Users by Andrea M. Alexander Read Free Book Online Page B

rope that untied the mare. “Think you can walk Black Jack to his stall?”
    I stepped back and gave her a dubious look.
    “Come on. You just hold the lead like this. From the horse’s left side.” She demonstrated the position and then walked off with her horse.
    I took a deep breath and mimicked Iggy’s actions. I think Black Jack ended up leading me to his stall instead of the other way around. I stopped at the entrance, unhooked the lead, and let the horse go into the stall by himself. I slid the half door shut and found Iggy smiling.
    “Perfect! Good job, Cael.” Another high five. “Have you had breakfast?”
    I shook my head.
    Iggy took the lead rope from me, hung it over a hook and said, “Me neither. Wanna go eat? Jamie’s pancakes are fabulous. Pure maple syrup too.”
    After I nodded, Iggy hooked her arm through mine and I caught a whiff of vanilla and sugar cookies before we headed out of the barn.
     
    Cael
    “Tennessee? You’re sure?” I ran a hand through my hair and sighed.
    “I’m certain,” Chris assured me. “It’s your parents’ car. Unless someone stole it and crashed it there. There’s no official report of it being stolen, but it’s still a possibility.”
    “They’ve got no reason to go to Tennessee. It doesn’t make any sense. We have no relatives there. No friends.”
    “Maybe they didn’t intend to go there. Or maybe just the car is there, but not them. All I can say is that the local cops up there are looking for them. We have to give them time to do their jobs. And you going in search of your parents is a bad idea…like trying to find a needle in a haystack.”
    “So their car is totaled, but they aren’t listed as patients in the local hospital?”
    He shook his head. “I called several hospitals, but no Daniel or Ava Bellamy were listed as patients.”
    “With all the crimes being committed right now, I don’t think a search for my parents is going to be high priority for any cop. Hospitals are flooded with people. Maybe my parents are lost in all the commotion. Or maybe they were brought to a hospital unconscious and without I.D. It’s a morbid thought, but it’s possible. I’d feel better if I checked the hospitals myself.”
    “Ava and Daniel would not want you out there looking for them. Surely you know that.”
    I nodded. “I know. But I still want to go, anyway.”
    Chris sat back in his chair and rubbed his eyes. “What if you don’t find them? Don’t find any information about them?”
    “Then I’ll come back.”
    “Straight back? No crazy ideas about driving north or expanding your search?”
    “If I don’t find any clues within a day, I’ll head back.”
    “You know Cael, you could get hurt or killed and your parents end up here tomorrow wondering where you are. It’s a bad idea. Give it a little longer. It's too dangerous out there.”
    “I have to know what happened, Uncle Chris. They’d do the same for me. You’d do the same for Iggy. She’d go in search of you. I know it’s a stupid idea, but I still have to do it.”
    Chris jumped to his feet and paced around the desk in his home office. He started to say something, but a knock on the open door distracted him. Iggy was standing in the doorway.
    “I’m going too.”
    “The hell you are,” her dad countered.
    Her hands balled into fists. “It’s my decision, dad. I’m not a kid anymore.”
    “No, you’re not. But I’ll tie you up in your bedroom and nail your door shut.”
    “And as soon as you untie me to go to the bathroom or eat a meal, I’ll climb out the window.”
    “He can handle this by himself, Iggy.”
    I told her, “Cody’s coming with me. We’ll be fine.”
    “See?” Chris gestured toward me. “They’ll be fine.”
    Iggy shook her head. “With what’s going on out there, I think it’s better to have more than two people traveling together. Besides, Wesley and I would make the trip safer. You know this, dad.” She shot him a pointed look that I