Bel awoke with a start, something hard against the inside of her cheek. A face hovering inches above her own in the morning gloom.
She blinked and so did they.
Bel spluttered, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
โHello, sleepy,โย Carter said, sitting on the bed, Belโs body dragged toward the dip she made.
โI thought you were fucking Rachel.โย Bel clutched her chest, relocating her jumped-up heart.ย โDid you just poke me in the mouth?โย she said, feeling around with her dried-out tongue.
โYou poke me all the time,โย Carter said, her back now turned.
โNot in the mouth while youโre sleeping, you freak.โย Bel kicked her, cushioned through the comforter.ย โI think maybe Iโve been a bad in๏ฌuence on you.โ
โI said your name twice and you didnโt wake up, so I had to resort to drastic measures.โ
โIโll show you drastic measures.โย Bel kicked her again, double-footed until Carter had no choice but to tumble o๏ฌย the bed.
She stood up, holding on to the strap of her yellow backpack, the bulk of it trailing on theย ๏ฌoor.
โHow was ballet yesterday?โย Bel asked, gathering her static hair back into a ponytail.
โFine,โย Carter said, sharply, cutting that o๏ฌ.ย โI thought we could hang out today. My momโs driving me crazy.โ
Carter didnโt know the true meaning of that phrase.
โThought we could bake cookies with Rachel or something,โย Carter continued.ย โOr go to the movies. Just, please, entertain me.โ
Bel swiveled her legs, climbing out of bed.ย โMe and Dad were planning to go on a hike today. You can come if you want.โย She picked up the hoodie lying crumpled on theย ๏ฌoor, pulled it on.ย โIs he downstairs?โ
โHavenโt seen him.โย Carter headed for the door.ย โRachelโs down there.
Said she might attempt pancakes this morning.โ โSounds ominous.โ
โBel,โย Carter said, elbowing her in the ribs.
They walked down the stairs together, Bel pushing Carter in front, a shield as they entered the kitchen, and the sputtering sounds from the stove.
โMorning AnโahโBel, almost had it that time,โย Rachel said, cautiously lifting the edge of one chunky pancake, glancing back to smile at them.
Rachel looked tired, darker circles under her eyes, like that lock on her door had done her no good and she still wasnโt sleeping.
โMorning.โย Bel cracked the bones in her neck. She, on the other hand, had slept too hard.
โCo๏ฌeeโs in the pot, help yourself,โย Rachel said.ย โCarter, pancakes for you too?โ
โYes please, Rachel.โย Carter grinned, sitting at the table. Her smile faltered.ย โI-if thatโs OK?โ
โOf course thatโs OK. You can even have theย ๏ฌrst batch.โย Rachel slid the pancakes onto a waiting plate.
โWhereโs Dad?โย Bel asked, pouring co๏ฌee into her favorite mug, plain with a yellowย B. Bย for Bel, notย Aย for Anna.
โHavenโt seen him.โย Rachel turned back to the pan, pouring more
mixture.
โIs he in the house?โ
โDonโt think so.โ
Bel didnโt trust her answer.
โDad?โย she shouted, wandering away to the bottom of the stairs.ย โDad?!โย she called up.
Nothing.
โNot here.โย Bel returned to the kitchen, Rachel handing her a plate with a stack of three pancakes, chocolate chip.
Maybe heโd gone to get sandwiches for their hike. Bel sat down, pulled her phone out of her hoodie pocket. No texts from Dad. Just one from Ash:ย Let me know if you want to do anything today.ย She shouldnโt have given him her number, that was a mistake. Dad was right: theย ๏ฌlm crew couldnโt be trusted.
She took one bite, the batter turning into a thick paste in her dried-out mouth. She swallowed and stood up again, chair screeching against the tiles.
โWhere are youโฆ,โย Rachel began, sitting down herself.
Bel didnโt answer, heading for the front door, the knot in her gut making itself known, stretching and yawning. She pulled the door open, standing on the threshold, looking up and down the street, as though she could summon Dad over the horizon. He would be back from the store any second, if that was where heโd gone. The road was quiet, too quiet, like something was missing: there were no news vans parked outside. Not one. Rachel Price had o๏ฌcially tipped the scales into Old News, eight days in. Was this the beginning of the end?
Belโs eye caught on something else, something that wasnโt missing, but should have been. Dadโs truck. It was right here, parked in front of the garage in his usual spot, Rachelโs car tucked beside it. Soโฆhe hadnโt gone to the store.
โDad?!โย Bel called through the house again, shutting the door behind her.
โAnnabel, your breakfast will get cold,โย Rachelโs voice rang out in response.
Bel wandered through, hanging in the doorway, neither in the room or out.
โDoesnโt make sense,โย she muttered, more to herself.ย โDadโs truck is here, but he isnโt.โ
โEat your pancakes or I will.โย Carter swung her legs as she ate.ย โDid you see him this morning?โย Bel stared at Rachel.
โNo.โย Rachel swallowed.ย โHe must have left before I got up. Didnโt hear anything.โ
โBut his truck is here.โ
Rachel split a pancake in half.ย โMaybe he had plans with someone.โ
โHe did have plans,โย Bel said,ย โwith me. We were supposed to go on a hike today. He promised.โ
Theyโd both made a promise last night, and Bel was keeping hers. So where was he?
She called him, gripping the phone too hard against her ear. It didnโt even ring.
โHello, youโve reachedโCharlie Price,โย his voice cut in, gru๏ฌย and prerecorded,ย โwho is unable to take your call right now. Please leave a message after the tone.โ
โThatโs weird. Straight to voicemail.โ
Bel brought up their message thread. Texted:ย Dad, where are you? Call me back.
It didnโt deliver, the blue bubble of text waiting in the ether, stuck somewhere between her phone and his.
โAnโB-Bel, your pancakes.โ
โNot hungry.โย Bel turned away. There was no room in her stomach, the knot spinning and growing, feeding itself on every bad thought, and one question: Where was Dad?
She sat in Dadโs chair, and she waited. She tried another number.
โHello, this is Bryson Auto, Gabe speaking. How can I help?โ
Bel cleared her throat.ย โHi, Gabe. This is Bel Price, Charlieโs daughter.โ โHi, Bel. Howโre you doing?โย Gabe said, voice whistling through his
back teeth.
โJust wondering if my dadโs there, if heโs working today? He said heโd be home today, but I canโtย ๏ฌnd him.โ
Two rattling breaths leaked out the speaker, into her ear.ย โYour dadโs not in today. He doesnโt usually work weekends.โ
โRight.โย Bel chewed her thumb.ย โBut youโve been busy, he worked late yesterday, and heโs been working late all week, so I just thoughtโโ
โIf anything, heโs been leaving early. Family stu๏ฌ, he said,โย Gabe replied, some tool clattering in the background.ย โWasnโt in yesterday either. But hey, if I see him, Iโll tell him to give you a call, OK?โ
โY-yeah, thanks.โย Bel stared down at the phone before she hung up.
Stared afterward too.
Dad hadnโt gone into work yesterday, hadnโt been working late all week like he said, missing dinner every night. Telling Bel he was at work and telling work he was at home. So where had he really been, and was he there now?
โStill canโt get hold of him?โย Rachelโs voice cut in behind her, making her jump.
She shook her head.
โWellโฆwe can go on a hike, you, me and Carter,โย Rachel said.ย โIf thatโs what you wanted to do today. We could do the Mascot Mine trail.โ
โTheyโve got barriers up around there,โย Carter said, standing on Belโs other side, trapping her between.ย โSome kids from school broke open the grate into the mine shaft. I wasnโt there,โย she clari๏ฌed, holding up her hands.ย โYou guys go ahead,โย Bel said, removing herself.ย โIโm going to wait for
Dad. He said heโd be home today. Heโll be back.โ
She had no reason to believe that other than he had to, because Dad was the one who always came back. And Bel would wait right here for him to prove her right.
Carter and Rachel played Monopoly. Bel was supposed to be playing too: she rolled the dice, but she bought no properties, happy to sit in jail for three turns.
She tried Dadโs number every thirty minutes. Voicemail. Voicemail. Voicemail. Her text still hadnโt delivered. Why was his phone o๏ฌ? He never
turned his phone o๏ฌ.
Carter left and Rachel stayed, hovering around her.
โIโm sure heโll be back later.โย She reached out, like she was about to rest her hand on Belโs shoulder.
Bel jumped up before she could.
โIโm going to go look for him,โย she announced, thundering upstairs to get dressed.
โ
Bel walked past the Royalty Inn and her school, both Sunday quiet. All the way up to Bryson Auto, to see if Gabe was somehow wrong. There was someone else working there too, tinkering beneath a red car, a set of legs and boots.
โDad?โ
The man rolled out; it wasnโt him.ย โSorry.โ
She stood outside, called Je๏ฌ.
โHave you heard from Dad?โย she said when he picked up.ย โSince last night.โ
โHello to you too. No, I havenโt. Why, he not home?โ โOr at work,โย Bel said.ย โNot picking up his phone.โ
โIโm sure heโsย ๏ฌne. Stop worrying,โย he said, which was pretty perceptive for Uncle Je๏ฌ, because Belย wasย worried now, heart nudging up her throat, on a fast track toward panic.
Where was he? Where was he?
She tried every bar and co๏ฌeehouse in Gorham, tried them a second time:ย โYou again, youโre underage, get out.โ
Sent another text. Called him again, body betraying her, soothing itself at the sound of his recorded voice,ย โCharlie Price.โย Fucking idiot, that wasnโt the real him, riling her heart up again.
Dialed the landline at Grandpaโs house, asked Yordan if heโd seen him.ย โNot since Friday night. Sorry.โ
What was Bel going to do?
She headed back toward home, just in case theyโd missed each other, coming and going. Ramsey was on the street outside the hotel when she passed, zipping up his jacket.
โHey.โย A smile split his face, familiar and overfriendly.ย โWhat a coincidence. Do you have a sec?โ
No, she didnโt.
โSorry, canโt.โย She barreled past.ย โIโm looking for Dad.โ โWhy?โย Ramseyโs voiceย ๏ฌoated after her.ย โHe disappeared?โ
Said like a joke, but it doubled Bel over, giving shape to her worst nightmare.
โNo,โย she called back.ย โHeโll be at home.โย He wasnโt at home.
She waited another hour. Then two. Giving Rachel one-word answers, watching the front door, willing it to open.
โHeโll be back for dinner, Iโm sure,โย Rachel said, eyesย ๏ฌxed on Belโs hands, jangling in her lap, pressing against the knot in her stomach.ย โDo you like salmon?โ
At seven, Bel went to check Dadโs room.
The bed was unmade. That wasnโt unusual; Dad often left the sheets in a bundle, telltale signs of where heโd climbed out. Bel traced herย ๏ฌngers along his pillow, as though she could get some sense of him through the fabric. Where heโd gone after he got out of bed this morning, what was in his head. To his closet next. She studied the hangers: some were empty, swinging when she ran her hand past, but those sweaters and shirts were probably just in the laundry basket. Something else was gone too. The khaki canvas bag Dad packed whenever they went on a weekend away. The bag was gone, wasnโt in its usual place on theย ๏ฌoor of the closet. Wasnโt in any unusual
places either. It wasnโt here.
โFuck.โย The knot outgrew Belโs stomach, looking for other soft places to make its home.
Where was the bag? Dad couldnโt have packed a bag, because that sounded like someone who wanted to leave. And Dad wouldnโt do that. Dad
didnโt leave.
โFound anything?โย Rachel asked at the bottom of the stairs.ย โNo.โย Bel shrugged her o๏ฌ, avoiding her eyes.
She went to the sideboard in the hall, where Dad kept his keys and wallet. The wallet wasnโt here but his keysโboth truck and houseโwere. Bel picked them up to be sure, studying the key ring: a grinning photo of the two of them, at Story Land for her twelfth birthday. Dad hadnโt taken his truck, but wouldnโt he need his house keys, so he could come back home when he was ready?
Bel opened the drawer of the sideboard. Papers and bills. She dug her hand to the back corner, where they kept their passports.
There was only one here. She checked, patting her hand around the rest of the drawer. She pulled the passport out,ย ๏ฌicked to the photo page.ย Annabel Priceย and her own stony face, staring back.
Where was Dadโs passport? It should have been here, right here with
hers.
No, no, no. The knot twisted, pulling its deep-buried strings, Belโsย ๏ฌngers twitching with it. Her heart had bulleted through panic, kicking harder and harder.
Something was wrong. Something was really, really wrong.ย โYou ready for dinner?โ
No, because she was waiting for Dad. He didnโt have his keys, so heโd need someone to let him in. Bel would wait right here by the front door, to be that someone.
She watched the darkening street out the window, face between the slats of the shades, eyesย ๏ฌickering to any sign of movement: a woman walking a dog with a green LED collar, a kid on a scooter, an older kid chasing after him, a man hurrying past, pulling at the peak of his baseball cap.
Bel checked the clock on her phone. He would be back by nine for dinner, with an easy smile and an even easier explanation of where heโd been, why his phone was o๏ฌ. Nine was the deadline; he had to be back by then.
But that ticked by too.
โDo you want me to heat this up for you, Anna-sorry-Bel? You should come sit down.โ
Bel waited until 9:59 p.m.
Then she unlocked her phone, called a di๏ฌerent number. The one for Police Chief Dave Winter.
The sound chimed through Bel, echoing in her empty chest, a click when he answered.
โHi, itโs Bel, Annabel Price. My dad is missing.โ
