“Yeah,” Conner said, rising and running toward the middle of the cave.
Tucker watched the man scan the area, knowing Grandpa Jospeh found a great hiding spot. Tucked inside the Wolf shaped head of the mountain, he sat above everything else. Unless someone knew the path, they’d never find their way here.
Conner ran toward him, and his face appeared pale. “You gotta come with me. Something’s wrong with Mom. She won’t wake up and she’s sweating.”
Tucker’s heart leaped in his throat as he raced toward his mother. He knelt at her side and pressed his hand to her head. “She’s burning up with fever,” he whispered. “Where’s the phone?”
“I don’t know. Who do we call?” Conner said, appearing as if he was about to cry.
“I’ll call Owen and he’ll tell us what to do,” he said confidently. “Help me find Mom’s phone.”
Together, they searched the area and didn’t find it.
“Where else does Mom keep her phone?” Tucker said aloud, thinking of when he saw her with it last.
“When we’re at home she charges it at night in the bedroom and in the kitchen. If she doesn’t have it there, she usually…”
Both boys ran to Leslie’s side. Conner unzipped the bag, feeling guilty when his Mom’s body shivered. He gently rolled her over and pulled the phone from her pocket.
“I got it,” he said excitedly. He rolled her over and Conner zipped her up in the bag again.
“Dad says to starve a fever. Maybe leave the bag unzipped?” Conner asked, glancing at Tucker.
Shrugging, he assessed his mom. Her head burned with fever, but her body seemed frozen. “Let’s make the call. Mom usually beats us awake. Even if she stayed up late, she’d wake by now.”
“Call him,” Conner agreed.
Tucker went toward the cave’s entrance and dialed the last number his mom called, reasoning he knew the other people listed. All except for his Dad’s.
The phone rang and rang before it went to voicemail.
“Ummm, Hi, Owen. It’s me, Tucker. We’re in trouble. Please call me back. Something’s wrong withmom.” Tucker glanced behind him to make sure Conner didn’t hear him. “We’re scared. Please come help us.”
He stuffed the phone in his back pocket, grabbed the binoculars and searched for the man again. The stranger walked the common trails and seemed to stop every now and again, searching for something.
Tucker sank back into the cave and hoped Owen called them soon.
CHAPTER 21
Owen carriedNoah into the restaurant and took him to the bathroom to wash his hands. Mason followed him holding Nathan’s hand.
“No potty,” Nathan said grumpily, making Owen roll his eyes.
“All of us must go potty and then we’ll have breakfast,” he said. “After we wash our hands, we can eat. Who wants pancakes?”
“Me,” Noah said. “And bacon.”
Nathan screwed up his tiny face to scream while Mason stood there, doing nothing.
Owen lined Noah up to the kids urinal and turned to Nathan. “Big boys do not scream in restaurants. We wait until we go outside to play. After we eat, I’m taking you to Wolfe Mountain. We can see all kinds of animals and go swimming in the lake. If youscream, then Noah will get to play while you sit on the rock and watch.”
Nathan’s face grew madder, unable to best his uncle as he did his dad.
“I mean it,” Owen said firmly. “If you can’t behave, we’ll eat breakfast in the van while everyone else eats in here. Then you don’t get to play.”
“Come on, Nathan,” Mason begged. “We can have doughnuts.”
Nathan rushed over to join his brother. “Really? You bribed him with sugary foods for bad behavior. Grow a pair man, he’s playing you.”
