Page 13 of Good and Gone

I spin around and see a man standing behind me. He is holding a gun.

“What do you want?” I ask, backing away. I can feel my heart thumping in my chest.

“Just a word with you, if that’s okay?”

“Who are you?” I say, trying to sound defiant even though I’m afraid. I say it slowly, trying to buy time, wondering if I can outrun him.If I scream, will anyone hear in time?

“You've been running?” he asks.

I am confused by the question, but I say, “Yes.”

“You're fast,” he says. He sounds impressed. “I’ve been following you for a while.”

“What do you want?” I ask again.

He holds up his hand and snaps his fingers. Two men step out from behind trees on either side of an SUV that’s parked at the curb across the street. They are both dressed in black. When they are close enough, I can see they’re carrying guns. They look at me with cold eyes.

“How about a cup of coffee?” the man says sardonically. He takes a step forward. I scream. Or at least I think I do. Everything happens so fast. I try to run, but it is of no use. Before I can gain any traction, I am being lifted underneath my arms. My feet leave the earth. I am being shoved into the backseat of the SUV. I couldn’t even tell you what color it is. Someone pushes my head onto the floorboard. I feel the vehicle jolt forward as the driver hits the gas. And that is the last thing I remember before everything goes black.

8

Tyler

Iawake to the sound of my daughter's voice. She’s kicking the nightstand and mumbling, “Where's Mommy?”

I sit up in bed, disoriented. It's barely light outside. I have no idea what time it is.

“I don't know, baby,” I say. “What time is it?”

“Time to get up. Where's Mommy?”

I get out of bed and follow Lily into her room. She has all the lights in the house on and her clothes are laid out neatly on the bed. “Did your mother do that?”

She shakes her head, looking up at me.

“Mommy didn't come home last night,” she says.

“Yes, she did.”

“She didn't tuck me in.”

“You fell asleep playing on your iPad. She came in and gave you a kiss. I watched her do it.”

Lily squints at me, trying to make sense of what I am saying. She thinks she knows it all, but she's still so young.

“Hailey?” I call down the stairs.

Mason opens his bedroom door, looks at me, and shuts it again.

I open it. “Have you seen your mother?”

“She's not here,” my son says from behind his bedroom door, which he opens a crack to tell me this and then closes again before I can ask him any more questions.

“What do you mean she’s not here?” I ask through the closed door.

I look at Lily. “Is her car here? Is it muffin day at school?”

She shrugs, and I remember that Hailey’s car is in the shop.

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