5
Bo and I decided to walk home, since the evening air had shed its humidity and carried a chilly promise of fall.
I shrugged into my sweater. "Dylan seems interesting."
Bo turned to me, an unreadable expression on his face. "You like him." It wasn't a question.
"I'm not sure. He just seemed eclectic somehow. And knowledgeable. Also nice."
"He is knowledgeable, and he was very easy to work with. I didn't want to pay a lot for cafe artwork, but he caught my vision and steered me in the right direction."
I nodded and fell silent. It was the magic hour in Lewisburg, that time when the birds were chirping, traffic was slowing, and a hazy yellow glow fell on everything. The cozy smells of burgers on the grill drifted from outdoor dining areas, making my stomach growl.
Opening the gate to my back garden, I brushed into one of Auntie A's white rosebushes and got pricked. I took a closer look and realized one of the long stems had been broken since the time we left.
"That's weird. The wind wasn't bad tonight," I said. "Did you break that stem earlier?"
Bo shook his head. "Nope. I steer clear of those rosebushes. All those years of push mowing this yard taught me a thing or two."
A strange misgiving seized me and I hurried up to the back door and unlocked it. Coal wasn't sitting on his pillow in the living room, so I gave a short whistle. Picking up on my unease, Bo walked down the hall to the wooden connecting door, unlocked it, and gave the cafe a once-over. I stood in the middle of my living room, waiting for Coal to come clattering over to me.
Only he didn't.
I scurried around, calling for Coal as I checked all the downstairs rooms. By the time Bo finished his perusal of the cafe, I had gone through my second story and was pounding back to the kitchen.
"He's gone," I said, disbelieving.
"Did he get out?" Bo glanced around. He walked into the living room, where I'd left a window open.
My breath caught when I realized the screen had been shoved out.
"He must've escaped this way," Bo said. "I'll go look for him."
I trailed after my brother in a stunned daze, trying to understand why Coal, who had bonded with me so quickly, would've made a break for it. Had he been worried because I'd left him alone? Had he come looking for me? Or had he hoped to get back to Gerard's place?
As I mechanically shouted for Coal and combed the back garden, another possibility jumped to mind. Although my back door had been locked, what if someone had climbed in through that window and taken Coal? It was a long shot, but Katie had seemed dead-set to get her hands on him. The screen was lying on the ground under the window, but it was in pristine condition. Wouldn't the frame have bent or the screen have been mangled if a Great Dane had thrown its weight into it?
I explained my concern to Bo, so he slid the screen back onto the tracks to test my theory. I ran inside and shoved into it with all my might, and to my dismay, it did give in the middle and pop right out.
"It's an old window, and the new screen doesn't fit entirely flush." Bo slid it into place once again and gave me an apologetic look. "It seems like Coal did make a break for it."
Darkness had fallen by the time we had canvassed the whole neighborhood, and there was still no sign of Coal. While Bo fixed taco bowls for a hasty meal, I called Animal Control and reported Coal missing, just in case someone turned him in.
After I'd reluctantly nibbled at my food, Bo gave me an apologetic hug and headed home, leaving me to wallow in my loneliness.
I stayed up late, pulling the few pictures I had of Coal off my phone and designing missing dog flyers to distribute tomorrow. Coal had loved me instantly, so I refused to believe he'd run off. No, something else was going on.
Kylie and Charity were equally distressed to learn my dog had gone missing. Kylie said she'd make sure to hand each customer a flyer, and Charity went outside and posted flyers at other businesses on our street.
Summer barged in, trying to maneuver four dogs on leashes. She gave me a smile, then sobered as she saw my face.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Bo and I went to a concert at Carnegie Hall last night, and while we were gone, Coal escaped out my window—at least I think he did." I twisted at the dishrag I'd been using to wipe down the coffee bar, even though it hadn't needed it. "I'm a little worried that someone stole him. We looked everywhere and he didn't show up."
"Oh, Macy!" She walked the hyper dogs into the petting area and unleashed them. They promptly set to work sniffing each other, as well as their new environment.
For once, I didn't even feel like being around dogs. Although I'd only owned Coal a short time, I'd already bonded with him. I missed my dog, and I wanted him back.
Summer grabbed a handful of flyers. "I'll definitely put these up at the shelter. And I'll post them everywhere I go, too. Why do you think someone stole him?"
I put my hand on my hip, suddenly remembering what Katie said on my doorstep. "I meant to talk to you about that. Did you tell that masseuse from Ivy Hill where I lived? Katie something-or-other?"
"Oh, yeah, you're talking about the blonde, right? Katie Givens? She came in and said she had something she needed to tell the dog's new owner. I gave her your phone, but she made it sound like something urgent Gerard had been really nitpicky about as far as Coal's care, and she insisted on getting your address. Sorry about that. I meant to tell you she might drop by, but things were busy that day."
I wanted to ream her out, but she gave me such a penitent look, all my irritation was defused. "It's okay; I probably would've done the same," I admitted. "It's just that she showed up acting like Coal should rightfully go to her, but Coal was growling and obviously disliked her. She was trying to convince me how tight she'd been with Gerard and his dog, but I wasn't buying it. It just seemed really suspicious, you know?"
Bo walked in the front door, and like me, he was sporting dark circles under his eyes. "No luck finding the dog?" he asked.
I shook my head, choking up a little. I could mask my emotions with other people, but my brother could see straight into my heart.
Summer patted my back in a motherly way. "We'll find him," she promised. "I'll get the word out."
Bo gave me a brief hug before walking behind the coffee counter. "How about a mocha, sis?"
I nodded. Kylie shimmied aside, giving Bo space to brew our early morning java.
Summer's side-angled purple ponytail bobbed as she glanced at her phone, then shot a covert glance at Bo under her dark lashes. "Well, I'd better get going." She rolled the flyers up in her hand and turned toward the door.
Surprisingly, Bo responded directly to Summer. "See you later. I'll bring the dogs back to the shelter tonight." He turned back to me. "That will free you up to look for Coal if he's not home yet."
I wished I could go out immediately, but I was going to do my part to keep this business running. Taking the mocha Bo offered, I blinked back my tears and trudged toward the dog petting area. It was going to be a long day.