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“Yes,” Chloe said.
“Take me off, please,” Hannah said.
“Sure.” Chloe covered the phone’s microphone with one hand. “This doesn’t sound good at all.” His sister moved her hand as panic seized in his chest. She said, “I don’t have any idea why she would’ve been headed to the ranch. She was there earlier to speak to my brother, though. He’s here right now. I can ask what she wanted.” Chloe paused for a few beats. “Okay. Hold on a sec.”
Then she tapped the screen, no doubt placing the call on mute, and turned her full attention to Kade. He was still trying to process the wordmissing.
“Do you know why Bree was returning to the ranch?” Chloe asked.
Kade shrugged. He didn’t specifically know the reason. “Could’ve been to talk to me. We left our conversation…unfinished.”
He waited for Chloe to ask why Bree had stopped by to speak to him in the first place. Instead, she returned to the call. His relief was short-lived. Something had happened to Bree.
Or was everyone blowing this out of proportion? Was it possible she was simply out of cell phone range? Knowing Bree, she could have stopped because a deer was on the road. She might have chased it away, following it into the woods to make sure it was far away from the road, and then got turned around.
No. The smashed window meant something bad had happened. Right?
Kade picked up his phone and checked to make sure she hadn’t responded. Still nothing.
“He doesn’t know,” Chloe said into the phone and then listened. “I’ll be sure to call if I hear from her. Please let me know if she turns up.”
“I have to go,” Kade said to his sister as he stood and picked up his cell phone. He then fished for his keys.
“I’m sure she’s grieving the loss of Zeke,” Chloe said. “Probably just turned her cell phone off.”
“At this late stage of her pregnancy?” he asked as he made a beeline for the door. “And with damage to her back window?”
“You’re right, except you know how old her truck is,” Chloe said. “The crack might have already been there. You know?”
He hadn’t seen it earlier at the ranch, so he couldn’t say one way or the other. “I guess.”
Chloe’s face twisted with concern. “I’d go with you, but I have to stay here with Grayson.”
“There’s a lot you can do from home. Like reaching out to everyone Bree knows to find out the last time they heard from her.”
Chloe nodded.
“Let me know if Hannah calls back, okay?”
“Of course,” Chloe said. She shot a sad, knowing look. One that said he wasn’t responsible for the pregnant girlfriend of his dead best friend.
Chloe had a lot to learn about this situation.
But she’d been right earlier. Bad news always traveled in threes.
“She’s been dealing with a lot,” Chloe said, stopping him at the door.
“More than the obvious pregnancy and death news?” he asked.
“Ever since her father’s diagnosis, she’s been stressed. Maybe she headed out early for Round Rock to spend extra time with her extended family before the holidays.” She didn’t make eye contact, which meant she was essentially throwing ideas against the wall to see if one stuck. Plus, they both knew she wouldn’t have abandoned her truck on the side of the road.
“What?” He hadn’t heard anything about her father having a medical problem. Then again, Zeke wouldn’t have talked about Bree or her family any more than absolutely necessary. He had enough respect for Kade not to constantly throw the relationship in his face.
“She’s been upset, understandably so,” Chloe reiterated. “Go find her and make certain she’s okay.” Chloe clamped her mouth closed before adding, “If anyone can locate her, you can.”
“I’ll let you know when I do,” he said before stepping out into the cold night. He probably should have worn a coat since he had a feeling he was going to be outside for a while.
The thought of anything bad happening to Bree or the baby, or both, sucked the air out of the universe.
