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‘Rob doesn’t want me to come, but I just have to be there.’
    ‘Of course you do,’ said Lianna, reaching out and briefly grasping Shelby’s hand in her own. Shelby felt the warmth of her grasp, and her gaze. ‘I’d do the same if it were Molly. Don’t worry about Jeremy. We’ll take good care of him. Just let us know – you know. I’m sure it will be all right.’
    Shelby pressed her lips together, blinking back tears.
    ‘Do you need a ride to the airport?’ Harris asked.
    ‘I’ve got a taxi picking me up at the house in about half an hour,’ said Shelby. ‘I’m too rattled to try and drive there.’
    ‘Because I can drive you,’ said Harris.
    ‘No. I’m covered. But thank you so much,’ said Shelby.
    ‘Don’t worry about Jeremy,’ said Lianna.
    Shelby nodded. She turned to Molly who was still holding Jeremy.
    ‘He weighs a ton,’ Molly said. Then she nodded to Shelby. ‘I’ve got him though.’
    ‘Thank you, Molly.’ Shelby bent over her sleeping grandson, inhaled his scent, and kissed him. Before her tears could splash on him, she turned away and got back in the car. The family in the driveway, their arms full of Jeremy and his belongings, frowned as they watched her go.

FOUR
    S helby consulted the airline callboards and made her way quickly to security. As she edged along patiently in the line, she felt grateful that she had the habit, from her job, of carrying her passport with her. She flew so often out of this airport on buying trips that it had been second nature to keep it zipped in a special compartment in the large, leather sack she always carried. She showed it now, along with the boarding pass she had printed on Rob’s printer, and easily passed through the gauntlet of bored security officers. She put her shoes back on and headed to her gate. The lounge at the gate was filled with passengers, young and old, wearing jeans and sneakers and sandals, chattering happily about their upcoming vacations.
    Shelby walked over to a newsstand across from the gate and glanced at the collection of newspapers. She half expected to see Chloe’s picture splashed across the front page, under a huge headline about her being missing, being overboard. But there were no pictures of Chloe in sight. Shelby bought a couple of newspapers and sat down far from the other waiting passengers. She began to thumb through the papers impatiently. Nothing. She stopped looking for a moment and tried to think why this was not on the front page. Perhaps the news hadn’t reached the newspaper yet. No, that’s stupid, she thought. News was instant on the internet. Perhaps the newspaper had been printed before Chloe disappeared. Almost to reassure herself, she glanced up at the overhead TV in the lounge that was tuned to CNN. If there were any news, it would be there, on CNN. She stared at the screen, one story scrolling after another, but there was no mention of her missing daughter. Shelby felt indignant on Chloe’s behalf; indignant that the news media was being so dismissive of her disappearance. Maybe that meant she was fine, Shelby told herself. Maybe that meant she had been found.
    The ticket agent announced the boarding of the flight, and Shelby got up to join the line, shuffling toward the jetway. She found her seat on the plane and prepared to wait it out. The woman in the next seat tried to make conversation but Shelby remained monosyllabic, and discouraged any questions.
    Although the trip was amazingly uncomplicated, to Shelby, it was one of the most torturous days of her life. A thousand times she wanted to call Rob, but she resisted the temptation. Once the plane landed in St Thomas she called his cell and he told her to take a cab to the police station. When she began to ask about the search he said, ‘We’ll talk when you get here.’
    Before Shelby could protest, he hung up.
    Shelby clutched her phone as she made her way through the crowded airport, just in case he wanted to call her with news.