Page 69 of Inherited Light
I dialed her number and listened to it ring in my ear. When her voicemail picked up I hung up. She must not be home yet, since she can’t answer the phone when she’s driving with hand controls. I glanced at the clock on the dashboard. She really should be home by now. Maybe she decided to stop for wine. We do tend to have similar ideas often.
I parked my truck in front of the cafe and jumped down. I took the stairs two at a time and at the landing unlocked the door. When I turned the handle, I got a feeling I’ve only had a few times in my life. I took a deep breath and rolled my shoulders to rid the heaviness in my chest. The feeling I had told me I was missing something, and it wouldn’t be long before I found out what it was.
I threw the last bag in the back of the truck and jogged back up the stairs to get the toolboxes. When I started packing I realized the meager extent of my belongings and decided to take it all in one trip, then all I had to do was clean and vacuum this week. Considering I had to do the tour event Wednesday night, I didn’t want to leave too much until the end of the week. I had few dishes, so I left them in the cupboards for Tabitha. If she doesn’t want them, I’ll tell her to drop them off at a thrift store.
I slid the last box into the truck and tucked the cover down over the bed to keep it from bouncing around. I climbed into the driver’s side door and grabbed my phone, checking for a message. No missed calls or text messages, so I hit Cat’s number and held the phone to my ear. It had been almost an hour since she left the parking lot, which meant she should be able to answer now. I waited patiently while it rang, but it went to voicemail again. Sometimes she couldn’t get to the phone in time if she forgets and sets it down somewhere. I waited a few minutes then dialed again. When she didn’t answer a second time I closed my eyes and focused on the feelings inside me. There was fear, anger, disgust, and pain.
I threw the truck in gear and tore away from the curb. I drove as fast as the speed limit would allow in town while I punched in a familiar number. “Come on, answer,” I said aloud into the empty truck.
“This is Noah,” he said, and I breathed a sigh of relief. He showed up at the carnival with his pup today and provided extra security being there as an off-duty officer.
“Noah, it’s Lorenzo. Something’s wrong. I can’t get ahold of Cat. She’s not answering her phone and she left Little Ivywood over an hour ago.”
“Hey, Lorenzo. Maybe she stopped to pick something up,” he suggested, “I only left the park a few minutes ago myself.”
I balked. “She would still answer her cell. You know about my, uh, gift, right?” I asked.
“Your gift?” he asked, drawing out the last word.
I cleared my throat. “Do you know what an empath is?”
“I haven’t a clue and what does this have to do with Cat not answering her phone?”
“An empath is someone who can feel the emotions of another person as if the feelings were their own. I’ve been an empath all my life.”
“I see,” he said skeptically.
“I know it sounds like mumbo jumbo, but all the same, I always know when something is wrong with someone I love. When I focus on Cat I feel anxious, scared, and frantic. I also feel anger and pain. Something is wrong, Noah, I know it.”
“We have Xavier’s killer in custody. Maybe she fell ill? Have you searched her route home?”
I turned onto the highway leading to Martindale. “I’m on my way right now. I’ll keep you updated, but if I don’t find her, we have a problem on our hands.”
“Agreed. I’ll call some patrols and have them be on the lookout for her van. She’s in her van, right?”
“Yes, yes, her van,” I said as I watched the road for any sign of her.
“I’ll be in touch,” he said and the line went dead.
I hadn’t set the phone down and it rang again. The caller ID told me it was Tabitha. I almost didn’t answer, but hit the button at the last minute. “I can’t talk right now, Tab, we can’t find Cat.”
“Don’t hang up!” she yelled as I was about to hit the button. I lifted it back to my ear. “Something’s wrong.”
“I know. I can’t reach her. Noah thinks she probably just stopped somewhere, but she never goes anywhere without her phone. It’s her only way to call for help.”
“Where ever she is, it’s dark,” she said, making my blood run cold. “She’s in pain and whoever is with her means her harm.”
“You saw this?” I asked quickly, already knowing the answer.
“Find her, Lorenzo, before it’s too late.”
I hadn’t made it two more miles when a road construction sign stopped me, an arrow pointing left next to a detour sign. I didn’t have a choice but to turn left, backtracking past the ball fields Little Ivywood and Martindale share for Little League. The speed limit dropped to twenty-five and it took all my concentration to keep the truck from flying down the road. I had to get back to the highway and around the crew in order to get to Martindale. I slowed as the stop sign approached and checked right then left, then right again, ready to turn right toward Martindale. My eye caught sight of something before my foot hit the gas, and I checked left again. In my mirror, the back end of Cat’s van stuck out of the trees. If I hadn’t looked behind me it would have remained concealed.
I checked for traffic and then whipped right into the parking lot across the street from the ballfield. I grabbed my phone and dialed Noah’s number. The line clicked and I was already talking.
“I found her van at the Little League fields,” I said. “I’m going to go check it out.”
“Lorenzo, wait for me, I’m almost there,” he said, all detective now. I could feel his anxiety through the line, which scared me even more.
