Page 69 of A Beach House Beginning

When she reached the back of the dog yard, which accessed the beach gate, everything inside her turned cold. The gate was ajar slightly, with just enough room for a puppy to squeeze through.

A few of her guests who lived close had opted to walk home via the beach. She could only guess that one of them must not have closed the gate completely.

Theo was gone.

A storm was coming, her daughter was alone in the house and their small, defenseless puppy was lost somewhere on the beach.

This was her fault. She should have checked to make sure the beach gate was closed before she ever let Theo out into the yard.

Anything could happen to him out there. She couldn’t bear thinking about the hazards to a small puppy.

She had to find him, no matter if she had to search all night.

She turned and raced back into her apartment for her phone and a flashlight, tossing extra batteries in her pocket just in case, then hurried back downstairs.

Her fatigue, the ache in her hand and the ache in her heart were all forgotten for now as she focused on finding Theo.

After a long bike ride down to Pacific City and back, Wes hoped he might be tired enough to sleep.

Instead, his mind still raced, his heart still ached and now he was damp and cold from the rain that had caught him about fifteen miles from home.

The party was apparently over, he saw as he pulled into the driveway. The only other vehicles he could see were his pickup truck and Jenna’s small SUV.

He looked up to the second floor, where he saw only a dim light on.

Just as he was climbing off his bike, the front door flung open and Jenna raced down the porch toward him wearing a raincoat and carrying a flashlight.

“Oh, thank heavens you’re here,” she said, her voice frantic. “I am so glad I heard your bike. I need your help.”

“What’s wrong?” he asked instantly, forgetting all about his wet clothing or the chill beginning to seep in.

“It’s Theo. Somehow he wandered off through the beach gate.” Her voice bordered on hysteria. “I’m just about to go look for him. Can you help me?”

“Of course.” He didn’t hesitate for a second. “I’ve got a flashlight and my headlamp in my pickup. Let me grab them.”

He unlocked the truck and found the lights immediately. On impulse, he also threw in a couple of road flares. They might come in handy.

He shut the truck door as another flash of lightning rippled through the night, still distant but moving closer.

“What about Addie?” he asked suddenly. “You can’t leave her for long. Why don’t you stay with her and I’ll go look.”

She shook her head vigorously. “I called my friend Kim and she is on her way back to stay with Addie in case she wakes. She should be here in a few minutes. She knows the code to get in the house and I left my apartment unlocked. It’s my fault. I should have been more careful and made sure the gate was shut after some of my guests left that way.”

Ah. That explained how Theo had managed his escape.

“How long do you think he’s been gone?”

“Maybe fifteen or twenty minutes. I don’t think it can be longer than that.”

A dog could move quickly in that amount of time.

As they hurried toward the beach, he wondered how they were supposed to spot a little tan-colored dog in the sand in the dark, in the middle of a storm.

He didn’t want to be the voice of doom by raising the worry. Maybe the dog hadn’t gone far. Maybe he would hear them calling him.

“I think we should split up,” Jenna said, once they left Brambleberry House property. “Why don’t you go north and I’ll go south?”

He wasn’t thrilled with the idea of separating from her, though it did make the most sense. They could cover twice the ground that way.

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