The sound of voices brought Madison out of a deep sleep, and for a moment she wasn’t sure where she was. The dream she’d been having about her mama had been so vivid, she could’ve sworn it was real and she was seven again, prancing barefoot in the backyard trying to catch lightning bugs while Mama laughed.
The ache of sadness washed over her as she came to her senses. Mama was gone and had been for a long time.
There was a soft tap on the door. Brook poked her head inside the room. “You up?”
Madison nodded and sat up. “Will be in a minute. Do I hear people out there?”
“Nothing to worry about. Get up and get dressed. It’s nearly nine.” Brook closed the door behind her.
Nearly nine? That wasn’t so bad. It wasn’t like she’d slept until noon or anything.
Thirty minutes later, Madison emerged from Joshua’s tiny bedroom and walked into the kitchen. She needed coffee.
“Mornin’, sleepyhead.” Grant Simmons was perched on a barstool clutching a glass of orange juice.
Madison’s eyes widened. She hadn’t seen Grant since last week at his grandpa’s house. She was glad she’d taken the time to put on her makeup and get dressed for the day. She looked around the kitchen. Mr. Simmons sat with Brook at the table, a cat-that-ate-the-canary grin on his face. Scott was nowhere to be found. “I didn’t know there was a party going on, or I would’ve gotten up earlier.” She caught Grant’s smirk and shot him a dirty look.
“Scott’s mom called an hour ago,” Brook said. “Joshua fell off the monkey bars at the playground this morning and broke his arm in two places.” She sighed. “Scott thinks we should go right away. He’s gone to get gas now. We’re already packed.”
Madison frowned. “I’m sorry. So will you be bringing Joshua back here?” She had enough trouble sleeping on the twin bed. If she ended up on the couch for the rest of the summer, she’d go crazy.
Brook shook her head. “No. Actually, we’re going to stay there for a couple of weeks at least. We’d planned to go later in the summer, but now is as good a time as any.” She frowned. “I’m just sorry it ruins our plans for the treasure hunt.”
Madison shook her head. “Oh, don’t worry about it. It’s not a big deal.” She and Brook had logged three caches so far. Madison hadn’t admitted it to anyone, but it had actually been fun. There’d been a little poem that served as a clue for each cache, and once she’d figured out how to work the GPS, they’d been off and running. Of course, they’d chosen the easiest ones first. But still, she’d been proud to write her name in the little logbook and enter the information on the Rainbow’s End website. “Besides, you remember that girl that we met the other day at the coffee shop? Hadley was her name. I think she’s hunting alone, too. So I’ll be fine.”
“Actually, Mr. Simmons has an idea,” Brook said.
The old man cleared his throat. “I still haven’t recovered from our hike the other day.” He gestured at Grant. “So since Brook has to bow out of the hunt, I think I’ll do the same.” He grinned widely. “And you and Grant can team up.”
Madison met Grant’s equally horrified gaze.
He shrugged.
“Don’t even think about arguing. I don’t want you traipsing around the trails alone,” Brook said. “And Grant doesn’t mind, do you?” She turned to look at him.
He grinned. “Of course not.”
Liar. She could tell he was less than thrilled about the prospect of spending time with her. But it seemed like Brook and Mr. Simmons weren’t going to take “no” for an answer. “Well, great. I guess you’ve got yourself a new partner.”
He stood up and put his empty glass in the sink. “We should hit the ground running then. I have to work the next few days, so we should make the most of today.” He took in her sundress and sandals. “I’ll give you time to change and meet you back here in an hour.” He turned to Mr. Simmons. “You ready?”
The old man rose slowly from the table. “Have a safe trip,” he said to Brook. He grinned at Madison. “And I suspect I’ll be seeing you around.” He followed Grant out the door.
Madison poured herself a cup of coffee. She did not like this turn of events. At all.
“Sorry to spring it on you like that.” Brook pulled a container of hazelnut-flavored coffee creamer from the fridge and set it on the counter. “Mr. Simmons was outside when I got the newspaper. I told him that we were going to be out of town for a while, and he immediately called Grant.” She smiled. “I think he was looking for a way to get out of the hunt anyway. He only signed up to keep Grant involved with the church.”
Madison nodded. “I just don’t see us working well together.”
“He’s not a bad guy. He moved here about a year ago, but we’ve known him for a long time.”
Just because they’d known him for a long time didn’t mean he was someone Madison wanted to be forced to spend time with. But maybe she could play nice for a couple of days, and then they could go their separate ways. “I’m sorry about Joshua.”
Brook nodded. “He’s a little trooper. I knew when I found out I was having a boy that at some point there’d probably be a broken bone.”
“I guess.”
“But with me out of town, there are some things I’m going to need for you to do.” She picked up a notepad from the counter. “I started making a list. Check to see if Grandma needs to go to the grocery store. And she has a doctor’s appointment next Friday that you’ll need to drive her to.”
Madison nodded. She’d gone with Brook a couple of times to visit their grandmother, and it had been good to see her. Although all those pictures of Mama had probably been the reason for her dream last night. “Okay, I can do that. Maybe I’ll take her to dinner one night or something.”
Brook nodded. “She’d love it. Now that she doesn’t drive, she doesn’t get out much. She can ride the church van on Sunday, but it would be nice if you’d go pick her up instead.”
“Of course.”
Brook sighed. “And you’re going to have to go and see Daddy. He knows you’re in town.” Madison made a face.
“Come on, Maddie. He’s not going to be around much longer. The doctor said there’s nothing more that can be done for him. Do you really want to waste precious time holding some stupid grudge left over from when you were a teenager?”
“I’m not holding a grudge. And don’t call me Maddie.” Madison took a sip of coffee. “You weren’t there. You were off at college. Do you know what it was like to live in that house after you and Mama were both gone?” Madison shook her head. “He didn’t even know I existed most days. Before I could drive, he’d actually forget about me. Forget to come pick me up from football games or track meets. I was that poor kid who always had to catch a ride with someone. The kid no one cared about.”
Brook shook her head. “It wasn’t like that.”
It had been exactly like that. Once Mama passed away, Daddy had started drinking and never stopped. Brook had gone off to college in Cape Girardeau and then got married. But Madison had been the one to suffer. In just a few short years, she’d lost every bit of stability she’d ever had. “He was awful to me,” she whispered.
“He was a grieving widower who’d lost the center of his world. I know it seemed bad then, but don’t you think you could cut him some slack now? Now that his kidneys are failing and there’s nothing that can be done for him?”
Madison rubbed her temples. She and Brook would never see eye to eye on this. But she didn’t want to argue anymore. “I’ll go see him. Is there anything else?”
“No.” Brook reached out and smoothed Madison’s hair. “But you might try to get rid of some of that anger before it eats you up inside.”
Madison’s eyes filled with unexpected tears. Mama used to smooth her hair just like that when she was a little girl.
A horn honked in the driveway.
Brook peeked out the window. “It’s Grant. If you want to run and change, I’ll go out and tell him you’ll be a minute.”
Madison looked down at her sundress and leather flip-flops. “Oh, this will be fine. Don’t you think? I mean, I’m not wearing heels or anything. And this dress is really casual.”
“I’m not sure you should take off on a hiking trail in that.”
Madison laughed. “I’ll be okay. I wear dresses most of the time. Besides, maybe this way he’ll go easy on me. I mean, the caches you and I found weren’t on hiking trails. I’m sure there are more of those.”
Brook sighed. “Have fun.” She pulled Madison into a quick hug. “And call me if you need me or if you have any questions about anything here.”
“I will.” Madison grabbed her purse and headed out the door.
Grant stood in the driveway, the driver’s side door open on what might be the oldest, rustiest truck she’d ever seen.
“You’ll have to climb in through my side,” he said. “The passenger side door doesn’t open anymore.”
You have got to be kidding me. She lifted her chin and climbed into the dirty pickup truck with as much dignity as she could muster.
Grant snickered but didn’t say anything when she got her purse hung on the stick shift.
Madison buckled the rusty seat belt and cringed at the smear of dirt across her yellow dress.
He climbed inside and put the truck in reverse. The engine roared like a jet. “No worries,” he said. “This truck has been running for a long time; it’s not about to stop now.”
It’s probably been running ever since it came off the assembly line on the day trucks were invented. Madison shrugged. She’d just hope for the best. It seemed like she’d been doing a lot of that lately.
Grant forced his eyes to focus on the road and not drift over to Madison. She looked like she was heading to high tea instead of a geocaching hunt. She’d brought a purse instead of a backpack, and he’d be willing to bet his lucky fishing lure that she didn’t have so much as a bottle of water in there. “I’ve already entered a few caches into the GPS. How about we go easy today and save the hiking for later in the week?” “Suits me.”
He cleared his throat. Most of the time not having a radio in his truck didn’t bother him. But since he normally traveled alone or with Grandpa, there weren’t awkward silences to worry about. “So what brings you here, anyway? You don’t seem all that enthused about geocaching.” He glanced at her from the corner of his eye.
“I’ve been in Atlanta working in marketing for a nonprofit that helps single moms find resources to aid in their success. It was kind of a catchall place. The organization does everything from providing cribs and car seats to résumé and interview workshops. But we rely on grants for funding, and this last go-around, we lost one of ours. Marketing is always one of the first things to get cut.”
He could hear the pain in her voice beneath the matter-of-fact words. “Wow. Tough break. I’m sorry.”
She shrugged. “I really enjoyed feeling like I was doing something to make a difference, but my dream is to get a marketing position for a big company.”
That didn’t surprise him. She struck him as the kind of person who’d want to be surrounded by the bright lights of a city. “So what’s next?”
“I have my résumé out and am just hoping to find something soon. Brook and Scott invited me to stay with them rent-free while I’m looking, which is a huge blessing. Otherwise, I would’ve blown through my savings.”
He nodded. “So you grew up here, then?”
“I grew up over in Roach. Population not many.” She chuckled. “The place is so tiny we didn’t even have a school. It’s about twenty miles from where Brook lives now. When I went to college, I claimed Osage Beach as my hometown just because it sounded more glamorous.”
He grinned. Madison definitely didn’t seem like the kind of person who hailed from a place called Roach. “Wise decision.” He slowed the truck down and flipped on the blinker. “So the first cache we’re looking for is actually in a cemetery not far from Roach. I hope that doesn’t freak you out.”
She shook her head. “I thought this road looked familiar. I think I know where we’re headed.”
Grant parked the truck just off the road and grabbed the GPS. “I’ve got a cooler in the back of the truck with water, but this one shouldn’t be much of a hike.” He climbed out of the truck and waited for Madison.
“Okay, what does the clue say?” she asked once they were at the cemetery entrance.
He clicked a button on the GPS. “Here’s the clue:
A place of peace
A place of rest
Find the prize
Just past a Test.”
She stared at him for a long moment then burst out laughing. “At least this one kind of rhymes. The ones Brook and I did the other day sure didn’t.”
Grant grinned. “Yeah, the one Grandpa and I found didn’t either.” He clutched the device and began to walk.
Madison cleared her throat. “I haven’t been here in a long time,” she said softly. “Not since I was fifteen.”
“Oh no. Let me guess. You and your friends used to hang out in cemeteries and tell scary stories.” He’d grown up in a small town and remembered the lengths he and his friends had gone to entertain themselves.
She shook her head. “Actually, my mama is buried here.”
Smooth, man. Very smooth. “I’m sorry. Hey, we can turn back if you want to. Or you can go sit in the truck, and I’ll find the thing.”
Madison forced a smile. “It’s fine. I’ve been meaning to come out anyway. The last time I was here, the headstone wasn’t up yet.”
He concentrated on the GPS, unsure of what to say. Grandpa had mentioned that Madison had dealt with a lot, but he hadn’t been specific. “We should be close,” he said.
She pointed at an ancient stone. “Look at that. John Test.” She grinned. “There’s a bench just past his headstone.”
Grant knelt down and pulled an ammunition box from underneath the bench. “And here it is.” He held up his hand for a high five.
She slapped his hand. “Nicely done.” She perched on the stone bench.
Grant sat down next to her and opened the box. He signed the logbook and passed it to her, all too aware of their close proximity.
“Okay, do we leave something in there or what?” she asked. He grinned and reached into one of the pockets on his cargo shorts. “How about this?” He held up a fuzzy yellow fishing lure.
She laughed. “Perfect.”
Grant had so many lures at his house, he’d decided to leave one in each cache box. A couple of years ago, one of his sponsors on the bass fishing tour circuit had been a lure manufacturer. He’d done a few commercials and print ads for them, and in return they’d sent him boxes and boxes of lures. “Okay, we have to put the box back exactly where we found it.”
Madison grabbed the box and tucked it under the bench. “Would you mind …” she trailed off.
He understood immediately. “I’ll wait here.”
She nodded. “I won’t be gone long.”
Grant watched her walk away, suddenly struck by the urge to protect her from the pain he knew she was about to experience.