vibrations. He could have snuck in, I suppose. Is something wrong?â
Joseph told Catelyn, âIâll check his room. You explain to Mom whatâs going on.â
âOkay.â
He bounded up the stairs two at a time. Following the well-worn carpet to Alonsoâs room, he found the door openâand the room empty.
Just as heâd suspected.
Treading back down the steps, he found Catelyn and his mother deep in conversation. Ever since practically being adopted into his family, Catelyn had learned to sign on an expert level. As a CODA, Child of a Deaf Adult, Joseph had learned American Sign Language before he could speak.
He broke into the conversation. âHeâs not up there.â
Confusion stamped plainly on her face, Catelyn turned to go back to the car. Joseph followed. She got in and got on the radio. Within seconds, she had Bri on the line. âCheck the signal again, will you?â
A short wait. The radio squawked and Bri said, âStill the same location, Catelyn.â
She turned to Joseph and said, âThe phoneâs still here somewhere. The boys at least stopped by here. Do you think they could have left again with Alonso forgetting his phoneâor leaving it behind on purpose?â
âAlonso wouldnât leave his phone. Itâs like an extension of his body.â
âUnless he thought we might track him with it.â
âI donât think heâd think about that, to be honest. Heâd just be doing his best to get away to a place where he and Dylan could talkâor hide out.â
âThen theyâre here. Somewhere.â She rubbed her forehead. âIâd call the phone and see if it would ring, but no doubt itâs on vibrate. Iâm trying to think of some good hiding places from when we played hide-and-seek all those years ago.â
âHeâs not in the house, Iâ¦â Joseph broke off and looked her in the eye. âGrannyâs suite.â
âExcuse me?â
âThe basement. I almost forgot all about it. Come on.â
She scrambled from the car as he led the way to the side of the house. âIt has a separate entrance and everything. We never use it, havenât used it in forever. Itâs been closed off since our grandmother died. With Alonso being the only kid left at home, Mom didnât need the space and didnât want to have to worry about cleaning it, so she just closed it down.â
They reached the door. Catelyn looked down. âFootprints.â
âRecent ones. Just the right size for a couple of teenage boys, too. See those prints there? Theyâre different from the ones on this side.â
âNo use knocking, theyâre both deaf.â
He twisted the knob and the door swung inward. âThey didnât bother to lock the door.â He stepped inside taking in the large area jam packed with antiques, family mementos and other unused, probably forgotten items.
A light snuffed out and darkness shrouded them. Joseph stated, âYep, theyâre here.â
âBut they donât want us to know that they are.â
âBack up.â
âWhat?â
âJust do it, will you?â
Huffing a sigh, she did it. Joseph pulled the door shut as he exited.
âWhat are you doing now?â she demanded.
âWaiting. Now, you head around to the side and cover the window.â Thunder rumbled and he looked at the sky. Gray clouds billowed overhead.
âFine, what are we waiting on though?â
âOne of them to check and see if the coast is clear. Itâll save us hunting through that dusty mess and trying to chase down a scared kid. Letâs just let them come to us.â
Realization crossed her face.
âYouâre still a rat, Joseph.â
âBut a clever one, you must admit.â Oh, how he loved it when the red flush took over and she looked at him in annoyance. But she couldnât help the small smile that tried
Wendy Byrne
Karl Alexander
Melody Taylor
Ray Banks
Sue Reid
Rick Hautala
Paisley Smith
Valerio Massimo Manfredi
Clark Blaise
Michel Déon