Not by Sight A Novel

CHAPTER 9

Kate sat at a corner table on the umbrella deck at Angel View Lodge, watching the rental boats returning to the marina as dusk began to fall, her earlier encounter with Abby playing in her mind.

“Your sister isn’t coming back, Abby. Neither is your father. You’ve got to accept that. You’re not living with reality, and I’m afraid it’s going to hurt you.”

“No, you’re afraid I’m going to embarrass you again.”

There was no denying that she found her daughter’s public search for Ella embarrassing. But that wasn’t what Kate was afraid of. Abby’s inability to let go of the past had stolen five years of her young life. It had to stop.

She heard footsteps on the stairs and looked up just as Savannah, carrying half a pitcher of lemonade, approached the table.

“I thought I might find you down here.” Savannah filled Kate’s empty glass to the brim with lemonade. “Tuesday nights are dead after the early crowd clears out. I’ve already stripped the tables and reset them for breakfast. I’ll put fresh flowers in the vases in the morning. Carmen is watching for any last-minute customers, but I think we’ll be ready to close up tighter than a tick at nine o’clock.”

“Sounds like you’re ahead of the game. Why don’t you sit for a minute?” Kate said, hoping some girl talk would give her a sense of normalcy.

“Thanks. My feet could use a break.” Savannah pulled out a chair and sat next to Kate, looking out toward the lake. “Incredible view from up here. All those years of living in Looziana, I don’t think I was ever higher than a few feet above sea level. And now I’m living on a mountain. Isn’t that a lick?”

“Sure Foot Mountain is only eighteen hundred feet high—not exactly Mount Everest.”

“Well, this bayou gal feels on top of the world.” Savannah laughed. “I could get a nosebleed up here. And just feel that cool evening breeze. Summer sure is different here.”

“Wait until July and August. It won’t be quite as humid as south Louisiana, but you can still fry an egg on the sidewalk. So are you settled in your new house?”

Savannah grinned. “Yes, but every chance I get, I end up outside on the covered porch, staring at these beautiful mountains.”

“You and me both.”

“Benson and I feel right at home here. Relocating was easier than we thought. And we couldn’t ask for nicer people to work with. I was afraid the wait staff might resent an outsider being hired to coordinate things. But they’re all so nice. Abby’s a great asset, I can tell you that.”

Kate took a sip of lemonade. “Does she seem okay to you?”

“Sure, why?”

“She’s going through a thing right now. The five-year anniversary of her dad and sister’s disappearance was last Saturday, and it’s dredged up a lot of feelings. She really misses them. We all do. But Abby’s having trouble letting go.”

“Now that you mention it, she has seemed preoccupied,” Savannah said. “But she’s on top of her game with customers. You turned out one responsible young lady.”

“Thanks. But Micah gets a lion’s share of the credit.” Kate coughed to cover the unwanted emotion that tightened her throat. “For the first eleven years of her life, Abby was a daddy’s girl.”

“So was I,” Savannah said. “But me and my mama are real close now. Took me a while to realize what a positive influence she’d been on me.”

“That’s encouraging to hear, since Abby and I don’t see eye to eye on much of anything these days.”

Savannah waved her hand. “I don’t think Mama and I agreed on anything till I married Benson. Once I didn’t have to take her advice, I found myself asking for it. It’ll happen.”

Would it? Kate wasn’t so sure.

“Don’t you worry none about Abby,” Savannah said. “I’ll keep an eye on her. And if I see anything you should know about, I won’t be shy about telling you.”



Abby sat with Jay on the pier at Angel View, watching the sun disappear below the horizon, the western sky the color of glowing embers and streaked with gold and purple.

“I can’t believe Mama’s making me go back to counseling just because I want to know more about Ella.”

“She’s just being a mother. They’re all worrywarts. It’s part of their job description.”

“I don’t need a shrink, Jay. I need to find Ella and satisfy this weird connection I feel.”

“I know. But you have to admit, it’s a long shot.”

“Worth pursuing.” Abby kicked the top of the water with her toes.

“How good a look did you get of the man you saw with Ella?”

“It was quick. But there were some things about him that stood out.”

“Like what?”

“Bushy beard. Muscular arms.”

“Did you see his face?”

“I did, but only for a few seconds.”

“Do you think you could describe him enough for me to sketch him?” Jay said. “I’m pretty good at it.”

“You mean like a police composite?”

Jay nodded.

“I’m not sure,” Abby said. “Maybe.”

“If I could sketch a good likeness of him, we could show the sketch around town, together with Ella’s picture. Maybe someone would recognize them.”

“That’s a great idea,” Abby said. “But we can’t do it at my house.”

“What if we met on the slope under that big shade tree around noon? I’ll bring sub sandwiches and my sketchpad.”

“Okay, but it’s my turn to bring lunch. I’ll get the subs.” Abby glanced over at Jay. “Something else happened today. I haven’t told anyone. I got a crank call on my cell. Some hick warning me to back off asking about Ella. I’m pretty sure it was Mason Craddock and his clones.”

“How’d they find out you were looking for Ella?”

“I don’t know. Maybe one of them works at one of the places where I left my card.”

“What makes you so sure it was them?”

“Because the guy said”—Abby nudged Jay with her elbow and spoke with a drawl—“‘Stop askin’ questions about the girl, and don’t tell nobody about this call. Or you’re liable to go missin’ too.’ Now if that doesn’t reek of Mason and his loser friends, nothing does. I’m sure they’re all having a great laugh at my expense. Let them. I don’t care what they think.”

Jay turned to her. “Think you should be so quick to blow it off, Abby? What if the call was for real?”

“It wasn’t. Mason’s trying to get back at me because I won’t go out with him.”

“Maybe I should pay Mason a visit and tell him to back off.”

“Please don’t,” Abby said. “They’ll gang up on you. Just ignore it. I am.”

“Shouldn’t you at least tell your grandfather?”

“No!” Abby lowered her voice. “He’ll tell Mama, and she’ll tell the sheriff. Then they’ll all make me back off looking for Ella. Besides, Mason will deny he knew anything about it.”

“The jerk as much as threatened you.”

“I’m sure he thought it was funny. Just drop it.”