Missing

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A dainty golden puzzle piece dangled from the end of a gold chain. The words Kayla and Bethany—BFF filled the screen.

SIX

Lacey felt the air leave her lungs. How she’d hoped she’d be wrong. But she wasn’t. She felt no satisfaction in being right. “What do we do now?” She looked up at Mason. “She was there. Something happened that night other than Kayla just dying in a car accident. Something that instilled a fear in Bethany that she felt she couldn’t share with me.”

Mason scrubbed a hand down his cheek and sighed. He looked at Catelyn. “All right, I think this is enough evidence to prove that Lacey may be on to something, don’t you?”

The detective nodded. “It’s possible.”

Standing, Lacey twisted her fingers together. “You have to get Georgia to tell you what they were doing that night.”

“Daniel?”

They all turned at the voice in the doorway. Lacey gasped and jumped up. “Janice?”

The tall, regal-looking woman paused, her attention swinging from Daniel to Lacey. A hand fluttered to her chest. “Lacey, darling, how are you?”

Feeling a tremulous smile hover on her lips, Lacey gave a low humorless laugh. “I’ve been better. My daughter is missing.”

A perfectly arched brow lifted. “I’d heard you were back with a child in tow.”

Unsure how to take that comment, Lacey just stared at Daniel’s wife, the woman who’d once been her closest friend. Then all of the pretense seemed to slough off of Janice and her expression softened. She moved forward and clasped Lacey in a hug. “I’ve been terribly angry with you.”

Lacey pulled back. “For what?”

“You left without a word sixteen years ago, didn’t call, didn’t send the first Christmas card and then came back to town without calling. What is that all about?”

How could she explain without making everyone in the room more uncomfortable? She couldn’t. “I’m sorry. You’re absolutely right. As soon as we get Bethany home, we’ll get together, all right?” She squeezed her friend’s hand. “I’ve missed you and thought about you often.” That wasn’t a lie. Upon her move back to town, she’d thought about calling Janice but when she’d found out the woman was married to Daniel Ackerman, she just couldn’t bring herself to dial the number.

“Sure.” Janice smoothed a nonexistent stray hair and tugged at the scarf tied in a fashionably loose knot around her neck.

Mason and Catelyn exchanged a look, and Lacey knew exactly what they were thinking. They had an investigation going on and needed to get back to it.

Daniel frowned at his wife, irritation stamped on his features. “What are you doing here? I thought you were working in the shop today? Or volunteering at the hospital or something.”

“I was at the shop until the air conditioner died on me.” She looked at Lacey. “I own the Christmas Every Day Shop.” She grinned. “My father bought it for me.”

Lacey gave a tight smile. Nothing had changed in that area. Janice was still a daddy’s girl who loved to spend the man’s money. And he obviously still let her.

Janice said, “I’m only open six months out of the year and I’m just three days from opening up for this year. Now this.” She pursed her lips in disgust and turned back to her husband. “And you know I volunteer at the hospital on Fridays, not Tuesdays.”

Daniel took a deep breath. “Right, sorry.”

“Well, no matter, I’ll just have to delay opening the shop a few weeks. I don’t suppose it will make that much of a difference.” She looked at Daniel. “I did promise to help out at the clothes closet at the church. Martha called and said they had a new batch to sort.”

Crossing his arms, Mason shifted and shot Daniel a pointed look. Daniel caught the unspoken message. To Janice, he said, “Look, hon, we’re kind of in the middle of something. Call me in a couple of hours and I’ll see what I can do about finding someone to fix the air conditioner. Or call Jack Durant.”

Janice waved a hand in dismissal. “I’ll handle it, but turn on your phone, would you? I wouldn’t have to track you down if you’d answer.”

With a flush, Daniel did as requested then escorted his wife from the office. When he returned, he glanced around and cleared his throat. “She could’ve called my office line,” he muttered. “Sorry about that. The shop is sort of like her child since we can’t…” He broke off and shook his head. “Never mind. Okay, so where were we?”

Lacey pulled in a deep breath. Seeing Janice and Daniel together sent pangs of unexpected—and unwanted—jealousy through her. Why did the man who’d cost her a lifetime of love and happiness get to have it? It wasn’t fair.

But God never promised fair, she reminded herself, He just promised to be there with her through whatever life threw at her.

Like finding her missing daughter.

“I wish we still had that car,” Mason muttered.

Catelyn lifted her head with a snap. “We do.”

“What?” Mason and Lacey asked simultaneously.

“While there was only one beer bottle found at the scene, it’s been ruled an alcohol-related wreck. The car’s at the high school.”

“Was Kayla drinking?” Mason asked, jaw tight.

Daniel shook his head. “There was no alcohol in her blood. She wasn’t drinking and driving.”

Lacey felt some relief flood her. But if Kayla wasn’t drinking, who was? Surely not Bethany. She realized the irony of her thinking. Her own parents never would have believed she’d come home with the news she was pregnant before it had happened. So…had Bethany been drinking that night? Where did the beer bottle come from?

She may never know, she realized.

Catelyn was saying, “In spite of their grief, Kayla’s parents wanted to make sure Kayla’s death wasn’t for nothing and donated the car for the MADD cause.”