“Okay, guys, we’ve got a situation.” Rafe watched his brothers’ faces, at least those standing in front of his desk at the sheriff’s station. The others were on the phone, waiting to hear what Rafe was calling about.
“What’s up, bro?” Heath leaned against the doorjamb, one ankle crossed over the other, his posture relaxed, like he didn’t have a care in the world. Which was probably true because he’d spent the morning with Camilla. Antonio and Chance stood in his office too. Lucas and Brody occupied the two chairs in front of his desk, and all the testosterone in the room made the hairs on the back of Rafe’s neck rise.
“Yeah, Rafe, what’s so urgent you’ve got everybody here, either in person or on the phone?” Ridge’s voice came through loud and clear, though Rafe knew he was in his truck, on the way into town. Shiloh was with Ridge, which accounted for two more of his brothers. He hadn’t been able to get hold of Liam yet; he was on the job site, but he’d left a message for him to call ASAP. Dane was out of town with Destiny, though they were due back any minute. Nobody was about to miss the festivities planned for the next day. Joshua was on his way from the Big House, but he was on the call. That pretty much accounted for everybody, and he needed them all, because he had to break the news to them that their momma was missing.
He expected his dad to walk through the doors any minute, and it killed him inside to have to give him the news that he hadn’t been able to find her. Yet. Rafe wasn’t about to give up, and he knew once his brothers found out, they’d be scouring the entire county until they found her, alive and kicking and probably ready to give them heck for wasting their time looking for her. At least, he hoped so.
“Guys, we’ve got a problem.” He paused and drew in a deep breath, knowing it was best to just put it out there, without sugar coating the issue. “Momma’s missing.”
Everyone started talking at once, questions flying. “What do you mean Momma’s missing? I talked to her this morning and everything was fine.” Ridge’s voice seemed overly loud through the phone’s speaker. Of course, he was practically shouting to be heard over the rest of the rabble.
“What time did you talk to her? Did she mention anything about where she was going, what her plans were?” Rafe slid into professional mode, knowing he had to remain calm and collected, even though he was nearly as frantic as his brothers appeared. Wouldn’t do anybody any good if he went off half-cocked; that wasn’t the way to work a case.
“Only thing she said was she was meeting up with the ladies to work on Beth’s baby shower. Are you telling us she didn’t get there?”
Rafe sighed. “Nobody’s seen or talked to her since this morning, as far as I’ve been able to determine. She mentioned a house she was going to stop by and look at before heading to Jill’s to meet up with the gals. Unfortunately, she didn’t leave any information about exactly where this house is or who she’s working with. Elizabeth hasn’t seen her or talked with her.”
“That’s not like her. She always lets the office know where she’s going to be. I’m assuming you can’t get her on her cell?” Antonio’s dark gaze met Rafe’s, and he shook his head.
“No answer. Several of us have tried, including Dad, and there’s been no answer.”
His brothers started speaking amongst themselves, and he could hear Ridge and Shiloh’s voices through the phone’s speaker, though they weren’t talking loudly. Rafe rubbed a hand against his forehead, worry eating away at him. His first knee jerk reaction when he’d heard from Tessa that nobody been able to contact his momma was she’d simply turned off her phone and forgot to turn it back on. But as one hour and then two passed and still no contact? Definitely not like his momma.
Sally Anne peaked around Heath’s shoulder, since he still blocked the doorway to the office. “Sheriff, your brother, Liam’s, on line two. Said you called and wanted to speak to him stat.”
“Thanks.” Putting the other call on hold, Rafe answered line two, putting it on speaker. “Liam, any chance you’ve talked to Momma this morning?”
“Sure did,” he answered. “She had some car trouble on the way to town. Frank’s working on her car and I loaned her my new truck. Why?”
“Did she happen to tell you where she was headed?”
“Lemme think a sec. She mentioned going to look at a property, something about a new listing. Some guy’s uncle passed and left him a house and a bit of land. Momma planned to stop and take a look so she could give him advice on what he needed to fix up if he wanted to sell it for top dollar. Rafe, what’s going on?”
“Nobody’s been able to get in contact with Momma since this morning. Looks like you’re the last person to talk with her.”
“Wait, she was supposed to go to Jill’s bakery after she looked at the new property. She never showed?”
“Nobody’s seen her. None of the ladies have been able to contact her. Dad either.”
“Bro, I’m leaving the site now. I can be there in less than an hour. What can I do?”
“I’ve rounded up everybody. The ladies are going to stay put at Jill’s and at the church, in case Momma shows up there. The rest of us are going to spread out and look for her. I’ll have Sally Anne check to see who died in the last several months, see who owned property—”
“Haskins. Josiah Haskins passed away about six or seven months ago. I remember Dad mentioning something about him having a heart attack. Dad said he didn’t have any relatives that lived close. If I remember right, he owned a bit of property over off Meadow Creek Road.” Brody shrugged when Rafe stared at him. “What? I pay attention when people talk. Can I help it if y’all can’t retain facts five minutes after you hear them?” His brother’s quick grin eased some of the tension in the room.
“Lucas, you and Brody check the clinic, see if Doc Jennings or Doc Stevens have seen or heard anything.”
“We’re on it.” Both men rose and headed out the door, Heath moving aside to let them pass.
“Heath, call Frank at the garage, see if he’s talked to Momma since this morning. It’s a longshot, but it’s something. The rest of us will start asking around town, to see if anybody’s seen or heard from her in the last few hours. I’ll head over to the Haskins’ place, see if there’s any sign that Momma’s been there. Anybody hears anything, call here and let Sally Anne know. She can get hold of me immediately.”
The rest of his brothers quickly left to start their searches, while Rafe talked to Ridge and Shiloh and let them know to head back to Santa Lucia and see if their hospital might have had Momma admitted. The thought made his gut tighten, but better she be in the hospital than a worse alternative.
“Rafe, honey, what can I do? I need to help.”
“Sally Anne, the best thing you can do is man the phones. My brothers will be checking in, and I need you here. If you want, make a few calls. Check the diner, Gracie’s place. Anywhere Momma might have been this morning. You hear anything, you radio me right away, okay?”
Impulsively, he wrapped his arms around Sally Anne and gave her a quick hug. She squeezed him back and visibly straightened, her head going back, and she gave him a jaunty salute. “You’ve got it, boss. Now, go on, get outta here. Find your momma and bring her home safe.”
Without another word, Rafe walked through the front door and out to his car, praying the whole time. The town couldn’t afford to lose their beloved Ms. Patti, but more importantly, he couldn’t afford to lose her. It wasn’t an option he was willing to face.
“Hang on, Momma. We’ll find you.”
A heaviness hung over her, a feeling of lethargy invading her body. Struggling to open her eyes, which felt like lead weights kept them closed, she finally managed, squinting against the bright lights overhead. She raised her hand, managing to block some of the brightness down to a manageable glare, and looked around. Stark white walls on all sides, with a small window with vertical blinds greeted her perusal.
Looking down, she realized she was in a cotton gown, the kind given to patients admitted to the hospital. It didn’t look like she was in the Shiloh Springs emergency clinic, which was where Stan was supposed to drive her. Scooting up in the bed, she pressed the button to elevate the head, raising it until she was sitting up. Then she hit the call button for the nurse or somebody who could answer her questions. Like where was she and why had she been admitted.
The door to her room swung inward and Stan Ferguson stuck his head inside, his expression of concern genuine. He smiled when he saw her sitting upright in the bed.
“Ms. Patti, I’m so glad you’re awake. I’ve gotta tell you, you scared the living daylights out of me, passing out like that.”
“I passed out?” Why couldn’t she remember that? She remembered Stan finding her in the shed and helping her, wrapping her ankle, which now that she thought about it throbbed with a dull ache. He’d agreed to drive her to the emergency clinic, so she could see Doc Jennings, get him to take a look at her ankle.
“Yes, ma’am. I couldn’t wake you up, and your pulse rate was exceedingly fast, so I used my best judgment and brought you to the hospital.”
“Which one?”
“Mercy General, Williamson County. I started to go to the hospital in Santa Lucia but there was a pretty bad accident on I-45, and they were routing patients there. This seemed the smarter choice.”
“Thank you. I appreciate everything you’ve done to help me, Stan. I’ll make sure and let your parents know how much you’ve done for me too.”
“That’s not necessary. My mother’s got her hands full dealing with Dad at the moment, and I was glad I could help you. I did try calling the number for your house, once I got here, but I got voice mail, so I left a message. I’m sure your family’s looking for you.”
She almost rolled her eyes at that statement. If she knew her husband and her boys, not to mention all the women, they probably had an old-fashioned posse out searching every inch of Shiloh Springs, especially since her phone wasn’t working. Being incommunicado for this long, they’d probably gone straight into panic mode. She needed to call Douglas or one of the boys and let them know what happened and where she was. The only problem was all of their numbers were programmed into her phone, which no longer worked, and she didn’t know them by memory.
“Can you call the sheriff’s office in Shiloh Springs? Talk to my son, Rafe. Let him know what’s going on, where I am, so nobody panics. Or if you get me the number, I’ll call.”
Before he could answer, a nurse walked in, a big smile on her face. Dressed in blue scrubs, her hair pulled up into a messy bun, she quickly rolled a vital signs machine over next to the bed. “Afternoon, Mrs. Boudreau. I’m Gloria, and I’m the shift nurse on this part of the floor for today. You gave this young man quite a scare.” Lifting up a blood pressure cuff, she wrapped it around Ms. Patti’s arm and started it inflating. A quick flick of the digital thermometer took her temp, and the machine beeped as the cuff deflated.
“I had a bit of a scare myself, Gloria. Everything look normal?”
“Your vitals are stable. The doctor in the emergency room wanted you to be admitted since you lost consciousness. They also took x-rays of your ankle, and we’re waiting for the radiologist to read them. If there’s a fracture, they’ll call in an orthopedic specialist.”
She drew in a ragged breath. “How long do you think that’ll take? I’m going to need to contact my family, let them know where I am.”
“It shouldn’t be too long. As for contacting your family, there’s a phone beside your bed. Dial 9 for an outside line. In the meantime, if you need anything, push the call button, and I’ll come back.”
With a quick pat on her hand, Gloria left, leaving her with Stan, who shifted from one foot to the other, his hands clasped in front of him. She wasn’t sure what had him so antsy, but she’d figure it out. The debt she owed him needed to be paid, and she’d do whatever she could to ensure he knew a Boudreau’s thanks.
“I’m…I’ll go and look up the phone number for the sheriff’s office and give your son a call. I bet he’s looking for you right now. I waited to try and track anybody down, because I wanted to make sure you’d be okay. No need for anybody to panic when they don’t need to, right?”
“I appreciate your help, Stan. When you talk to my son, please tell him to have Douglas call me. He’s going to worry if he doesn’t hear from me soon.”
“Let me take care of that right away.” Stan turned toward the door, but she had another question for him, one that had been gnawing at her subconscious for a while.
“Why were you at the house today? I’m glad you were, but I’m curious. Nobody lives there, hasn’t since the owner passed.”
A flush rushed into Stan’s cheeks, and he looked at the floor, almost like a bashful kid. All he needed was to scuff his toes along the tile, and he’d look like a big five-year-old. She couldn’t help smiling at the image.
“My mom mentioned the house had been empty for a bit and thought maybe the new owner might be interested in selling. I had a few extra minutes, and thought I’d take a look around the place from the outside. I know my folks and I haven’t been close for a long time, but they’re getting on in years, and I hopefully have stopped being a jackass. I thought maybe while I’m here in Shiloh Springs, I might set down some roots. Come home.”
“I’m going to be representing the owner, who wants to sell. Let me get out of the hospital and talk with him, and we’ll see what we can do to make a deal. If this house doesn’t work out, I’ll find you something. I promise.”
A light of what looked like hope lit his eyes, and Ms. Patti had the sudden urge to pull him into a hug. Too bad he was all the way across the room, and she couldn’t get out of bed. Not yet anyway. But she owed him, and she’d make sure he got what he deserved.
“I’d like that, ma’am. I didn’t get much of a look, but what I did see seemed like a fine place. Good bones. And I’m not afraid of a little hard work to fix the old gal right up.” He smiled and gave her a brief two-fingered salute. “Let me get hold of your son. I’ll be back to check on you in a bit.”
“Thanks again, Stan. I don’t know what I’d have done without you.”
He studied her before placing his cowboy hat atop his head. “I’m sure you’d have figured out a plan, Ms. Patti. I haven’t got a single doubt you’d have managed just fine.”
Without another word, he turned and walked out of the hospital room. With a sigh, she leaned back against the pillow and decided to rest while she could before the chaos that was her family descended on the hospital as soon as they heard she was there.
It was good to be loved.