The Lost Girl of Astor Street(19)

I pat her back with several stiff flicks of my wrist. “I came as soon as I could. Thank you for phoning.”

“We’re so glad to see you, Piper.” Dr. LeVine’s voice is weary.

Mrs. LeVine releases me and presses her handkerchief to her eyes. “I’m sorry, dear. I’ve soaked your shoulder.”

Dear. “There’s no reason to apologize. It’s just a uniform.”

“I couldn’t help thinking that at this time of day, Lydia would be coming home in her Presley’s uniform . . .” Her chin trembles as her sentence fades away.

Blast my insensitivity. Why didn’t I think to change before rushing over here? Lydia certainly would have, had things been reversed.

Tears prick my eyes. “I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking—”

“Have the police spoken to you yet?” Dr. LeVine’s words are brusque as he reaches for his pipe.

“Yes.” I settle onto the edge of the couch and fold my hands in my lap. “Two detectives were at school to speak with Headmistress Robinson. One of them recognized me somehow. I don’t think I was very much help.”

Mrs. LeVine dabs at her eyes as she takes her seat again. “So Lydia hadn’t spoken to you about leaving?”

“No, ma’am. Well, except for Minnesota.”

“But she didn’t say she wanted to run away or anything?”

Saying she would accept a marriage proposal isn’t the same thing, right?

I shake my head.

Dr. LeVine packs tobacco into his pipe. “It’s not like our Lydia to do something rash like run away, all because Edna and I made a decision she didn’t like. But I find myself hoping all the same. The alternatives . . .”

A sob bursts from Mrs. LeVine. “I’ll go ask Tabitha to put on some coffee.” She bustles from the room with the handkerchief pressed to her mouth, muffling the noise.

When I catch Dr. LeVine subtly wiping away a tear, my own eyes pool.

He leans to hand me a fresh handkerchief from his pocket and then settles into his wingback chair to smoke. “We were confining her to the house until our appointment at the Mayo Clinic.” His voice is graveled. “She was angry, as I’m sure you already know, Piper. She wanted to tell you and to let the Barrow family know she could no longer watch Cole for them. Considering what she’s gone through these last six months, it seemed only fair. And so harmless . . .”

I’ve wadded my uniform skirt into my fists. I release it. Smooth it. “You can’t blame yourself, Dr. LeVine.”

“When we spoke to the Barrows, they said Lydia never arrived.” Emotion catches in Dr. LeVine’s voice. He covers his mouth with one of his large, life-saving hands. “I can’t bear to think she might have been taken.” The vulnerability of him, of the stoic doctor who served in the Great War, takes away my breath. “But I also can’t think of why my Lydia might trick us.”

“Her room has been searched, I assume? Which clothes are missing? Did she leave a letter?”

When Dr. LeVine shakes his head, it feels as if another brick crumbles from my certainty that this is nothing to panic about. “Everything is exactly in its place.”

“And . . . and no one else is missing?” There’s a wobble in my voice.

Dr. LeVine’s gaze sharpens to a point. “Who else would you expect to be missing?”

I swallow hard. “I only wondered if she went with a friend. If one of the other ladies of Lydia’s acquaintance is gone too.”

“No. You . . .” He hesitates. “You’re Lydia’s closest friend. We can’t imagine her running off with anyone else.”

“Had the staff observed anything different about Lydia?” My heart beats so loud in my chest, I wonder if Dr. LeVine can hear. “I assume you’ve talked to Matthew, asked if he overheard anything she might have said in the car?”

“We did. Matthew said there was no indication that she was planning to run away.”

I can’t seem to take a deep breath. Lydia is gone. But Matthew is not.

“Matthew is taking this very hard, actually. He feels responsible, like he should have driven her around the block. And while, of course, I wish we had asked Matthew to drive her . . .” Dr. LeVine’s eyes go misty again. He straightens and taps the ash from his pipe.

“There has to be someone who saw her.” The words seem to tumble out of me. “Have we walked the neighborhood? Interviewed neighbors to see who saw what? I could talk to—”

“Piper.” Dr. LeVine’s stern tone matches his gaze. “The police are handling this.”

“I’m sure they are. But I know Lydia and the police don’t, so I might see things that they wouldn’t—”

“No. It’s a bad idea for you to get yourself tangled up in this. Especially when we don’t know . . .” His voice breaks. “When we don’t know what happened to her.”

Tears clog my throat. I swallow them and do my best to keep my voice level. “I understand your concern, Dr. LeVine, and I appreciate it. But time is critical, and don’t you think we need everyone possible looking for her—”

“I don’t think little girls need to be out there poking around, no. I know you’ve been raised in a different kind of family, Piper, but this is a job for men. You would only get in the way. We don’t need detectives out there looking for you as well.” He stands. “If you’ll excuse us, we have matters to attend to.”