She handed me a folded note and Violet’s cell phone, which was turned off. “A girl with really blue eyes said to give this to you.”
I unfolded the paper to read.I’m sorry,but I can’t stay. XO Violet.
Chapter25
We met in the area between the concessions and bathrooms, several of us accustomed to being in charge. Ultimately, Uncle Buddy took point.
Yara looked around wildly, her face pale and pinched. “Should we stop the game?”
Tessa winced. “The judge is out there. Will it hurt the adoption proceedings if he finds out she took off?”
“It wouldn’t help,” I admitted. “But if she’s in danger, we need all hands on deck.”
Buddy drew air in and then slowly exhaled. “All right. Tessa and Donna, you search this place from top to bottom and don’t be obvious about it. Nick and I will hit all the teenage hangouts around town. Yara, go home in case she goes there. Rory and Bosco will pick you up in a few minutes. If she isn’t at home, stay there while they search the Silverville spots. Anna and Aiden, look where she used to live and check any of her other usual haunts.”
Aiden pulled on his dark jacket. “We’ll give it until midnight, and then those of us on this side of the pass will meet at my place. If we haven’t found her by then, we need to call in the authorities.”
My knees wobbled. At least the note showed that she hadn’t been kidnapped. But why had she run? “Yara? Do you have any idea what’s going on in her head? Has she had a chance to meet with a counselor yet?”
“No.” Yara threw up her hands. “We haven’t made an appointment yet, but I wasn’t worried. She was quiet for a couple of days and then snapped out of it. I figured she was just worried about the judge. Once we decided to meet up here and see the judge in a normal setting, she seemed fine. I just don’t know what could’ve happened. I thought she was having fun learning about basketball from Aiden.”
I looked toward the concession stand. “Everyone stay here for just a second.” I headed back to talk to the blonde. “Hi. I need to ask you about the note you gave to me from the blue-eyed girl. Do you go to school here in Timber City?”
“Yeah,” she said.
I tried to look calm. “My name is Anna. I’m a friend of Violet’s—that’s her name. What’s yours?”
“I’m Kami. I’m not in trouble, am I?” The girl’s eyes widened.
I gave her my most reassuring smile when all I felt was pure panic. “Not at all. I’m just wondering about Violet. She used to attend school here in town before moving to Silverville. Is there any chance you recognized her?”
“No. Sorry. I’m just a freshman, so I don’t know a lot of the older kids. Is she in trouble?”
“No. Something spooked her for some reason, and I’m trying to help her.” I wanted to run outside like a wild woman and scream Violet’s name. “When she gave you the note, how did she seem?”
Kami frowned as if trying to concentrate. She had a rounded heart-shaped face with light blue eyeshadow glimmering under the fluorescent lights. “I don’t know. I guess she seemed kind of stressed, like she was in a hurry and didn’t have time to find you to give you the note.”
Where in the world would Violet need to go?
The outside door opened, and I turned, hoping against reality that Violet had returned. Instead, my cousins Rory and Bosco Albertini hurried into the building, tall, broad, and looking grim. They reached their mother, towering protectively over her. It struck me then how much they looked like Buddy. He nodded at his boys, all business.
“I’ll be right back, Kami.” I hustled toward my family. “Everyone follow Uncle Buddy’s instructions. I’ll finish talking to the girl at the concession stand, and then Aiden and I will drive over to Violet’s former apartment.” I didn’t think there was any way she would return there, but sometimes people stressing out needed to return somewhere familiar, and since I’d had her creepy former landlord arrested, she might feel safe there.
The group nodded.
Nick hesitated. “If we have a runaway, we need to report it.”
“We don’t know that yet,” Yara protested, paling. “It’s been ten minutes. Maybe twenty. We know she left on her own because of the note, so let’s try to find her on our own, okay?”
“Until midnight,” Nick agreed.
Everyone dispersed.
Aiden looked down at me. “Want me with you?”
I looked back at Kami. “I might have a rapport with her. If I need your charm, I’ll signal.” I headed back to the quiet concession booth. “Sorry about that.”
She looked toward the now empty doorway. “Everyone seems kind of stressed out. Is that Violet chick in trouble?”
