Page 6 of Clashing Moon

“Fine. Whatever you say. But if you show up in my office with a broken arm or leg, I’m going to have to report it.”

Her eyebrows lifted, and she gave me a look of utter disdain. “Report it? You’ve got to be kidding. None of this is your business.”

“Tell that to my mama.”

The mention of my mother gave her pause. Regardless of what she felt about me, she loved Stella Moon, just like everyone else in town.

“What are you saying exactly?” Arabella asked.

“Mama sent me out here to check on you. Says you haven’t been to church.”

“Have you?” She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at me.

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Nothing, I guess.” She drew in a breath, holding it for a moment before letting it out slowly as if she were fighting with herself to stay calm. I brought out the worst in her. That much was obvious.

I purposely softened my tone. “You’ll let me know if you need help, right? If it gets too much?”

“Yeah, fine.”

I knew she was lying but let it go. For now.

By the timewe returned to the kitchen, Mr. Collins was no longer at the table. And the kitchen door was slightly ajar.

Arabella cursed under her breath. “He must have gone outside. I’ll have to go look for him.”

“Put your jacket and gloves on,” I said, sounding like my mother. “And I’ll go with you. It’s started snowing.”

She nodded and grabbed a jacket from a peg by the door, as well as one for her father. “Just in case he’s wandered a ways.”

I donned my jacket and at the last moment, thought to pick up my medical bag. If he’d wandered far, he might be hurt. But really, how far could he get? The man was feeble at best. Still, it was better to be safe than sorry.

Together, we left the kitchen to search the yard. Since my arrival, the sky had darkened even further, and a heaviness hung in the air, dense with moisture. There was an ominous quality to the wintry light. If I weren’t mistaken, temperatures had dropped since I’d been in the house.

A gust of biting wind seemed to come from nowhere. I drew in a deep breath through my nose. It smelled of a coming storm, sharp and metallic. I’d known that smell my whole life, and I knew what it meant.

“Storm’s coming,” I said.

Arabella didn’t answer, seemingly too intent on finding her father to pay me much mind. She pointed to footprints in the thin layer of snow on the ground. “Looks like he just went out to the barn. Old habits die hard.”

The two of us traipsed through the icy snow. As we approached the barn, I expected to see his footsteps stop at the door, where he would have gone in, perhaps thinking horses and chickens remained. Instead, the tracks went toward the right, toward the dense forest. The Collinses’ ranch nestled at the foothills, with the valley sprawling out in a vast, open expanse before it. Behind the house and barn, the terrain rose sharply, the steep incline marking the beginning of rugged highlands.

Arabella stopped, peering in the direction of the tracks. She glanced at me, her eyes wide with surprise. “He went toward the trees?”

“Let’s check the woodshed first,” I suggested.

We hurried over to the structure, yanking open the door and peering inside, using the flashlight on my phone to get a better view. No one.

“Come on. He couldn’t have gotten far. The hill’s steep in that direction.” I led the way, following the indentations in the snow, with Arabella right behind me. We walked for a good five minutes, deeper into the forest until suddenly the tracks stopped.

“Where did he go?” Arabella asked.

“I don’t know.” I squinted, peering in every direction. It was dark in the forest and hard to see. Just then, the wind seemed to change direction, whipping through the trees. Snow dumped from the sky, landing on my lashes and cheeks. We should turn back before it got any worse. However, I dared not suggest it. She wouldn’t give up until we had her father in hand.

“Why would he be out here?” Arabella asked. “It makes no sense.”

I didn’t answer, knowing whatever I said would offend her. I’d been saying it for months now. He needed a care facility.

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