Alaskan Summer by Marilou Flinkman

Author:Marilou Flinkman [Flinkman, Marilou]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Christian, Romance
ISBN: 9781628366884
Publisher: Barbour
Published: 2013-06-01T04:00:00+00:00

TWELVE

Laurette grabbed the phone directory. First she called Ruth’s church. She got the office recorder. Desperate, she called John’s cell phone. She got the “out of service” message. She put the phone down and paced the living room. Where could Ruth have gone?

Racing through the house again, Laurette checked and found Ruth’s jacket gone. Her pocketbook that usually sat on her dresser was also gone.

When she heard tires crunching on the driveway gravel, she ran to the door. Ryan jumped out of the car almost before it stopped. He pulled her into his arms. “Now tell me what happened.”

“I came home and found the house empty. I’ve looked and looked, but there’s no note. Her coat and purse are both gone, so I know she’s gone out.”

He smoothed her hair. “Let’s assume she took a walk and got lost. We’ll go down the hill to the street and starting asking people if they’ve seen her. Do you have a picture of Ruth?”

His quiet voice calmed Laurette’s fears. “I’ve got a snapshot I took a few weeks ago.” She quickly turned to find the picture.

“We’ll take my car.” He touched her cheek tenderly. “We couldn’t get the three of us in your truck.”

“Thanks. I’m so worried I don’t think I should be driving, anyway.” Laurette slid into the passenger seat. She pressed her nose against the window trying to search the side of the road as Ryan drove down the hill to Katlian Street. “Where do we start?” Her heart stayed in her throat, making it hard to speak.

“I’ll park here and we’ll go down one way and back the other.”

“Should we call the police?”

“Wouldn’t hurt.”

Laurette pulled out her cell phone. The officer who answered told her they couldn’t take an official missing person report this soon. When she said it was Ruth, he told Laurette, “I know John Stevenson. I’ll send word out for the policemen on duty to be looking for his mother. Will you please keep us informed?”

Shutting the phone, Laurette relayed the message to Ryan. “Here.” She handed him Ruth’s picture. “Could you do the talking?”

As they walked the nearly deserted street, Laurette peered into the shop windows. It was after seven in the evening, and nothing was open. The farther they went, the more guilt plagued her. I shouldn’t have stopped for dinner on the way home without calling to see if Ruth was okay first. Where has she gone?

They had walked all the way to the Pioneer Home. “Maybe she came here looking for Esther.” Laurette pushed open the door.

“We haven’t seen Mrs. Stevenson today,” the receptionist told the couple. “Her son brought her by a week or so ago, but she hasn’t been back.”

“Let’s turn around and check the other side of the street.” Ryan took Laurette’s arm as they started back toward the car.

❧

Ryan stepped in front of her and took hold of her shoulders.

He looked into Rette’s fear-glazed eyes. He took her chin and raised her face so she had to look directly at him.

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