Handle With Care (22 page)

S
hane picked up the moment he recognized Lauren’s cell number. “What’s up?”

“Josh. He’s missing. Julie called me at work, and I told her to call 911.” Lauren rushed on, “He’s probably trying to come to you, but he can’t call. We’ve been taking away his cell phone at night.”

Shane grabbed his keys, heading for the door. “You go home and I’ll start searching the neighborhood. Call my cell phone as soon as anything changes.”

“I will. Please hurry. We’ve got to find him.”

“We will. I promise, nothing bad will happen to him. We’ll find him.”

“I can’t believe he did this.” She made a fist with her hands. “I should have let him see you.”

“Don’t start panicking.” He kept his voice calm. “He doesn’t know where to go, so I’m sure he hasn’t gotten far. We’ll get him, I promise.”

They hung up, and Shane shooed Major out the door. “Come on, boy. We’ve got a job to do.” On the way to his car, he called the EMTs, asking if they’d look out for a six-year-old boy. “He was in bed when he went missing, so I don’t know if he’s roaming the streets in his PJs or wearing street clothes. But he’s tall for his age, skinny, with straight strawberry-blonde hair that he wears past his ears. He’s got blue eyes and a mole on his left cheek. A cute kid. And he might be looking for me.”

“Got it,” the dispatcher answered. “We’ll keep our eyes and ears open.”

“Thanks.” Shane and the dog headed over to Belmont Shores, driving up and down the beach, hoping to spot Josh on the bike path. Several couples strolled hand in hand, and a few people were out walking their dogs, but no sign of Josh. He got out of his car and ran down the pier, but it was dark and deserted.

“You got a drink?”

Shane turned to see an old drunk sitting on the pier, his back against a wooden rail, a brown bag between his legs. “No. No drink. You seen a boy about this high?” He indicated Josh’s height with his hand.

“What if I have?” the grizzled man answered. “What’s it worth to you?”

Major whined and sniffed the old man.

“You seen a kid or not?” Shane had no time for games, and no patience either. “Ten dollars if you know where he is.”

“I saw a boy down by the liquor store. On 2nd Street. About an hour ago.” Major was now sniffing the man’s crotch, and the old geezer pushed the dog’s head away.

Shane whipped a twenty out of his wallet and dropped it in the man’s lap. “Don’t drink it all. Get a meal.”

“I’ll do that.” He put the bottle to his lips and drank the last of it. “You’re a generous man.”

Shane left his car and ran up and down 2nd Street, with Major racing along beside him. Unlike the pier and the beach walk, it was lively this time of night. A four-block stretch had popular restaurants, shops, boutiques, and coffee shops. He headed for the local ice cream shop first, trying to think where Josh would hide out.

If a boy were alone and frightened, where would he go? Josh didn’t have any money or a phone. He couldn’t even call home.

Something caught his eye under a bench on the sidewalk. Looked like a backpack, and sticking out of it was Woody, from
Toy Story
.

He had no idea if this was Josh’s bag, but if it was, where was he?

By the time Lauren got home, the police had come, questioned Julie, and gone.

“Are you okay?” Lauren asked, noting with concern Julie’s stricken expression. Her eyes were red from weeping, her face pale, and she was visibly shaking.

“I will be. Once we have Josh back home.” She dug a tissue out of her pants pocket and wiped her eyes. “I’m so sorry this happened. I feel terrible.”

“I know you do, but it’s not your fault. You’re not responsible for this.” She gave Julie a hug, then paced the room. “What did the police say? Are they out looking for him?”

“Yes. They told me that they sent Josh’s description to all the patrol cars in this area, but they haven’t entered him into the nationwide databases because he left voluntarily. If he’d been kidnapped, it would have been different.”

“I see.” She was doing her best to remain calm and not be overwhelmed by the towering wave of fear building inside her. She felt suffocated, as though oxygen couldn’t get through her bloodstream.

“I should have known Josh would do something extreme. He’s been unusually hyper, acting out in school, not listening to me.” She ran her hands up and down her arms, trying to warm herself. “Should have seen this coming.”

“Don’t say that. Blaming ourselves only makes things worse.” Julie put a comforting hand on Lauren’s shoulder. “He’ll come home. I know he will.” She glanced at the clock. “Its half past nine, and he’s got nowhere to go.”

“Wait by the phone, Julie. I’m going to look around the neighborhood and check in with Shane.” Once she hit the street, she called him, but he didn’t pick up.

Why wasn’t he calling her? Had he found something? Her worries escalated to full blown panic. If he’d found Josh’s body, he’d have to tell her face to face. He wouldn’t answer her text messages. He wouldn’t call her on the phone.

She ran around the neighborhood, knocking on people’s doors, stopping cars as they passed, then limped back to the house. She sank into a chair as her legs gave way. “Josh, oh Josh, please come home. Please, God.”

Julie entered the room. “Nothing? Did you hear from Shane? Has he found our boy?” Tears ran down her cheeks. “What is it? You’re scaring me.”

“No, Julie. I couldn’t get Shane on the phone. Why wouldn’t he answer it?” She didn’t wait for a reply. “I’m so scared, I can’t think straight.” She put her shaking hands to her lips. “I was just about to pray. Would you pray too?”

Julie sat on the sofa, near enough to reach over and pat Lauren’s knee. “Believe me, I’ve been praying real hard. I want to see that boy nearly as much as you.”

Lauren called Shane again. When he didn’t answer, she jumped up from the chair, and paced the room. “Why won’t he answer the damn phone?”

Her fears took on a life of their own. Every mother’s nightmare exploded in her mind. He could be lost, or hit by a car, or meet the kind of people who harm little boys.

S
hane ran up and down the area, shouting Josh’s name. Major barked madly, overly excited by all the drama. After several minutes of this, Shane stopped and called Lauren.

“Haven’t got him yet, but there’s a blue Nike backpack under a bench with a Woody toy sticking out. Is that his?”

“Yes, yes, but where is he? If the bag’s there, what happened to him?” Lauren cried, “Shane. You’ve got to find him before something terrible happens.”

“I will. Hang in there.” Shane put his phone away and retraced his steps to the place he’d seen the bag. For the first time that night, Shane feared the worst.

Long Beach was a quirky, unorthodox community, which made the beach town an interesting place to live. But right now, all he could think about was the possibility that a pedophile might have gotten to Josh first.

He found the bag and gave Major the toy to catch the boy’s scent. “Gotta find Josh. Come on Major. Focus. This is important.”

Major ran around in circles then put his head in the air, nostrils twitching, and raced up and down the street. Shane chased after him, breathing heavily.

“Focus, Major. This isn’t a game. We’ve got to get Josh.” He wagged the toy in front of the dog’s nose. “Now do it.”

Shane thought he heard a whimper. “Did you hear something?” he spoke aloud. “Come on. Let’s find him.”

The dog slowed down, sniffing every bush, running from one to the next, then he lifted his head, his ears twitched, and he began yipping and jumping all over the place.

Shane was a few steps behind. “Josh? Josh! Are you there?” He pulled back branches, trying to uncover the small shape that hid from sight.

He heard the boy sniffle and cry. “Mommy’s going to be so mad. I ran away and I got lost.”

“You’re not lost anymore. I found you, son.” He pulled Josh out of the bush, not giving a damn if they were both covered in scratches. He held the small body tight to his chest and kissed the top of his head. “Oh, Josh, you had us so worried.”

Major had to greet him too. He stood on his hind legs to lick the boy’s face.

Josh giggled, then a sob ripped out. He had his little arms wrapped around Shane in a stranglehold. “I was so scared I wet my pants. Some weirdo offered me a drink for my bag. I ran like crazy and dropped my bag, but I didn’t go back. I hid in the bushes.”

“That was very smart of you.” He moved slightly away so he could see the boy’s face. “Your mom is going to be so happy to see you. She’s waiting for you at home. What do you say?” He kissed the boy’s wet cheeks. “Shall we go home now and see your mom?”

“Will you come too?” he asked in a small voice. “Please, please come too.”

“Of course, I’ll come.” He hit redial, and Lauren answered immediately in a breathless voice. He could picture her, a total wreck on the inside, but holding it all together on the outside, putting on a brave front for the world to see.

“I have him. He’s safe.”

“Oh, thank God.” A sob ripped from her. “Shane, Shane, how can I ever thank you enough?”

“You just did.” Shane held the phone out to Josh. “Say hi to your mom.”

“Mom, I’m sorry.” His little face crumpled, and tears slid down his face. “I’ll never do it again. Promise.”

Shane recaptured the phone. “I’ll have him home in a few minutes. He’s fine, Lauren. Just fine.”

“Shane.” Tears filled her eyes, and she couldn’t speak. The phone slipped out of her hand.

Julie picked it up and stood watching her, anxiously waiting to hear. Lauren nodded and swallowed a rather large lump. “Josh is safe. Shane’s bringing him home.”

The moment Shane pulled up the driveway, Lauren flung the door open and ran outside. She threw her arms around her son, laughing and crying.

“Josh, oh baby, thank God you’re safe.”

“Are you mad at me?” Josh asked in a small voice, rapidly blinking back tears. “I’m sorry I ran away. I didn’t have my phone.”

He let out a heart-wrenching sob. “I wanted to call, but I couldn’t.”

Lauren cried too. “I know, honey. I promise I’ll never take your phone away again. Never, ever.” She pulled Josh into her arms and grabbed Shane’s hand. “You were very lucky tonight that Shane found you, but what you did was a terrible, scary thing. You must never run away again, no matter how bad you feel, and how angry you get.” She kissed his cheeks and wiped his tears. “Promise me, sweetheart. Something terrible could have happened to you, and I love you so much.”

“I won’t, Mommy. I promise.”

She turned her eyes on Shane. “We will talk later, but I’ll never forget what you did tonight. I can never thank you enough.”

“I don’t need your thanks,” he said quietly. “I love Josh, and he had me worried too.” He ruffled the boy’s hair. “You won’t ever do this again, will you? Your Mom has good reasons for the things she does and your best interests at heart.”

“But I wanted to see you.”

Shane and Lauren exchanged a glance. She bit her lip and sucked back tears. “Maybe you can. But this was a bad way of going about it,” she said sternly.

Shane just looked at her, and she knew he was thinking about their relationship. But she had no answers for him right now. She loved him, she wanted him back in their lives, but tonight was not a night to make those decisions.

She kept her fingers entwined with his, but glanced away. Her emotions were on overload, and she needed a clear head to answer the question in his eyes.

“Shane, Josh, are you hungry? I put on a pot of coffee, and Julie made a raisin zucchini loaf this afternoon.”

Shane answered first. “I’ve got Major with me.” He glanced at the dog, who had his head out the window, tongue hanging out, and spittle running down the side of the car. “He doesn’t look like much right now, but he was the real hero tonight. Sniffed out Josh, didn’t you boy?”

Lauren smiled. “Bring him in too.”

Josh laughed. “Yeah. I want a dog just like him. Can I, mom?”

“We’ll talk about that later.” She put an arm around his shoulders. “First let’s get you cleaned up and put something in that stomach of yours.”

“Good. I’m so hungry, I could eat a whale.”

“A whale?” Shane laughed, then rescued Major from the car, and they all walked together toward the house. “I’ll stick to Julie’s loaf, if that’s all right.”

When they were washed up and seated at the kitchen table, Lauren couldn’t take her eyes off her son. She wanted to gobble him up. He was laughing and talking to Shane, and he hadn’t looked so happy since … since the last time Shane had been there.

Her gaze lifted from her son’s face to Shane. She wanted him in their life as much as her son did. Maybe she had made a serious mistake by not giving him another chance. Being an alcoholic was an illness, but one that could be managed. Millions of people around the world had this disease but had kicked the addiction and lived happy, successful lives. If there ever was a man she’d bet her money on, it was Shane.

Besides, who was she to judge? She had more to atone for than this brave wounded warrior who sat before her.

She smiled at him and felt warmed all over when he smiled back. “More coffee?” she asked, getting up to refill his cup.

He took her hand when she reached for his cup and looked deep into her eyes. She felt a sudden flash of heat and a powerful yearning deep inside, a physical reaction so strong it took her breath away.

“I’ve had enough,” he said. “I don’t want to overstay my welcome.”

“You could never do that,” she answered, pouring him another half cup.

He raised an eyebrow, and she flushed. “Josh and I want you here. It was wrong of me to keep you apart.” Her eyes were steady on his. “You’re strong. You can beat this. I know you can. I know.”

He glanced away and shrugged. “You did what you had to do.”

Although obviously happy to be with Shane again, Josh was falling asleep at the table. Lauren told him she’d tuck him into bed, and then looked at Shane, asking if he could stay for a few more minutes. He agreed, much to her relief.

Josh climbed right into bed, and Lauren was still giving him a good-night hug when he fell asleep. She sat on his bed for a few minutes more, watching him sleep, thanking God that he was home with her again.

When she returned to the kitchen, she found Shane standing by the front door. A new anxiety gripped her. He seemed in a hurry to leave, and she very much wanted him to stay.

“Do you have to go?” she asked quietly. “There are so many things I need to say.”

“Not now. I know what an emotional night it’s been. Whatever you feel that you need to say can wait until you are in a more rational frame of mind.”

“No, it can’t. I need to make this right with you.”

“Not now, Lauren.” He opened the door. “I really have to leave.”

“Shane … you’re not going to do anything you’re regret, are you?”

“No, Lauren. Never again. You don’t need to worry about that.”

“Then why?”

He didn’t answer, just shook his head, his eyes skittering away from hers.

The door closed behind him, and feeling as though her heart had been ripped right out of her, Lauren let him go.