wrapping the styling cape around her fragile shoulders. Her face had looked as pale as the neck strip she’d looped around her. And the poor woman had lost a lot of weight. Even her hair had seemed to lose its natural luster and turn prematurely gray. Isla enjoyed cutting hair and talking to her clients, but some days it proved difficult. Like when a client suffered some sort of tragedy and broke down sobbing in her chair. No way she could be cheerful and upbeat when that happened, and the gloom usually stayed with her the rest of the day.
The TV show ended, and Raisin yawned. Isla wanted to get him to bed as soon as possible so he wouldn’t see her fretting. With Katie still missing, she knew she’d not get any sleep tonight.
“Time for bed, buddy.”
“I know you’re scared, Mom, but don’t worry. Katie will be home soon.”
“I know.”
“Can I go help you look for her tomorrow?”
“How do you know about that?”
“It’s why you’ve been looking at your phone all night, isn’t it?”
“Yes, but I need you to stay in school tomorrow. You’ve got only a few days left, and you’ve already missed too many this year.”
“But I don’t care about school. I want to help find Katie.”
“Like you said, we’ll find her and bring her home. Half the congregation will be out helping me look for her. And the police are searching, too.”
“Scout can help. Maybe he can follow her scent.”
“Scout’s a lifesaver, for sure, but he’s been trained to do one job in life, and that’s care for you. You two need to keep as normal a routine as possible for the sake of your health.”
“Jeez, Mom, I’m not Humpty Dumpty sitting on some stupid wall.”
“Humpty Dumpty?” She laughed. “What made you think of him?”
“‘All the king’s horses and all the king’s men couldn’t put Humpty together again,’ but he didn’t have a dog like Scout watching over him.”
* * *
Isla’s father had been asleep for a while now. He slept at least ten hours a day, every day of the week. After Raisin went to bed, she paced the dark house, unable to keep her emotions in check. For the hundredth time, she called Ray and got the same response. She knew she’d need to nap at some point this evening, so she threw a blanket and pillow on the couch and closed her eyes.
A thought came to her as she stared up at the ceiling. She went into Katie’s room and clicked on the light. Breaking the norm for most teens, Katie kept her room in spotless condition. Not a thing appeared out of place. Isla never had to tell her to clean up or make her bed. Katie even vacuumed the carpet once a week. Isla glanced at the desk Katie did her homework on. Over the past year, she hadn’t been using it as much, choosing instead to study over at Willow’s house. Or to finish her homework in study hall. The sight of this empty room caused a pit to form in Isla’s stomach. She knew Katie’s days in this household were numbered, and she’d soon be off to college, but she’d not expected to see the room so empty so soon.
Isla sat on the bed and stared at Katie’s laptop. In September Katie would be starting her senior year and would be filling out the first of her college applications. They planned on making campus trips later in the summer and doing some mother-daughter bonding, bonding that she’d recently neglected because of Raisin’s and her father’s medical conditions. Part of her was eager to help Katie make that exciting life transition. The other part of her felt depressed that her daughter would soon be leaving.
Choosing a college had been all Isla could think about when she was a high school senior. She remembered how excited she’d been when she got accepted and when her parents dropped her off at the university. The prospect of meeting new friends, the parties and football games, the intellectual rigor of the high-level classes she would be taking had been exhilarating.
However, one of her professors had spoken to her that first day in class, and everything had changed. She had felt excited that a handsome, intelligent man like him would take notice of her. He cut quite a figure on campus, with his longish black hair and tweed jackets. Wearing boat shoes and jeans, he stood over six feet tall and seemed never to arrive