stop until we had her back.

A while later—I wasn’t sure how much time had gone by—I spotted the next cross street in the distance. I had probably a quarter of a mile to get there, but this was doing no good. Skyler wasn’t popping out of the woods or calling out for her mommy. I’d never felt so utterly helpless in my life.

I lifted my phone to call Ben and figure out a better way. It rang, and his name appeared before I could press Call myself. My heart took off at a sprint again.

“Did you find her?—”

“I’ve got her,” he said. “She’s okay.”

“Oh, my God. Thank God. Where?”

“Meet me back at the house, and we’ll talk. Let’s get her inside.”

“You’re sure she’s okay?”

“Say hi to your mommy,” I heard him say, his voice farther away.

“Hi, Mommy,” Skyler said in a quiet voice.

“Skyler! Are you okay?”

“Yes.” Her voice was tiny, as if she was scared or exhausted or both.

“We’re heading to the house,” came Ben’s voice. “Skyler’s no worse for wear, but are you okay?”

“I will be as soon as I hug her.” Dozens of questions circled my mind, but I swallowed them down. “See you as soon as I can get there.”

I ended the call and took off running, or more like hobbling in the awful shoes that were likely ruined. I didn’t care. I considered throwing them into the woods, but that would slow me down, and I needed to get to my girl.

When I burst into the kitchen, gasping for air from running who knew how far and being terrified for the past hour, three dogs circled and sniffed me, but I sought out my daughter.

Skyler climbed down from Berty’s lap in the dining room, ran up to me, and threw her arms around my legs. I picked her up and squeezed her tight, breathing in her little-girl smell, tears gushing down my face.

“Baby girl, what were you doing? You scared me to death.”

Skyler buried her head in my neck and wailed.

My son rushed to us and put his arms around my waist, telling me he was shaken up too. I bent down to hold both my children close. Through my tears, I saw Evelyn hanging on to Ben’s side, and Ruby had crawled into her grandma’s lap.

I met Ben’s gaze as he hovered a couple feet away.

“She said she wanted to gohome,” he said gently, breaking my heart.

I squeezed my eyes shut. “Baby, this is our home right now. This is where our family is: you, me, and Xavier. That’s home. Sometimes the place has to change, but we’re all together, right?”

“I wanna live with Nana,” she said through her tears.

My poor, darling girl. We’d talked a dozen times about Kizzy falling in love and getting married and having to move away so she could be with her new wife. I’d explained how Nana still loved her to the moon and back and always would. The three of us had discussed finding a new house where we could live happily ever after and that it would take some time for me to find the right place.

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