Page 37 of Inside Silence
I stay behind to do another walk-through of the house—in case I missed something the first time—while I wait for the crime scene unit. I’m about to head inside when I spot Dozer’s old pickup truck coming down the road.
“What’s going on?” he asks as soon as he gets out of his truck. His expression is one of concern as he takes in the vehicles parked in front of his neighbor’s house. “Is Wanda okay?”
I guess it’s not so surprising that would be the first thought in his mind, that something might have happened to her.
“She’ll be okay, Dozer.”
“I don’t understand, what happened? Why are you guys here? Did that bastard harm her?”
“You mean Ben? Have you seen him?” I question him.
He switches his attention from the house next door to me.
“Ben? I saw him when I was loading the truck to head up to the cabin. That would’ve been Wednesday. He was on the porch, drinking.”
“You haven’t seen him since?” I prompt.
Dozer shakes his head. “Been up at the cabin ’til now, fixing the roof. Tree fell on it in that big storm last month. Why? Where is Wanda? Is she inside?”
His eyes are fixed on his neighbor’s house as he starts moving toward it.
“Hold up, Dozer. You can’t go in there. Wanda isn’t there.”
That stops him and when he swings around on me, I’m startled by the intense expression on his face.
“Where is she?” he snaps.
“The hospital, but, Dozer…” I start, but he’s not listening anymore. “Hey…wait!”
Before I can stop him, he rushes past me and despite his advancing age and rickety frame, hops behind the wheel. He narrowly misses hitting the crime unit’s van coming up the road as he speeds off.
He seems very concerned about Wanda.
Interesting.
Nate
* * *
Jesus, this is so not my thing.
I probably shouldn’t be using that name, considering where I find myself this morning. It’s just that I’ve never felt more out of place.
It’s for Tatum, that’s what I need to remind myself of. Trust me, I would not be spending a perfectly good Sunday morning sitting in my truck, at the edge of the parking lot outside the New Horizons Church, if anyone but Tate had asked me to.
She didn’t actually ask me to sit outside, she asked me to come, because she wanted to attend a Christian youth music group. I suspect maybe she hoped I’d attend the service taking place at the same time in the church part of the building, but the parking lot is as far as I’m getting. Already I feel like I’m committing sacrilege simply by being on church property.
Still, I wasn’t going to tell my daughter no when she’s making efforts to connect with the new-to-her community. Of course, it was at Carson’s suggestion, but I figured there are worse things the kid could have gotten Tate into.
Busy place, the parking lot was pretty much full when I got here forty minutes ago. I’ve been killing time playing Sudoku on my phone. Something to engage my brain and my hands, otherwise I might’ve run out for a pack of smokes from the convenience store across the street.
The temptation to light up has been strong these past few days. I blame that kiss. I guess that was a little bit like falling off the wagon as well. It’s basically what the kiss was; indulging in something that may not be healthy for you, but is satisfying in a way nothing else can touch.
I mean, I’ve had entire wild sexual encounters that did not leave me feeling like an almost modest brush of Savvy’s lips did.
Even back then, I knew we had a number of odds stacked against us. A seven-year age difference—which doesn’t seem to matter that much now, but fifteen years ago it felt like a big gap—a not-so-stellar background on my part, and the fact her father was the sheriff and already not my biggest fan.
Never mind she lit up my world in a way I knew was a once-in-a-lifetime deal, or that she made me feel wanted when rejection was what I was used to. In the end, I knew in my gut it couldn’t last; she gave me so much when I had little to offer in return.
