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Claire gasped and jumped when lightening crackled, and banged her head on the passenger side window of Sunny's big green truck. She prayed Tracy and Lenny were inside somewhere, and not out in Elaine's old rickety van. Weather alerts and warnings continually beeped and buzzed on Sunny’s phone.
"Now what? We've been driving in circles for hours." Her initial hope after meeting the striking P.I had faded. Sunny hadn't done anything, except drive around and text.
Sunny didn't answer. Every once in a while, she got a text that made her eyes flash with temper. As if on cue, the "ping" of her phone announced another message. "Hold the wheel." She turned her full attention to the phone.
Claire wrinkled her pug nose, but leaned over to steer the truck while Sunny texted her reply. "What's it say? Is it about Tracy? Have they found the van?" Sunny said she’d sent the van's license to her connections, and promised quick results.
"Not everything is about you."
Sunny's terse reply hit below the belt. Claire's hand on the wheel jerked, and she over-corrected, nearly driving them off the road.
"Son of a bitch. What is wrong with you?" Sunny grabbed the steering wheel, and steadied the truck. "I took on this case as a favor. Now you want to wreck my truck? That's a custom rig in the back, special made by friends in South Texas." She pulled into a mini-mart gas station, shoved the truck in park, and half turned in her seat. "Did you ever think maybe these kids don't want to be found? I ran away a dozen times, for good reasons."
Claire sniffed. "Don't be ridiculous. What a horrible thing to say. They're children, they're scared. You said you could find them, easy-peasy you said."
"I may have overstated. One of my guys saw a van matching the description in an area—” Her smooth brow furrowed. “No, couldn’t be your kids. Never mind."
"Let's go!"
"It’s a stretch. Trust me on this. Don’t want to waste time."
"And driving around the past several hours has been so productive? Sunny, we have to do something. My little girl is out there." Thunder rattled the windows. Although the rain had abated, the threat remained. "She's out in this storm, scared, alone." Claire leaned toward the taller woman. "Do you have kids?" She had to make Sunny understand the urgency. The woman acted like Tracy and Lenny were a couple of lost pets, or something.
Sunny shuddered. "Nope. No kids for this one."
Probably a good thing. "That old van isn't reliable. They could be stranded somewhere. If you know where they were last seen, we should go check."
When Sunny's phone "pinged" again, and the woman focused on the message, Claire lashed out. "If you can't or won't go after them, tell me where to go and I'll find Tracy myself."
"I've got to make a call. It's private. Sit tight." Sunny exited the car, taking the keys with her as if she feared Claire might take off without her.
Claire flushed. "You're being paid to help. September said she'd pay you. Tracy's only six, Lenny barely sixteen. They're children, for God's sake." She pounded a fist against the window. Sunny waved but headed into the store, phone pressed to her ear.
Now what? Claire threw back her head, and stared at the roof of the truck, then unbuckled her seat belt. She might have taken the car if Sunny had left the keys. She’d already broken into a house. If she didn't know better, she'd think Sunny meant to stall or even prevent Claire from finding the kids. Wind shuddered the car, and splashed a new deluge against the windshield.
What had September told the P.I.? Maybe Sunny was a cop. Her stomach tightened. Claire only knew what she'd seen on television shows, but the woman's actions hit a sour note.
Worry tainted everything with suspicion. Claire sighed, and gave herself a pep talk. "Can't do this alone, you have to trust somebody." She had to give Sunny the benefit of the doubt. She could be frustrated, too, just doing the best she could.
Claire thumped her head against the headrest two or three times, as if the action would reset her brain. Then she sighed, considered the brightly lit store, and opened the door. Might as well make a potty stop while she could.
Claire hurried to the toilet. She heard someone in the wheelchair accessible stall, and when she recognized Sunny's boots under the door, Claire silently entered the next stall and quietly closed the door.
Sunny's hushed, angry voice echoed. "...Because I know you, Kelvin, I knew you'd get cold feet. And I can't let you screw this up for me. Damn straight, I threw you under the bus." She laughed quietly. "Do unto others before they do unto you. I've been a step ahead of you all the way. Yes, twenty thousand is a nice nest egg, but nothing compared to an additional ten thousand coming." Venom filled her voice. "Admit it. You planned to get me out of your nonexistent hair with this missing kid stuff, and it didn't work. Lucky for us both."
Claire clamped a hand over her mouth to stifle her surprised gasp. Claire prayed Sunny hadn't noticed her.
She guessed not, because Sunny kept talking, tone increasingly sarcastic. "I'll tell you exactly what I mean. The kids you sent me to find? They're autistic." She paused. "Yeah, right, one hell of a coincidence. And get this. My guys saw the kiddo's van in the vicinity of tonight's show." She paused. "No, we're fine. The mom's clueless, but the kids know something. It's creepy-strange, as if they're on a mission. They drove themselves all the way from Chicago, for God's sake."
Dropping her face into her hands, Claire breathed slowly through her open mouth while black sparkles danced before her eyes. She carefully sat down on the toilet, being extra careful to make no sound, afraid she'd faint if she didn't. Her pulse drummed so hot and loud in her temple she worried Sunny would hear.
"Kids complicate things, but I got us covered." Sunny's anger had cooled to practicality. "I'll ditch the mom. No, I won't shoot her unless I have to. Miss Clueless can't hurt us."
Claire's teeth began to chatter, and she clamped her jaw tight.
"Why don't you do it?" She paused. "Oh, you're with the Doctor right now? Doesn't want to get his hands dirty, I guess." She snickered. "Sure, I'll drop off the mom, and reconnoiter the barn, secure the product and make sure the kids don't get in the way." Sunny paused. "Hell, they're kids, six and sixteen, and autistic besides. What can they do? You worry too much, Kelvin."
Before she could change her mind, Claire slipped out of the stall and ran. The door banged open and closed, and she nearly knocked down the clerk on her way outside. She couldn’t tell the store clerk any more than she could call the police. It hadn’t sounded like a joke. Claire couldn’t make Sunny suspicious by calling a cab. Besides, Sunny knew where Tracy was.
Claire dashed through the pouring rain and climbed back inside Sunny’s truck. She calmed her breathing, and practiced an innocent smile for when Sunny returned.
"Didn't mean to take so long. You need to pee?" Sunny showed her teeth but the expression raised the hairs on the back of Claire’s neck. The truck pulled out of the parking spot.
"I'm fine. Too worried about the kids, I guess." Claire cleared her throat when it squeaked. Water dripped from her coat, and she stammered. "I mean, I started to go in but saw you leaving. So I hurried back to the car." She forced a laugh. "Guess I got a little wet."
Sunny stared, her face expressionless. She turned away, pressed the accelerator, and the car skidded as it peeled out of the lot.
