Hold Me (Fool's Gold #16)(60)

Before Destiny could respond, her cell phone rang. She pulled it out of her cargo pants pocket and glanced at the screen. The area code was local, but the number unfamiliar.

“Hello?”

“Destiny?”

“Yes.”

“Hi, I’m Dakota Andersson. I run End Zone. I’m sure it’s nothing, but Starr never showed up this morning, and no one called to let us know she was staying home sick. I wanted to follow up with you and make sure she was all right.”

There was a lot of information in those few sentences. That the camp took its responsibilities seriously. That they made sure the kids were where they were supposed to be. And that Starr was missing.

Destiny went cold all over. “She’s not sick,” she said slowly. “Not that I’m aware of. We talked this morning. She said she was getting a ride to camp with Abby. She was very clear about that. I know because I know Abby and like her. I’ve met her mom and everything.”

On the other end of the call, Dakota paused. “She’s not here. We’ve checked twice. Starr never arrived.”

There was an edge to panic. A sharpness. Destiny had never felt it before. Not like this. Not with a combination of horror and fear. Anything could have happened. Something had. But what? Where was Starr?

“How can we help?” Dakota asked, obviously expecting Destiny to take the lead. To handle the situation.

In the back of her mind she was aware that given her job description she was possibly the best person to find a missing teenager. But honest to God, she didn’t know where to start. She felt hot and cold and knew she was seconds from throwing up.

The office door opened, and Kipling stepped inside. Destiny lunged for him, grabbing his arm and squeezing hard.

“Starr’s missing,” she said, her throat tight as her heart pounded in her chest. “She never showed up to camp.”

Kipling grabbed her phone and identified himself. He spoke calmly but quickly. When he hung up, he handed back the phone and took her hand.

“You have my cell number,” he told Cassidy. “Phone me if you hear anything.”

“I will.”

He turned to Destiny. “Starr has a cell phone, right? Call her.”

With trembling fingers, Destiny did. “It went straight to voice mail.”

Then he was pulling Destiny out the door, toward his truck.

“Where are we going?” she asked. “I don’t know where to start. She hasn’t been here very long. I thought she was fine. What if something awful happened? What if we can’t find her?”

“We’ll find her. It hasn’t been that long. She can’t have gotten that far. Call the mom. See if she took Starr up to camp. We’ll go by the house to make sure she’s not there, then go up the mountain and talk to her friends.”

Right. A good place to start. Destiny got into the truck and fastened her seat belt. After scrolling through her contact list, difficult to do with her hands shaking, she pushed the talk button and waited for the call to connect to Abby’s mom, Liz. Two minutes later she had her answer.

“Starr lied.”

The words weren’t real. At least they didn’t feel real. They couldn’t be. How could Starr have done this? Lied to Destiny about being taken to camp, then disappeared? How could her sister be gone?

They arrived at the house and hurried inside. Starr wasn’t there. Destiny followed Kipling back to his Jeep. Her eyes burned as the fear thickened. She could barely think, barely breathe.

“I don’t know her well enough,” she said, fighting tears. “It’s only been a few weeks. I should have tried harder. I was busy with my job and other stuff. I left her alone too long. I wasn’t there for her.”

Kipling kept his gaze forward as he drove up the mountain. “How long have you known your sister?”

“Six weeks.”

“Not long enough to screw her up. Destiny, this isn’t your fault.”

“I’m responsible for her. There’s no one else to blame.”

“How about all the stuff that happened before she moved in with you?”

She thought about the call from their shared father, celebrating a birthday that wasn’t Starr’s. And the boarding school her sister didn’t seem all that excited to return to. And her longing to get involved with music, while Destiny resisted as best she could.

“You’re saying there’s plenty of blame to go around,” she whispered. “Fine. I’ll have that conversation when we find her. But right now all that matters is getting her back.”

They arrived at the camp in record time. Kipling had barely slowed before Destiny jumped out and headed for the main office.

Dakota Andersson was waiting for her with two of Starr’s friends. Both girls looked scared.

“I’m sorry,” Abby said, tears filling her eyes. “She said she wanted to go to Nashville. She’s taking the bus. We both gave her money.”

Dakota put her hand on the girl’s shoulder. “I’ve already called the sheriff’s office. They’re sending a patrol car to the bus station. Small towns have some advantages. Only one bus has gone out this morning. I’m expecting they’ll find her waiting at the station.”

Destiny felt the ground shift beneath her feet. “Nashville?” Because Starr was running away. That was how bad things were. She’d taken in her sister, had agreed to be her guardian and less than two months later, Starr would rather take her chances on the streets than live with Destiny.