One Chance: A Thrilling Christian Fiction Mystery Romance, page 4
"I got here as fast as I could," Penelope said, her adrenaline level elevated. What would make Doug this upset? "What's up?"
Doug's eyes were wild and frantic. In a panicked and nearly breathless voice he tried to explain. "Camille...just here! Trevor...missing! Can't find him!" He started to break down and tears began to leak from his eyes. He fell to his knees in the driveway. "Help me find my little boy, Penny! I don't know what I'll do if I can't find him! Please, Penny! Help me find Trevor!" he begged.
Camille was Doug's ex-wife. She had broken his heart a number of years ago, left him with barely a word and taken their infant son Trevor with her. To Penelope's knowledge, Doug hadn't seen Camille or his son since then.
"Doug, you been drinking?" Penelope didn't want to ask, but she had to. Doug's alcoholism was what had gotten him in this mess in the first place.
Doug looked hurt. "I swear I haven't had a drop of beer all day. I'm stone-cold sober, Penny. I promise. She was really here! She brought Trevor here and I...I've lost him, Penny!"
"Okay, calm down and tell me what happened," Penelope said, pulling Doug up off his knees, unsure what to think at the moment.
"We have to find Trevor!" Doug yelled, fisting his hands in the air.
"I know that, Doug, I know, but I need you to talk to me and tell me what's happening. Let's go inside, okay?"
Doug's face was a study in frustration and impatience, but he turned and went inside the house.
Penelope followed him, asking, "How did Trevor get here? Where's Camille?"
Doug sat down at Penelope's little kitchen table and put his head in his hands. "Camille came by about half an hour after you left. I don't...I don't know how she knew I was here."
"Everybody in town knows I'm keeping you here at my house, buddy," Penelope told him. "You know how fast rumors fly."
Doug nodded. He was no stranger to the rumors of the town. "Anyway. She said she wanted to talk, said she wanted to work things out. Said a bunch of stuff, really. But then she looked at her watch and said she had to get back to Gainesville. And then...then she asked me to keep Trevor until she came back. I was just so happy to see my son again, you know?"
"And you waited to tell me about this?" Penelope asked.
Doug shrugged a shoulder. He didn't understand why Penelope was wasting time with all this. They needed to find his son! "I figured you'd be busy and I didn't want to bother you while you were finishing up your case. Besides, she and I had a lot to talk about. And she promised to be back tomorrow."
Penelope said, some of her own frustration seeping into her voice, "I was a little busy today, sure, but I want to know what's going on here. You understand the situation I've put myself in for you, right? I'm basically protecting you from an attempted murder charge right now. And they shipped Pete to the hospital this morning. His condition's worse. If he dies, Doug, I don't know what I'll be able to do to help you. And you're at my house! Anything like this happens while this is going on, you have to let me know right away."
"Fine, fine, Penny, I get it, but that's not important right now. Trevor was here, now he's not, and I don't know what to do! Right after Camille left, Trevor was in the living room playing with his cars. I went in the bathroom for thirty seconds, I swear, no longer than that, and when I came out, I couldn't find him."
"Let's go through the house one more time," Penelope suggested.
"Penny, I've looked everywhere! And I've looked around outside, and—"
"One more time, Doug," Penelope said again, "just so I can be sure."
*
The search took only a few minutes, both inside and out, but Trevor was nowhere to be found. With her friend no more calmer now, Penelope had Doug sit on the sofa so they could plan what they were going to do next. She made a quick call to her office too, to get the deputy on duty, Bill Peterson, started this way.
After the phone call, Penelope asked Doug why he thought Camille had come back.
"She said she made a mistake and wants to come home to me," Doug replied. The sound of desperate hope in her friend's voice broke Penelope's heart.
Penelope thought the chances of Camille ever coming back to Doug were of two types, slim and none. But she would never tell her friend that.
"You know I've been praying for both of you, right?" Penelope told him.
Doug simply smiled in return. He didn't say a word about that. After a moment he asked, "How's Pete doing?"
"Jacob had to send him to Grace Memorial, like I said. His condition took a turn for the worse and he can't figure out why."
Doug's hands fidgeted with each other. "Pete's beat up. Camille's back. Trevor's...Trevor's missing. Penny...I just don't...I don't know what's going on."
"I know what you mean," Penelope said. She didn't want to say it, for fear it would send Doug into even further depression, but Penelope was at a loss in all this too. Very little of it made any sense. Camille coming back, at this moment, could not have been worse timing. She stood up and offered Doug a hand. "We've got a few things to ask for, so let's get started."
Doug accepted Penelope's hand. They stood with hands held and heads bowed.
"Dear Lord," Penelope began, "we are confident You already know what is happening here, so we ask that Pete be restored to good health. Let Your will be done, Lord."
"Please, God," Doug started as soon as Penelope finished, "help Penny figure out the truth of this situation we find ourselves in. I'm sure You know who really did this wicked thing to Pete. Let the truth come out and Your will be done. And, Lord, please, my...my Trevor—"
"Lord, lead the lost child back to his father, we pray," Penelope finished for Doug. "We thank You for Your help, Lord. We know You help us in our worst moments. May we all be better through Your grace and Your guidance. Amen."
"Amen," Doug echoed.
And then broke down in tears.
Penelope sat Doug back down and set the coffee pot to brew. Now all they could do was wait for Peterson to arrive.
No sooner was the thought out of her head when she heard the car pulling into her driveway. Out the window she could see Deputy Bill Peterson behind the wheel of the second police cruiser. And she could just see the top of a little blonde mop of hair in the passenger seat.
"Thank you, Lord," she whispered. She turned to Doug with a smile. "Come on, buddy. You're gonna to want to see this."
Doug knelt to the ground outside and hugged Trevor in a tight embrace as the child laughed and squirmed in his father's arms. Tears ran down Doug's face again, joyful tears this time.
"Where'd you find him?" Penelope asked Bill.
"Out on the County road," Bill drawled. "Said he had to take his cats for a walk. Weirdest thing was, weren't no cats with him."
Penelope had to laugh. Bill didn't have any kids of his own. Apparently imaginary cats were too much for him to fathom.
Doug picked Trevor up in his arms and walked over to where the two deputies stood. "Thank you, Bill. Really. I don't know what I would have done if I'd lost him." He tusseled Trevor's hair and the little boy squealed as only four-year-old boys can.
Bill stared at Doug with a blank expression. "Right," he said finally. "Guess you're just having a rough weekend all the way 'round, ain't ya?"
Then he turned and went back to his cruiser. A moment later, he was driving away.
Doug closed his eyes and shook his head. He realized how the people in town had already made up their minds about him.
"Don't let it get to you, buddy," Penelope said to him. "The important thing is that we found Trevor. He's safe."
The fact that Trevor really was here meant that Camille must have been here too. How else would Trevor have gotten here? So now, Penelope would have to keep two houseguests instead of one for the next few days. She figured she could handle that. Especially one extra as happy as Trevor was, babbling nonstop to his father. They probably had a lot to catch up on, since Camille had kept Trevor away for so long.
"Doug, what's Camille's phone number?"
"What's that?" Doug said, looking at Penelope.
"She had to leave you her phone number, right? I mean, when she dropped Trevor off and then had to leave again, she must have given you some way to get in touch with her?"
"Uh, no. She didn't. Sorry, Penny, I didn't even think about it until now." He tossed Trevor up in the air and caught him again, much to the delight of the young boy.
As Doug hugged Trevor to him again, the boy said in a sing-song voice, "Five-five-five, one, zero-zero-eight."
Both Doug and Penelope stopped and stared at Trevor.
"What's that, little guy?" Doug asked him.
"Mama's phone number," Trevor answered. "Throw me again!"
Penelope got out her pad of paper from her shirt pocket. "Say it again Trevor, can you say it again?"
The boy repeated his song and Penelope wrote down, 555-1008, with Camille's name next to it.
"Where'd you learn that, little guy?" Doug asked his son.
"Mama taught me, big guy!" he laughed. "Throw me! Throw me!"
Doug did as his boy asked him, but spoke to Penelope at the same time. "What did you want to talk to Camille about?"
"Sorry, Doug, but I have to tell her that Trevor went missing, and that we found him again. You know the way this town talks. It will get back to her anyway if we don't tell her and I don't want her mad at you when it does. Or me, for that matter."
Doug nodded but didn't look happy about it.
And Penelope had to wonder why.
CHAPTER 10
For half an hour the friends sat at the kitchen table remembering the days when Doug and Camille were married and Trevor was just a baby. Neither of them wanted to spoil what was left of the afternoon with any mention of what caused the divorce.
Penelope tried Camille's number a few times but got voicemail each time. She left two messages asking her to call back when she could.
"Did she say where she had to go off to so quickly?" she asked Doug.
"No, and I didn't ask, Penny. I'm just so happy to see Trevor again, you know? It's been so long."
Penelope watched Trevor playing on the living room floor with two plastic trucks and a stuffed dog, toys that he had apparently brought with him when Camille dropped him off.
"I know that look," Doug said to her. "What are you thinking, Penny?"
Penelope shook her head. "It's probably nothing. Just me being my usual police-self. The timing is just odd. Why now? Why this weekend, of all weekends, when you're in so much trouble?"
Doug blinked. "Is that all? Penny, there's no way that Camille could have known about all this before she came."
"I know, I know. So like I said. Nothing. I'm just glad for you. Really. And I really hope things work out for you two."
Trevor ran out to them and reached his hands up to Doug to be picked up. Once he had settled himself in Doug's lap he asked, "Daddy, can we get lunch?"
Doug looked at Penelope.
"Sounds like a good idea to me," Penelope said. "A little late for lunch, though. But I'm up for an early supper. Let's take him into town to get something." She leaned across the table and smiled at Trevor. "I know this place that makes fantastic chicken nuggets. You like chicken nuggets?"
Trevor smiled a big smile and nodded his head. "Bar'cue sauce!"
"I bet Jacob would love to see him again, too. Let me give him a call."
She left Trevor and Doug at the kitchen table and went outside to call Jacob on her cell.
"Hello, Doc," she said when he answered, "I think I need a heart replacement. Mine seems to have been stolen."
She heard Jacob stifle a giggle. "I see. Your name, please, and the name of the person who took your heart."
"This is Deputy Penelope Chance," she said. "There's this drop-dead gorgeous doctor in town named Jacob Gordon. He stole my heart. I don't think I'll ever be the same."
"Hmm, that sounds serious," he said in a coy voice. "I think I have a spare in my freezer. This incredibly beautiful deputy that I know gave me hers. Let me know when you can be here and I'll pop it in the microwave to warm it up for you."
They laughed with each other. They had been engaged to be married for a little while now, and the day he had finally asked her, was still one of the greatest moments of her life. She thanked God often for letting him come into her life.
After a moment or two, he asked, "Seriously, what's up, Deputy Beautiful?"
"I was wondering if you would like to meet me in town for an early dinner. With Doug. And Trevor," she added offhandedly.
"Trevor's there?" he said, excited. Then his voice dropped a notch. "Is Camille there too?"
Jacob and Camille had been good friends when they were younger. He was at Doug and Camille's wedding a little over five years ago. That had actually been how Penelope and Jacob met.
And then Camille left Doug and basically cut all ties to family and friends. Jacob's opinion of Camille had been guarded ever since.
"No, she's not. But I'll let Doug explain it to you," she said. "We'll be at Spanky's. Meet you soon."
CHAPTER 11
As it turned out, seeing Jacob again would have to wait a bit. She had just gone back inside and told Doug that Jacob would be joining them for lunch when her phone rang. The caller display told her who it was. Why was the Sheriff's Office calling her again?
"Deputy Chance," she answered.
"Penelope, it's Jim." Deputy Jim Saunders said from the other end of the call in his thick Georgian accent. "I'm not sure, but I'm thinkin' we may have a runaway."
"How do you think you have a runaway? You either do or you don't," Penelope rubbed at the bridge of her nose. "Listen, can you handle this one without me?"
"We don't need you to come in," Saunders said. "I'm calling because I think you know the girl. It's Missy Clark. Seen you in the park across the street talkin' to her and that Tommy Pruett, so I figured you'd want to know what's goin' on. Thought maybe you might have a different take on it, too."
"Yeah. Thanks, Jim," she said. "Yeah, I know those two. They're good kids, but in too much of a hurry to grow up."
"Parents say they haven't seen her since she left for school yesterday," Saunders said. "I already done checked with Mister Dobson down at the grocery store, where she works after school. He says she was there sure enough and left at seven thirty last evening. 'Course, he also seems to think she stole forty dollars from her register. He wasn't gonna say anything, but when he heard she might be missin' he thought it was better to say so."
Penelope was surprised. "Missy stole from her register? That doesn't sound right. She never seemed like the type to do that."
"All I know is he said her drawer came up forty dollars short and now her parents say they haven't seen her in more than a day."
"You've talked to Tommy's parents?"
"Well, let's just say that Tommy's parents are a little less interested in what their son is doin' than Missy's parents are with her. They think he's probably just out with friends. They ain't worried."
Penelope sighed. Young love. Blind to everything but what the heart wants. "She and Tommy probably went over to Gainesville."
"So what should I tell her parents?" Jim asked.
"Have they tried calling her friends?"
"Yup. So did I. Same thing, none of them have seen her since school let out yesterday."
Penelope thought a moment, but the only answer was the obvious one. "Well, I can't think of anywhere else she might be, other than with Tommy."
"You want I should tell that to her mother? That she's probably with the boyfriend?"
"She's not going to want to hear it," Penelope said, "but that's the only thing we can be reasonably sure of at this point. They're both eighteen and legally they're adults in the eyes of the great state of Florida. Tell them we'll put a locate message out but there's not much else we can do if all they did was run off together."
"Got it. Thanks, Penelope," Jim said. "You want I should call you back if anythin' develops?"
"Could you? I'd like to know if she gets back home or if you find her."
"Will do. Thanks, Penelope." And then Jim hung up, leaving Penelope to wonder at the foolish things young hearts did.
Of course, she might not be the one to throw that particular stone.
*
Inside Spanky's Grill, the town's local family restaurant, Trevor sat in a booster seat at their table, stuffing chicken nuggets into his mouth.
Jacob had met them in the parking lot. Penelope embraced him tightly and he whispered into her ear that he loved to see her in her uniform, but wasn't she supposed to be off duty today?
She'd given him the brief version of the day's events, and he nodded once and left it at that. He had to be the most understanding man in the world. Doug had looked at their affectionate display with a mixture of jealousy and sadness. Penelope now had the very thing Doug had thought he'd found with Camille.
Inside the restaurant, Jacob watched Trevor eat. He laughed. "My goodness, Doug, he's getting so big he'll be wearing his daddy's clothes before long."
Trevor laughed and said, "You're silly, Uncle Jay-Jay."
He smiled to hear the boy's pet name for him. "You haven't called me that in a long time. I wasn't sure you'd remember me."
"Mama said we had to move away. But I think we might come back now. That's what daddy said." He stuffed another nugget in his cheek and sipped soda through his straw.
Jacob exchanged a look with Penelope. He knew, just like Penelope did, how badly Doug wanted his family back together again. He leaned over and tickled Trevor's ribs to break the sudden tension. Trevor laughed and spilled soda down his chin.
"Daddy!" he complained. "He tickled me!"
"He did?" Doug asked in mock surprise. "What do you think I should do about that?"
A few minutes of silliness ensued in which Penelope offered to arrest him for illegal tickling of a minor child. Trevor's eyes got wide and he said he didn't want to press charges because he didn't want him to go to jail. Everyone at the table broke out in laughter.
It felt good to Penelope to have the three of them together like this, and especially with Trevor there with them. It was like things were the way they had been, back before Doug's divorce. Back before all the troubles they were facing today.
