it would be his fault if anything happened to Alex. When Dylan hung up, he was as angry as he’d ever been in his life, but he knew he had to calm down if he was going to get anywhere.
His next and final call went to Ange.
“Ange, I’ve got a situation on my hands, and I need help with the boys. Can you come?”
“For how long? I’ve got plans with Bill this afternoon,” she answered.
“I don’t know, but it’s important.”
“Dyl, are you okay?”
“No.”
“I’ll be right there.”
True to her word, Ange was there in minutes. He gave her a brief explanation without the details of what Paul had told Alex, and Ange agreed to stay until he found his woman. He’d be back today, of course, whether he found her or not. First, he needed to see Wanda, and he prayed he could do so without alarming her too much. A shock was all she needed, after her heart attack.
He caught a break at the hospital. When he got there, Wanda had remembered the conversation she and Alex had. She was calm but concerned, and when she asked, Dylan had no choice but to tell her what happened, though he soft-pedaled it as much as he could. Wanda took it better than he would have thought.
“I’ll lay odds she went to those girls she was living with,” Wanda said. “Where else would she go, with me in here? Either that, or to her Nana. But my money’s on those girls.”
“I’ll have Paul call his mom. Thanks for the tip, Wanda.”
“You’re welcome. Now go get our girl. She’ll come around, Dylan. Just give her some time to grieve and get over being mad at her dad. I have to say, I warned him this would happen. Stubborn fool wouldn’t listen to me.”
“You knew?” Dylan asked, shocked.
“Of course I knew. I’m the one she’d bring Alex to, when she couldn’t cope. She told me she was in trouble before she told Paul. Frankly, I always expected her to come and get Alex before she disappeared for good, though. Go on, now, I’m fine. Go find Alex.”
Dylan leaned over and gave Wanda as big a hug as he could without tangling the telemetry leads. “I’ll bring her home. Don’t worry,” he said.
“I’m not worried.”
As soon as he was out of the hospital and in his car, he tried Alex’s phone again. To his relief, this time she answered.
“Alex, you had me worried!” he exclaimed.
“I’m sorry. I had to get out of town, Dylan, I’m sorry. I can’t come back right now.”
“What do you mean, you can’t come back? Why not? What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to find my mother, and my brother or sister or whatever. Get Dad to tell you what I mean. I love you. I’ll call you when my head’s in a better place.”
Dylan found himself holding a phone with no connection. She’d hung up on him! He stared at the phone, disbelieving what he’d heard. How would she find her mother after so many years? What kind of mess might she find herself in, if she started stirring up old shit in a town the size of Casa Grande? His stomach did a flip realizing she’d left him no hope that she’d come home any time soon.
Dylan had no choice but to pull himself together. He needed to keep things normal for the boys, and he had an important interview coming up in less than two weeks. Remembering that he’d made plans with Alex around his trip to Scottsdale, he contented himself with hoping she’d follow through, and he gave her the space she clearly wanted. That meant they didn’t talk for over a week, during which time she did text him once a day to say she loved him. It wasn’t what he wanted, but it was better than nothing. Encouraging, really.
On the Monday after her abrupt departure, Dylan sent Alex a text reminding her of their date on Friday. She didn’t answer right away. He waited all day for her answer, and began to worry by late that night. He sent a quick text saying he loved her, and forced himself to say no more. Maybe that would take the pressure off. The next day, he got a cryptic message saying she was onto something, and she may not be able to make Friday’s trip. Hoped he understood.
No. He didn’t understand, but he tried.
Friday, he still hadn’t heard from her. Without her, he couldn’t take the