Chapter Thirty-Seven
On Friday morning, Daniel collected the tools he’d used to install the new post on the porch. That was the last of the house-rehabbing chores he’d be able to finish; he had to get organized and get on the road with Hannah. They should leave tomorrow.
Gord and Pete were looking forward to money from the house sale, and they wouldn’t be happy when he left before finishing the work. But getting Hannah back to the farm was more important. He’d found her—he’d kept his promise to Patricia—now he needed to get her back home to complete the promise.
He set his toolbox on the floor inside the back door and refilled his coffee cup, sitting down at the kitchen table to complete his plans.
The police hadn’t come by again since Tuesday morning, but they could reappear any time.
If they do, it’ll be game over. They’ll take her away.
The two of them had to leave before that happened.
She seemed to be getting used to the idea of being Hannah. Even if she wasn’t calling him Grandpa yet, though he’d suggested it.
But she wasn’t Susan’s, that was for sure. The DNA report made that clear. If the police knew about that, they wouldn’t be trying to return her to Susan. In fact, Susan would have a lot of explaining to do.
Should he maybe report her? Tell the cops about that report?
No. Stirring up that hornet’s nest could get into a lot of red tape. Better just to pick up stakes and leave. Get Hannah out of town without anyone noticing.
If he pushed with the driving, they could make it to Alberta in three days.
They’d have to be careful getting out of the city. People were watching for her, and alerts might be out across the country by now too.
He’d been thinking about ways to make her less noticeable. She was too old to disguise as a boy; she already had some shape and walked like a girl. But the bulky jacket and looser clothes he’d bought yesterday should help.
She hadn’t applied the hair color last night, but he’d try to get her to do it today. That blonde hair featured in every description and photo of her and would be the first thing people would notice.
He didn’t like having to disguise her. But he was justified—he had to get her back to their family’s base. Once he had her at the farm, he was sure she’d love the life. How could she not?
Hannah would need to be in school. He’d gotten the laptop out again last night to check online for Alberta schools. The one Kelly attended was still operating. That’d be fine.
He imagined he’d have to go through some paperwork to establish that she was Hannah. He’d deal with that once they got home.
He worried about her reaction to the trip, though. She didn’t seem warm to it. What if she refused to go? They had to leave, he had no doubt about that. She wasn’t used to the idea, that was all. He’d see if she was readier to talk about it later today. If need be, they could wait until Sunday.
Patricia, we’ll be there as soon as we can. He waited, but she didn’t answer.
He grimaced, and pounded the heel of his hand against his head. Straighten up, man! Talking to a dead woman. Anybody would think he was losing it.
****
Patricia had blamed him for the whole thing.
He’d woken, a few months after the accident, to find her side of the bed empty. He could hear her banging pots in the kitchen.
What would she be doing with pots at this time of the morning? Struggling to clear his sleep-fogged mind, he stumbled down the hall. Patricia turned toward him, her eyes red. “You know what today is, don’t you?”
He had tried to kiss her, but she pulled away. “It’s Hannah’s birthday. She’s two years old today.” Her voice rose in a wail. “I can’t stand thinking of her, out there somewhere in the world. Where is she? Is someone looking after her? Has anyone hurt her?”
Daniel’s throat tightened, and he forced himself to swallow. These were the same questions that kept running through his head.
She buried her face in a dishtowel. Her voice was muffled. “If you’d only had the sense not to get Kelly arguing. You just kept going and going at her! You should have known she’d blow up!”
Daniel’s mouth was dry. “Are you saying it was my fault they were in that accident?”
“All I’m saying is, if they hadn’t left that night, none of this would have happened.”
Patricia never repeated her accusation. She didn’t need to. Daniel had been blaming himself since the night it happened.
****
Patricia had brought out her grandmother’s dessert plates and was offering slices of chocolate cake to Kelly and Jacob. They had come for the weekend with baby Hannah.
Kelly was glaring at Daniel. “You’re a hypocrite,” she said. “You never wanted me to study animation in the first place! And now you’re saying I’m wasting my training!”
Daniel flushed but tried to keep his voice even. “I did think there were more practical things you could have studied.” He winced; they’d had some knock-down drag-out fights over that. He and Kelly were a lot alike. They both had opinions and didn’t hold back from expressing them. And neither of them ever backed down.
He could see Patricia watching him out of the corner of her eye. She hated it when he and Kelly fought.
She slid a plate of cake in front of Kelly. Kelly ignored it, jutting her chin at Daniel. “I never wanted to be an accountant, or a nurse, or whatever you thought was ‘more practical.’ ” Her words spilled out as if she were tripping over them.
Daniel tried to keep his jaw from clenching. “You went through three years of high-tech training to end up back as a salesgirl?”
Kelly scowled. “That’s temporary, I’ve told you! With Jacob on part-time hours, we can’t afford daycare, so we have to work opposite shifts so we can take care of Hannah.”
Jacob had been silent, concentrating on his slice of cake. But now he put down his fork. “We’re just waiting for me to be called back full-time at the auto body shop. Kenny told me he thinks they’ll reopen after New Year’s.”
Patricia broke in. “You know we love to have Hannah around. Why not leave her here with us for a bit?”
Kelly sighed, exasperated. “No, Mom. Hannah stays with us. I try to bring her out to see you as often as we can—I know you love her to bits. But my baby stays with me.”
Daniel got up and went to the window, holding the curtain aside to peer outside. The sky was already turning dark, and the wind was howling around the house; he could see it swaying the tall poplars at the far edge of the yard. The CBC said there could be a heavy storm this evening.
He came back to the table. “I warned you—you’d end up with a husband who couldn’t support you.”
Kelly jumped to her feet, her eyes flashing. “That’s too much! It’s not up to Jacob to support me.” She glared at him. “We support each other. And don’t talk about Jacob as if he’s not in the room.”
Daniel turned to Jacob. “I’ll say it to your face, then. You should get out there and find a better job. Let Kelly do the work she’s trained for, not just whatever fits around your shifts.”
Jacob sighed and ducked his head. “I’ve been looking.”
Kelly slammed both hands on the table, hard enough to make the dishes jump. “We don’t have to listen to this.” She whirled to face Jacob. “I can’t stay here another minute. Let’s get Hannah and get out of here.”
Jacob pushed back his plate. “All right,” he said, standing up.
Patricia reached out a hand, her brow furrowed and her eyes full of concern. “Kelly, I wish you’d stay the night…”
Kelly sighed. “Mom, I can’t.” She flounced out of the kitchen and returned a few minutes later, holding a sleepy Hannah. Kelly could still carry her, though Hannah now weighed over twenty-five pounds. It wouldn’t be long before she was too big to carry.
Hannah, who’d been napping, blinked at them all with a small smile. Her hair was matted against her forehead. She was wearing blue corduroy overalls and a pink shirt and seemed to take for granted that she was the center of everyone’s attention. She opened and closed her hands in a little wave to her grandma.
Kelly shoved Hannah’s limbs into her red snowsuit and boots and pulled on her hat and mitts. She grabbed her own coat and purse. “Bye, Mom,” she said and headed out the door that Jacob held open.
Daniel swallowed, choking back the hurt. She’d been too angry to include him in her goodbye.
The snow swirled in through the door; the wind had picked up, and snow had started falling. Daniel worried about them driving in this weather. But if they left now, they could be back in Edmonton in an hour—they should beat the worst of the storm.
That night he and Patricia had slept soundly, tucked under their quilt while the storm raged outside. It was the last good night’s sleep they ever had. The next morning their world slid sideways as they learned of the accident, the deaths. And Hannah’s disappearance.
Daniel groaned now as his eyes returned to the kitchen window in front of him. He rubbed his forehead. All of that happened so long ago, but the images were as fresh in his mind as if they’d happened yesterday.
But he was finally going to fix it.