His mom gave a little hum that he knew indicated her extreme disapproval. “Patricia is a deeply selfish soul, Gil. It isn’t kind to say it, but it’s true. I couldn’t imagine why Wade stayed with her after her jail sentence, but I had hoped she would repent and recognize what kind of man she had. But there’s no reason to suspect she ever did. Especially with what Emily told me. Remarrying so soon after Wade’s death? It doesn’t look good, but at the same time, it isn’t surprising. Patricia never could stand not to have a man in her life.”
A door opened, then closed, and some muffled greetings were exchanged. “Sorry, honey. I have to go. Bottom line, if you’re asking me about the woman I knew? I would say it’s possible, and Iwould look very carefully at the new husband. Patricia may have found a good one with Wade Collins, but her track record with men would make me question her decision-making.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
“I want a full debrief this weekend. And as soon as she’s safe, you’re bringing Ivy home to me, is that clear?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Love you, baby.”
“Love you too, Mom.”
The parking lot had finally cleared, but the exit road was still backed up. Gil connected his phone to the charger, backed out of his space, and eased into traffic.
His phone rang again. He didn’t recognize the number, and normally he’d let it go to voice mail, but under the circumstances, dealing with a spam phone call was less worrisome than missing something important. “Dixon.”
“Gil. Rex Jones. Tez’s dad.” The man sounded like something was wrong.
“Yeah, Rex. Everything okay?”
“I can’t believe this, but in the rain, Stacey and I got our wires crossed. I thought she had Tez. She thought I had him.” Gil whipped his car out of the line and turned around, heading back to the parking lot while Rex continued. “We got home, and neither of us have Tez.”
“I’m still at the complex. I’m headed back to the field. I’ll check all the fields, bathrooms, covered areas. Anywhere he might go to stay dry. I sat in the parking lot for a while and didn’t see him, so he may be hunkered down.”
“I’m headed back too.” Rex was frantic.
“Be careful. It will take you longer if you have a wreck. I’ll call you back.”
Gil parked sideways across three spaces. He grabbed his phone and rain jacket, mainly to cover up his weapons, and ran for the ball fields.
Ten minutes later, he stood at the gate with Rex as they waited for the police. Gil had teamed up with some of the facility workers, and they’d searched every space a nine-year-old could hide.
There was nothing for it but to accept that Tez was missing. There was still a possibility he’d caught a ride with a teammate, but Gil didn’t hold out much hope for that. Any of the parents would have made sure Tez’s family knew he was safe.
He texted Ivy.
Situation at the ballpark. Missing kid. Not sure when I’ll be there. Will update when I can.
Then he did the only thing he could do, and the one thing he knew for sure mattered in this moment. He prayed.
35
IVY HAD CURLED HERSELF into the same chair she’d been in the day before. Tessa had poured short glasses of milk, perfect for dunking, and set the plate of cookies on the ottoman between them.
She told Ivy story after story about Gil, Luke, and Zane. She made them sound more like the Three Amigos than the Three Musketeers, always up to some kind of prank or mischief. But Ivy sensed the respect and camaraderie Tessa felt toward all three men. She was funny, she could tell a great story, she knew how to deliver a punch line, and like most class clowns, she was lonely and scared and hurting.
Ivy could see it, and she suspected Faith did too. She wasn’t sure if any of the guys realized how deeply Tessa experienced everything. She’d been around Tessa quite a bit over the past few days, but it was only tonight that she’d realized that Tessa didn’t feel sad, she plummeted into despair. She didn’t feel happy, she catapulted into delight. She didn’t love Jesus, she, quite literally, adored him.
Tessa brimmed with intense emotion, but depending on the circumstances, she hid it behind a professional demeanor or a dazzling smile or witty banter. Was it because she worked in amale-dominated profession and didn’t believe emotion had any place in law enforcement? Or was it because she had always kept that part of herself locked down?
All Ivy could do at this point was hope she could stick around long enough to find out. Her phone buzzed, and she pulled it from her back pocket. She read the text, then read it out loud to Tessa.
Tessa went from friendly and funny to ferocious and frightening. She grabbed her own phone, shot from the couch, and moved across the living room. She tapped a few buttons on the phone, then flipped on a police scanner before returning to the sofa. Not to sit but to pace behind it with the phone to her ear. “Hey. Gil says there’s a situation with a missing kid at the ballpark and he’s running late. You heard anything?”
A male voice, maybe Zane’s, responded in the negative.
Ivy’s phone buzzed again, and she reached for it, her focus on Tessa’s conversation. She glanced at the phone.
