“It’s Aiyana.”
Salem’s eldest daughter. Cody hadn’t heard that name in a long time.
Images flashed of hair as dark as a raven’s wing and clear, tanned skin taut over high cheekbones. Even now, his fingers had an imprint of desire, an itchiness to run through hair that had hung straight and thick to her waist.
He had never acted on his desire. She’d been too young. But they had meant something to each other once upon a time. A lifetime ago.
“She’s missing,” Salem said.
Cody had been leaning against the newel post with his arms folded across his chest, flushes of memories warming his raw soul, but straightened away at Salem’s words, his hands falling to his sides.
“Missing?”
Don’t worry, he told himself to defuse his burgeoning fear, she’s no longer a vulnerable teenager. She’s a grown woman who can take care of herself. Yeah? Tell that to her dad who looked like he hadn’t slept all night.
“What do you mean, missing? Since when?”
Salem rubbed the back of his neck. “Since yesterday. She went hiking in Paintbrush State Park, but didn’t come home last night.”
Cody stilled. His first instinct, in the heat of panic, was to run out the door to find her. A cooler head had to prevail. They needed to organize and be smart.
Even so, a witchy dread whispered through him.
Cody’s mom directed them toward the kitchen. She turned on the coffeepot.
“Sit,” Cody’s dad ordered Salem.
“Thanks, Nick.” Salem fell into a chair he edged away from the kitchen table.
“You’ll have something warm before you go back out there,” Nick said. “I’m assuming you’ve already been.”
Salem’s limp hands hung between his spread knees. “Yeah. When she didn’t return last night we went to the park after dark.”
Laura turned on the pendant lamp hanging over the table, highlighting how haggard Salem looked. A handsome man with warm Native American skin, at the moment he looked like death warmed over.
Parched, Cody poured himself a glass of water straight from the tap and gulped it down. It tasted pure and clear.
In LA, he’d filtered his water twice, once from the faucet and again with a Brita. Here, even without filtering, the water tasted fine. Better than fine.
He’d missed the simple pleasure of purity, of clean air and uncomplicated food.
LA appealed to all kinds of people, but it had never been Cody’s kind of town. God knew he’d tried to like living there.
He drank another glass of water while ignoring his mother’s intent gaze. He sat down at the table, so damned relieved to have someone else’s problems to worry about.
The fact that Salem was so full of worry for his daughter’s safety that he’d forgotten about Cody’s recent tragedy and didn’t look at him as though he thought he might shatter was a relief.
“We found Aiyana’s car in the parking lot,” Salem’s dull voice intoned. “Park personnel wouldn’t let us mount a search in the dark.” He slammed his hand on the table. Spoons danced. “She’s been out there all night, but they were afraid one of us would get lost.”
“Fair enough,” Nick said.
“No, it isn’t,” Salem shouted. He covered his eyes with one hand. “I’m sorry, Nick. I’m so sorry.”
“Believe me, I understand.” Nick squeezed Salem’s shoulder. “It would be unnatural if you weren’t upset.”
Salem dropped his hand. His eyes brimmed with tears. “My little girl’s out there alone in the dark. She won’t like that.”
No, Aiyana wouldn’t like that at all. Cody knew that much about her, remembering how upset she had been that summer before she turned sixteen. Urgency built inside him to find her and bring her home safely.
“So you want us to come with you now.” It wasn’t a question on Cody’s part. He would go. They all would.
Laura put mugs of coffee on the table.
They doctored them while the bacon she’d put on to fry sizzled in a couple of pans. She took a dozen eggs out of the fridge.
“Don’t cook—” Salem started.
“You’ll eat, Salem,” she said, in a no-nonsense tone they knew well.
Nick’s raised eyebrow intimated, Don’t even bother trying to resist. “You’re going to need your strength. We all will.”
While Laura cooked, Cody retrieved a notepad and pen from a drawer then sat back down.
“Right. So we have to gather at least a dozen volunteers for a park that size. At least. We’ll need supplies. Maybe the park authorities can get us maps. Salem, do you know where she went within the park?”
No one answered. He glanced up from his furious scribbling. They were staring at him, mouths open.
“What?”
“You’re taking control,” Salem said.
Disgusted with himself, Cody threw the pen onto the table. “Yeah, I’ve been accused of that a lot lately.” He sounded bitter. He was. “Sorry. Bad habit.”
“No. It’s good.” Salem rubbed his chest as though a bad case of heartburn had settled in. “I’m not myself. I’m panicking too much to be useful. What’ve you written so far?”
“Supplies we’ll need. I’ll raid Pearl’s closet for dry clothes.” His sister had to have something that would fit Aiyana. “Pearl’s petite, though.”
“Nothing from my closet will fit Aiyana.” They all turned at the voice. Pearl stood in the doorway, rubbing her eyes. “I gather she’s lost in the woods and you’re putting together a search party? I’m in.”
Even freshly out of bed and rumpled, with creases on her cheek, Cody’s sister was supernaturally beautiful. Angelic.
She poured herself a coffee and put on a couple of eggs to boil. Pearl didn’t do bacon.
While her eggs boiled, she stood behind him and rubbed his shoulders. No questions. No concerns expressed. She dug her sharp thumbs into his neck, where he carried tension.
When he was a teenager, she used to do the same, especially after his football games.
“You’re still the world’s best massage therapist,” he said, making a joke to keep his emotions tamped down.
“I’ll give you some of my clothing,” his mom said. “It’ll be too big, but still warm and dry.”
“You should consider bringing clothes from home, too, Salem.”
“Good call, Cody. It’s only the end of October, but I’ll pack winter clothes.”
They got into the nitty-gritty of how this was going to run and who was going to help look for Aiyana. They would call on another half-dozen families.
Salem pulled a list from his pocket. “Emily’s phoning everyone now. The Colantonios, for sure. Aiyana’s been hanging out with Sophie since she came home. And her friend Alyx’s family. Also the Walkers.”
“How is Iris doing?” Cody asked quietly. Iris Walker had had a tough adolescence.
“She’s good. Aiyana has helped her through a lot.”
“Then