Whereabouts Unknown by Meredith Doench

Author:Meredith Doench [Doench, Meredith]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9781635556469
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Published: 2022-01-24T02:09:46+00:00

Chapter Twenty-three

Theo killed the engine in her driveway and leaned her head against the seat rest. It had been a long day, and her leg ached something fierce. She rubbed the knot in her hip, digging fingertips into the tender flesh. She was certain she’d be feeling the trip to Brecksville for at least a few days.

Weston had called two hours after she left Brecksville. His team had been through Daniel’s phone records. Most of the numbers were accounted for, but there were four calls coming from an unknown number, a burner. Weston had someone working on it, but burners were notoriously hard to track. Neither of them put much stock in that lead going very far.

“On the day Daniel went missing,” Weston had said, “the very last call was made from Brecksville to a small town along Interstate 71 called Redhaw.”

“Redhaw?” Theo had never heard of it.

“Looks like he was headed toward the Mansfield area. The call is only three minutes and fifteen seconds. Then the phone goes black.”

The burner was most likely destroyed.

Bree had left the porch lights on. She rarely worked Saturdays since she’d become pregnant and spent them curled up with her rom-com books and films. Theo usually loved Saturday nights with Bree. Tonight was a different story. Not only did Theo arrive later than expected, after ten p.m., but she’d spent the day avoiding Bree’s texts. It felt like Bree was checking up on her as if she was a child. Once Theo knew Bree’s test had gone well, she didn’t see the need for more communication until she got home.

Theo leaned more heavily on her cane than usual as she opened the front door. She found Bree in the TV room snuggled under a blanket. She was relaxing on the couch in her usual Saturday night gear, comfy pajamas and old leather slippers.

“It’s warm in here, hon. You okay?” Theo cracked open a window.

It was always warm whenever Bree was in the house. It didn’t matter the room’s temperature—pregnancy hormones left her chilly and goose-pimply, an oddity that her obstetrician liked to point out at their appointments. “Most of the women I see are sweating buckets at this stage of pregnancy,” he’d told them. “Your chills are one for the books.”

Bree paused the movie. When she looked up, Theo saw the red around her eyes and recognized the sniffles. “I was worried you weren’t coming home.”

“Come on, Bree.” Theo leaned in and kissed her. “It’s only a little after ten. My whereabouts are known.”

“Ha ha.” Bree smiled despite her irritation.

Theo collapsed on the couch beside her. A frozen scene from Imagine Me & You filled the screen. “It’s the movie, huh?”

Bree pulled another tissue from the box on the corner table.

“Every time.”

It had been almost two years since their first real date. Bree invited Theo over for a home-cooked meal and a movie. A rom-com, of course.

“From the looks of your kitchen, you don’t cook much,” Bree had told Theo one morning when they emerged from Theo’s bedroom.

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