Missing with Bonus Material: The Secrets of Crittenden County, Book One by Shelley Shepard Gray Read Free Book Online Page A

creating a soothing, lilting cadence. She’d liked to just listen to him talk.
    Back then, she’d been sure that Perry was the man for her. She’d gone to sleep dreaming about weddings and days spent walking by his side.
    And then, practically overnight, Perry wasn’t so sweet at all.
    He’d yell at her. And show up late. And his accented voice developed a hard edge to it that hurt her feelings.
    She began to avoid him.
    And then they had fought about his new dreams and her old-fashioned values. Just remembering how he’d teased her about not wanting to do more than kiss him good night caused her to tremble. The way he’d grabbed her upper arms and trapped her next to his body. The way his kisses had turned painful and his heated gaze had turned cool when she’d pushed him away. Closing her eyes, she breathed deep, preferring to inhale the residual tang of Pine-Sol and bleach on her hands than to recall the sharp scent of rain-soaked leaves that surrounded their feet in the woods.
    When she had prayed that she’d never see Perry again.
    But that prayer hadn’t come true.

Chapter 5
    “Perry could ride a unicycle, juggle three oranges at a time, and run faster than you could ever imagine. He always thought it a shame that none of that mattered in the real world.”
    A BRAHAM B ORNTRAGER
    W alker had no idea if his visit with Lydia had been a mistake or not. Saying she was reserved was putting it mildly. The girl had seemed to keep every single emotion she was feeling to herself. As he drove his old Chevy truck off of the Planks’ property and hit the state highway, he played their conversation over and over in his head.
    “I don’t see why we need to share stories. The detective will leave soon.”
    The words had fallen from Lydia’s lips like they’d been recorded messages—tinny and canned sounding. Could she have sounded any more guarded or wary?
    Had she been afraid of him? Or was this her normal way of conversing? And if it was, what had Perry even seen in her?
    Probably that she was, well . . . beautiful.
    The opinion caught him off guard. Back when Perry had dated her and their paths had crossed, Walker didn’t remember her being that way. But now that he thought about it—maybe he’d never taken a good look at her. The first time he’d met Lydia had been when Perry had been standing by her side. As soon as Walker had heard the word “courting” he’d taken an emotional step backward.
    After all, there was an unspoken rule between him and most of his friends—guys didn’t even think about other guys’ girlfriends. But he wouldn’t have looked at an Amish girl closely, anyway.
    Back when he’d been in high school, he’d been all about being part of the in-crowd. He’d been a four-year letterman for baseball, and he’d worn his letter jacket around like it was a big deal. Just about any cute girl he’d wanted to date had acted flattered and excited just to be noticed by him.
    Walker knew his head had gotten so full, it had been a wonder it still remained on his head! After a while, he’d started to only worry about his appearance and his reputation.
    Then he’d gone off to community college and had found out real quick that he hadn’t been as special as he thought he was. A late-night conversation with his dad let him know the truth—that his parents had been patiently waiting for him to get over himself, knowing that he’d been simply going through a phase.
    Being out of his small bubble made him realize that the world wasn’t just about him. And, that it wasn’t a nice place, either. That feeling hit home more than ever when the detective showed up, rattling his cage.
    As he pulled into his driveway, he spied Abby sitting on the front steps of their house, waiting for him. Unfortunately, his sister was sitting as she usually did. Looking a little bit lost and a lot in need of a friend. He wasn’t sure why she’d never fit in at school like he had. Maybe it was her awkwardness