Page 10 of The Captive Missing

“Have you talked to him about it?”

“We don’t talk about that kind of stuff,” Bee replied.

“Okay, have you had a fight about it?”

“Oh, yeah.” Bee smiled ruefully.

The two of them were like lighting a match to a powder keg. All heat and spark and fire. They usually skipped normal discussion and went straight to argument.

“So, what about you?” Bee resumed. “Have you told Jason the truth yet?”

Val grimaced, thinking back to only last month when he had pressed her again about seeing a fertility specialist.

“I take that as a no.”

“How about a not yet?” Val ventured.

“Come on, Val. Don’t you think this has gone on long enough? I mean, he’s been wanting another baby for years. Why don’t you just tell him?”

“You don’t understand.” Val sighed.

“How hard would it be to explain you don’t want any more kids?” Bee pressed. “It’s better than taking birth control behind his back.”

“I will tell him.” Val swallowed before adding. “Just not yet.”

For a minute, maybe longer, they sat there in silence.

Guilt flooded her.

It was true, Jason wanted more children. And the thing about Jason was… he got everything he wanted. So even if Val had been up front in the beginning, she knew things wouldn’t have gone her way. Even if she had explained about her fear and anxiety it wouldn’t have stopped him. Even if she reminded him that each child she had would be vulnerable to the captive system, he would have dismissed her, convinced her, overruled her.

So yes, Val had lied to him. She had nodded her head and pretended to want a baby, too. She had kissed him and loved him and welcomed her into her bed time and again, pretending to try for one. But all the while, she had smuggled birth control pills down her throat. All the while she made certain what Jason wanted would never, ever happen.

“Enough with this serious stuff.” Bee broke in again, giving Val a swift elbow to the side. “Let’s go for a swim.”

Running quickly down the beach, the two of them splashed into the sea at the same time. It was cool but not cold, with a gentle tidal flow that lapped about their legs. Sunshine beat down from high overhead.

Sitting in the shallows, they let the water drift about their waists until their feet were wrinkled prunes and the afternoon approached. Val could spend all day here, day-drinking in paradise with her best friend. But in the distance, the sound of a boat engine purred, signaling the return of Gabe and Jace. Adult fun time was at an end.

Begrudgingly, Val and Bee waded out of the sea. They gathered their things slowly, stifling drunken giggles before trudging back to the dock. It snaked back and forth, winding prettily back towards the imposing house.

Beneath her bare feet, the sand felt gritty as Val padded along the smooth wooden surface just behind Bee. When the white boat drew closer, her old friend lifted one hand to her brow, squinting her eyes against the glare on the water. Seeing Bee’s scrutiny, Val did the same and stopped short.

Her boy wasn’t in that boat.

No. In fact, it was occupied by three adults instead.

“Gabe is going to kill me,” Bee whispered before raising her voice in a shout. “Mother! Mrs. Riggs! What brings you two way out here?”

Chapter 6

Bee’s mother is here… along with Jason’s. Great. That’s just great. Careful not to show her immediate impulse of despair, Val composed her features in a welcoming smile and offered a wave. It was not returned. No wonder Jason hadn’t phoned the night before, Val thought ruefully, he didn’t want to tell her his mother was coming.

Undaunted by the rise in tension, Bee forged ahead and embraced her own plump mother in an almost natural hug. Almost. As the women said their hellos, a tall man hopped onto the dock and set about unloading their luggage. Leather satchels scattered with expensive logos began piling high, causing the floating dock to list to one side.

That’s when Elaine Riggs stepped out. Tugging at her chartreuse linen dress, she sighed audibly. The heat caused it to cling to her slight figure. Her short black hair, which had previously held a curl, now frizzed unexpectedly at the ends. Though these were tiny cracks in her usually impeccable image, they did nothing to squelch the vigor of her demeanor. She was a pint-sized stick of dynamite, oozing explosive command from every pore.

Val blinked once before giving her head a little shake to clear it. She wished half-heartedly she hadn’t helped Bee polish off that batch of Pina Coladas.

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