rhyme!”
Barbara stirred and tried to swat the chilly glass from her back. The motion awakened Mrs. Mac who quickly moved the glass away, finished its contents and replaced it on the table saying, “Sorry, honey. I know you need your beauty rest.”
She rubbed the spot where the glass had been sitting and added, “It’s okay, honey. Mrs. Mac is here. She’ll take care of you. It’s okay. Hey, let’s have another drink.”
The voice echoed through the woods from the bullhorn which Lieutenant Ken Fuller was holding in his hand. He was standing at the base of a statue and there were about fifty people crowded about him, plus two teams of hunting dogs and off to one side sat several snowmobiles.
The voice sounded hollow and some of the words were lost as it died on the wind but the purpose and most of the words were clear: “Mrs. Quaife and Mr. Harrison have asked me to express their thanks to you for coming out on such a cold night to help.” Fuller paused to get his breath and looked around. Mr. Harrison, erect, his face a mask, stood nearby while Mrs. Quaife sat some yards away in a squad car, looking straight ahead fearfully, fighting back her emotions.
Fuller continued through the bullhorn. “Now, Mrs. Quaife has told us that Janice would very likely have come through this park on her way home from school this afternoon, so the first thing we’re going to do is comb this park. We’ve got plenty of people, we’ve got dogs and we’ve got light.”
He looked out over the crowd to make sure that his words were being understood and then he went on, “I’d like everyone to spread out evenly across the south edge here of the park, stay close to one another but far enough apart so that we don’t miss any place, and we’ll walk through slowly. Check every clump, ever tree and bush, every pile of snow. Don’t hurry, keep up a steady pace but don’t get ahead or behind the people on either side of you. Is that clear?”
When there was a murmur of assent he added, “Don’t bunch up! The two dog teams will lead the way. Spread out behind them. Don’t get ahead or you’ll confuse them. Matt!” When an elderly policeman ambled forward Fuller said to him, “You and Carly and George go out on the flanks. Otherwise the fumes’ll mess up the dogs. Besides the snowmobiles will act as a boundary for us. Don’t go more than ten miles an hour or you won’t be any use.”
Chris stood beside Jess rubbing her back and shoulders to help warm her up. She was, she knew, shivering as much from fear as from the cold, but his hands would give her a feeling of security as well as warmth that she needed at the moment very much.
Jess smiled at him wanly and said, “I like your friend, Chris. He’s efficient but he’s decent, too.”
“Ken? Yeah, he’s very special. Ought to be something other than a cop. No, maybe we should have more cops like him, and fewer guys like Nash. Don’t worry, Jess.”
“Thanks. But I’m the one who should be telling that to you. How’s Mr. Harrison taking it?”
“He’s like a brick over there. But he’s pretty shook, you can tell.”
They were interrupted by Fuller’s voice once more. “Once we get to the other side, we’ll start working our way over to the college. Now, if anyone finds anything, send someone out right away to tell the others. Call out as loud as you can and get word back to me. All right? Let’s go.”
The snowmobiles fanned out as the dogs, let off their leashes, leaped off and the whole search party, reluctantly at first, then swiftly, surged forward with much shouting from the searchers and continual yelping from the dogs. The snow had stopped and the moon once more made its appearance.
On the other side of the park, on the college campus, the same moon silently silhouetted the sorority house on the hill. Finally the silence was broken by the crunch of footsteps in the new snow and a figure moved out of the shadows and squatted down against a tree,
Barbara stirred and tried to swat the chilly glass from her back. The motion awakened Mrs. Mac who quickly moved the glass away, finished its contents and replaced it on the table saying, “Sorry, honey. I know you need your beauty rest.”
She rubbed the spot where the glass had been sitting and added, “It’s okay, honey. Mrs. Mac is here. She’ll take care of you. It’s okay. Hey, let’s have another drink.”
The voice echoed through the woods from the bullhorn which Lieutenant Ken Fuller was holding in his hand. He was standing at the base of a statue and there were about fifty people crowded about him, plus two teams of hunting dogs and off to one side sat several snowmobiles.
The voice sounded hollow and some of the words were lost as it died on the wind but the purpose and most of the words were clear: “Mrs. Quaife and Mr. Harrison have asked me to express their thanks to you for coming out on such a cold night to help.” Fuller paused to get his breath and looked around. Mr. Harrison, erect, his face a mask, stood nearby while Mrs. Quaife sat some yards away in a squad car, looking straight ahead fearfully, fighting back her emotions.
Fuller continued through the bullhorn. “Now, Mrs. Quaife has told us that Janice would very likely have come through this park on her way home from school this afternoon, so the first thing we’re going to do is comb this park. We’ve got plenty of people, we’ve got dogs and we’ve got light.”
He looked out over the crowd to make sure that his words were being understood and then he went on, “I’d like everyone to spread out evenly across the south edge here of the park, stay close to one another but far enough apart so that we don’t miss any place, and we’ll walk through slowly. Check every clump, ever tree and bush, every pile of snow. Don’t hurry, keep up a steady pace but don’t get ahead or behind the people on either side of you. Is that clear?”
When there was a murmur of assent he added, “Don’t bunch up! The two dog teams will lead the way. Spread out behind them. Don’t get ahead or you’ll confuse them. Matt!” When an elderly policeman ambled forward Fuller said to him, “You and Carly and George go out on the flanks. Otherwise the fumes’ll mess up the dogs. Besides the snowmobiles will act as a boundary for us. Don’t go more than ten miles an hour or you won’t be any use.”
Chris stood beside Jess rubbing her back and shoulders to help warm her up. She was, she knew, shivering as much from fear as from the cold, but his hands would give her a feeling of security as well as warmth that she needed at the moment very much.
Jess smiled at him wanly and said, “I like your friend, Chris. He’s efficient but he’s decent, too.”
“Ken? Yeah, he’s very special. Ought to be something other than a cop. No, maybe we should have more cops like him, and fewer guys like Nash. Don’t worry, Jess.”
“Thanks. But I’m the one who should be telling that to you. How’s Mr. Harrison taking it?”
“He’s like a brick over there. But he’s pretty shook, you can tell.”
They were interrupted by Fuller’s voice once more. “Once we get to the other side, we’ll start working our way over to the college. Now, if anyone finds anything, send someone out right away to tell the others. Call out as loud as you can and get word back to me. All right? Let’s go.”
The snowmobiles fanned out as the dogs, let off their leashes, leaped off and the whole search party, reluctantly at first, then swiftly, surged forward with much shouting from the searchers and continual yelping from the dogs. The snow had stopped and the moon once more made its appearance.
On the other side of the park, on the college campus, the same moon silently silhouetted the sorority house on the hill. Finally the silence was broken by the crunch of footsteps in the new snow and a figure moved out of the shadows and squatted down against a tree,
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