Page 12 of The Captive Missing

Dressed and ready, Val made the descent to the first floor and came upon an exasperated Bee chopping mushrooms in the kitchen. Her mother stood steadfastly beside her, filling a large pot with water, her thin lips pressed together in tolerable silence.

Clearing her throat, Val waited for someone to notice her, but no one did. They didn’t notice because it was impossible to hear anything. Gabe’s music blared uncontrollably from the speakers out on the deck and dominated every inch of space.

“Mommy! Mommy!” Jace wrapped his arms around Val’s legs, shouting at the top of his lungs to be heard. “Guess who’s here! It’s Gramma! Look, see?”

“I see,” Val answered, though her voice barely registered in her own ears.

Swiveling her head to the side, she followed Jace’s manic pointing to the living room where Elaine sat on the floor. Toy cars of all types and colors were scattered around her, they had clearly been deeply involved in a game of Jace’s own invention. Releasing him to scurry back to his devoted gramma, Val strolled out the open French doors and onto the wide deck.

Gabe stood over the stainless-steel barbecue, his back to her. Smoke plumed over his shoulders as he poked at what appeared to be steaks with a giant set of tongs. He held an open can of beer loosely in one hand. Walking up behind him, Val purposefully placed both fingers in her ears and waited. After another moment of prodding the meat, Gabe slammed the lid of the barbecue and turned around.

“What?!” Gabe laughed down at her, still having to yell though they were only separated by a few inches.

Val blinked at him expectantly as the lead singer, or screamer rather, hit an impressive high note followed by a guitar rift that sent ripples out over the water. With a protesting eye roll, Gabe fished around in his pocket and used a slender black remote to dial everything down. For several moments after, the feeling of the music’s vibration rang in her ears.

“I’ve seen you sweep a room full of women off their feet in less than half an hour,” Val commented. “Is there a reason why you’re determined to do the opposite here?”

“It was my job to sleep with half of them too, but you don’t see me doing that anymore.” Gabe brushed by her, lifting the can of beer to his lips in frustration.

“This isn’t the same thing,” Val pressed, watching the shift of muscles in his back.

“Isn’t it?” Gabe countered, turning suddenly, eyes bright with some unclear emotion. “They don’t approve of you either, why are you protecting them?”

“I’m not protecting them.” Val tried to soften her voice, knowing she was stepping on thin ice here and trying to figure out why. “I’m protecting Bee. That’s her mother in there and both of them are really making an effort. Can’t you support that?”

“They show up here at my house and act like they’re doing me a favor,” Gabe hissed.

“Because that’s what free people do, Gabey.” Val reached out a hand, rubbed at his shoulder comfortingly. “Can’t you turn on the charm? Fake it?”

“No.” Gabe was abrupt, stepping away from her reach purposefully. “When I landed on this island, I promised myself I would never do anything I didn’t want to ever again. I would never have to smile when I didn’t feel like it, or fetch drinks like a damn dog, or get on my knees for some bored housewife that I couldn’t stand.”

“Hey-” Val hadn’t realized how much of captive life still haunted him. “I’m sorry, okay? I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault. And I know it’s not their fault either.” Gabe gestured to the house. “I’m just not that guy anymore and I never want to be him again. Not even for a little while.”

Nodding, Val gave him one last pat before retreating inside. She could’ve told him she understood how he felt, but the truth was their experiences within the captive system hadn’t been the same. Sure, Val had been required to suppress her emotions, give up her desires for those of others and perform physically when she hadn’t wanted to.

But she hadn’t been required to don a fake persona in order to seduce rooms full of people. Gabe had been so good at it, in fact, that even Val hadn’t realized how much of it was an agonizing ruse. How could she not have seen? She felt suddenly ashamed.

Taking a seat on the sofa, Val scooped up a miniature toy car and zoomed it along Jace’s back. He squealed in delight, turning to blink happy eyes at her before continuing his own game with Elaine. The two of them made engine noises, driving around a pretend track they had set up on the oval area rug.

In the kitchen, Lillian and Bee now chatted more easily. Many years of therapy had helped to smooth over some of the rough edges. Well, at least it gave them a fighting chance at developing some sort of relationship. Outside, Gabe lingered. Val watched his tense movements through the glass.

* * *

When the steaks came off the grill and the long teak table was set with china and candles, the six of them settled along it in relative peace. Gabe complimented the au gratin potatoes and Lillian exclaimed over the tenderness of the meat. Red wine was poured all around, excepting of course Jace, who wriggled and squirmed in his seat until Val pulled him onto her lap. The gentle embrace of his mother worked to calm him along with a belly full of rich food.

Their conversation was guarded, as it usually was during the rare meals that brought them all together. The weather was fine, though tropical and hot. The stock market was high, except for when it wasn’t. Hardly able to stand it much longer, Val finally broke through the politeness and inquired about Jason. How was his court case going? Why hadn’t the internet been fixed yet? What newspaper articles had Gabe been able to secure?

The tense silence that followed grew more uncomfortable still as the face of every adult closed up. They all knew something. Something they didn’t want to tell her.

“Why do I get the feeling you all know something I don’t?” Val murmured almost to herself.

“I miss Daddy,” Jace whined, tilting his little face up to peer at his mother.

“Me too, baby.” Val kissed the top of his head, stomach churning at the continued quiet. “But I’m sure we’ll get to talk to him again tomorrow. Let’s go clean up for bed so the morning comes quicker. Race you?”

“Okay!” Jace brightened, then wriggled from her grasp. “But you’ll never beat me!”

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