Fade to the Edge Read online

  FADE TO THE EDGE

  Kathryn J. Bain

  Copyright © 2019 by Kathryn J. Bain

  Kindle Version

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means – electronic, mechanical, photographic (photocopying), recording, or otherwise – without prior permission in writing from the author.

  This is a work of fiction. As such, any names, characters, places, incidents, and dialog are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual places, events, or persons (living or dead) is purely coincidental.

  To find out more about this book or the author, visit: www.kathrynjbain.com.

  Acknowledgement

  I’d like to thank my critique group for all their help. Also to Shannon Roberts and Marcie Bridges for cleaning up all my grammar issues. Not an easy job, I’ll tell you. And a special thanks to Murphy Rae for her awesome cover.

  I’d also like that thank Dr. H. for helping me put a kid to sleep for a long period of time. Without your advice, I would not have been able to complete this book.

  Also, I will be forever grateful to the wonder and talented author Hank Phillipi Ryan for her critique of my first couple of pages. Your input changed the total tone of my story and made it so much better.

  PART I

  Chapter 1

  Day One

  A wave of nausea hit Tracy Allen. Her eyes fluttered open. She glimpsed the digital clock. Six forty-three a.m.

  “Oh, no.” Of all days to forget to set the alarm.

  She tossed the covers back and stood but dizziness knocked her back onto the edge of the mattress. A headache marched in with full-blown drum corps. What the… she didn’t have time to wait; Daniel would be there soon.

  “DJ, your dad’s almost here.”

  A car door slammed out front. She slid on a pair of jeans and the grungy t-shirt she’d dropped on the floor the night before. After a deep breath, she shoved her feet into her fuzzy bunny slippers. A second dizzy spell threatened, but she fought it off. She opened the bedroom door and hollered, “DJ.”

  She rushed to her son’s room down the hallway. Empty. Hopefully, he was dressed. The last thing she felt up to dealing with was one of her soon-to-be ex’s tantrums.

  The doorbell sent the drummers in her head into a frenzy.

  She headed down the stairs, white-knuckling the banister to keep from going over. What was going on with her? She’d slept well, better than most nights lately. She didn’t recall any signs of feeling ill the day before.

  The doorbell rang again.

  “DJ.” She smacked her lips, her mouth dry as stale bread. “Come on.”

  The pounding on the door provoked the pain between her eyes. She slid the deadbolt back, took a deep breath, and pulled open the door.

  “Geez, Tracy,” Daniel said. “You look like crap.”

  “Good to see you, too.” She choked the doorknob as she stepped back to allow him entry.

  Daniel was his perfectly coiffed self with his standard light-blue oxford shirt and fitted denim jeans. Weekend clothes for the man at the top. The smell of fresh aftershave mixed with the fall air.

  Her stomach twisted with nausea. She leaned against the door until the sensation passed.

  “DJ better be ready.” Daniel strolled into the foyer. “I’ve got plans.”

  Any plans he might have with his little girlfriend probably included watching a Disney princess cartoon. Tracy tamped down the nasty thoughts before her anger simmered over.

  She raised her chin and plodded toward the kitchen, pretending his nearness didn’t spark any physical reaction. His Hugo Boss shoes tapped behind her. She’d always disliked those expensive shoes clomping on their mahogany wood floor. But his footwear wasn’t her problem anymore.

  Why didn’t he wait in the car and honk? She’d have sent DJ out. Why did he think he was welcome in her house? Men who had affairs didn’t deserve the respect their wives gave them. Too bad for no-fault divorce because this one was definitely his fault.

  Stop it. Getting snippy would only make Daniel angry and cause DJ to have a miserable weekend. They’d not put their child in the middle of their battle if she could help it.

  “DJ.” She stuck her head into the kitchen. “It’s time to go.”

  At the island, a dozen fruity circles floated in a bowl of milk. A half glass of orange juice sat beside the floating o’s. Why hadn’t he finished his breakfast? She picked up the cold glass and placed it on the counter, wiping condensation from her hand onto her jeans.

  “When’s the last time you cleaned this place?” Daniel flicked a crumpled napkin on the table with his forefinger.

  Refusing to stoop to his level, she glanced at the back patio area but saw no sign of her son. “DJ?”

  Daniel twisted his wrist and looked at his Rolex. “Can we get on with it? Please.”

  “I’m sure he’s nearby. He wouldn’t go far with you coming.” Tracy pasted a smile on her face. “He’s always excited to see you.”

  DJ did love his father, even with all the events of the past couple of months. At one time she did also, before the affairs and pornography.

  She opened the back door and glanced around the yard.

  “DJ,” she yelled. “Where is that boy?” She planted her hands on her hips and glanced around.

  “You act like you don’t know where our seven-year-old is.” She felt Daniel’s sneer on her back. “This isn’t going to look good at the hearing on Tuesday,” he added.

  She spun to finally give him a piece of her mind, but her voice caught in her throat. The doorway framed his physique, his features chiseled better than Adonis. He ran his fingers through his jet black hair. Even with the arrogant look in his deep blue eyes, she missed having him in her home. In her bed.

  So much for not loving him anymore.

  He’d moved on. Time for her to do the same. It was a mantra she’d repeated over and over the past several months, though it did little good. How was she to move on from the only man she’d ever loved? She bit her tongue to keep rising tears at bay.

  Tracy slipped past Daniel and rushed back up the stairs to DJ’s room. She might have just missed him. DJ had tossed the blankets across his bed to make it appear made, and his pajamas lay across the footboard. She scanned the rest of his room. His suitcase was nowhere in sight. Not even Herman. He recently took back up carrying the teddy bear around.

  A quick look out the bedroom window showed no sign of him in the backyard. She opened the window. “Daniel Joseph Allen.”

  A shiver rippled down her spine.

  “Did you find him?” Daniel hollered from the foyer below.

  She walked to the banister. A triangle between his eyes had replaced the arrogant look from the kitchen.

  “Well, where is he?” He stood with his legs apart, and his arms folded over his chest.

  “I-I don’t know.” Her mind was in a fog.

  She pressed her palm against her forehead. Think. Did she forget he had baseball practice? He wouldn’t have left without telling her. Besides, he knew his father was coming. They’d packed his bag the afternoon before and talked about Sunday night dinner when he returned. Macaroni and cheese, his favorite.

  Maybe he was on the bridge overlooking the lake in the backyard.

  She cut a look over her shoulder only to see the wall holding several photographs of her smiling child. She’d have seen him from his window. In the office watching cartoons? No, he wasn’t allowed in that room. And he wasn’t in the living room; they’d have both seen him.

  Panic slid over her. Stay calm. Don’t fall apart.

  Daniel let loose a loud hissing sound l
ike a tire running out of air.

  Could he be getting some sports equipment for his weekend with his dad? Tracy tore off into the garage. Still no sign of him.

  “You didn’t see him in the front playing?” she asked upon returning to the foyer.

  “If I had I wouldn’t have come in.” Darkness crossed into Daniel’s eyes.

  She walked toward him. “He should be eating his—”

  He grabbed her by the arms and shook her. “What have you done with my son?”

  Chapter 2

  Tracy slid her finger across her cell phone. She swore she’d made a hundred phone calls over the past twenty minutes. The baseball coach, mothers of kids from school, and even her friend Vonnie had not seen DJ. Something was definitely wrong. It wasn’t like him to not tell her where he was going.

  Could he have taken off so he wouldn’t have to leave with his father? But last night he seemed excited. His dad had promised to take him to the latest Star Wars movie.

  Daniel’s whispers reached her.

  She took a few steps toward him and tried to make out what he was saying as he stood in the foyer. Above his head was the wooden cross Jenny had placed the day they’d moved in. She’d said it was to ward off the devil, but Satan seemed to have moved in the same day they did.

  Earlier, it’d taken several minutes for Daniel to believe that she hadn’t done something to DJ. He went from angry to calm within seconds, just like during their marriage. It had been like living with Jekyll and Hyde.

  He turned and startled when he saw her watching him. “Give me a call,” he said. He shoved the phone into his pocket. “Anything?”

  “No one’s seen him.” Her voice shook. Every nerve in her body shouted that something was wrong. “We need to call the police.”

  “Not just yet.” Daniel gave a reassuring smile. “He might be playing with a friend or at the ballpark.”

  Warmth seeped in at his attempt to comfort her.

  “You go east,” he said. “I’ll head toward Hermosa. I’m sure he’ll turn up before the police need to be involved.”

  Tracy pulled her jacket over her shoulders and tore out the front door. The cool air nipped at her cheeks. The smell of burnt wood told her autumn was drawing to a close. Usually, North Florida temperatures held steady in the low eighties through October, but this year, it’d been unseasonably wet and cool. Had DJ put his coat on?

  “DJ!” She raced up and down the next two blocks, yelling his name.

  She spotted three boys outside tossing a football.

  “Kyle, have you seen DJ?” she asked the oldest.

  “No, not since yesterday at school,” Kyle said.

  His mother, Patty Phillips walked out the front door, a large plastic bag in her hand. “Tracy, how are you this morning?”

  “I don’t suppose you’ve seen DJ?”

  “No, but you know how boys are.” She lifted the lid of her trash can near the street and dropped the bag inside. “Probably chasing a frog or something.”

  “Yeah.” Tracy wandered down the road with the sound of a door closing behind her. Her voice became louder each time she yelled DJ’s name.

  Something’s wrong. Those words turned over and over in her mind like the wheels of a locomotive barreling down the tracks. Something’s wrong. Something’s wrong. Something’s wrong.

  Once she hit Hermosa, the main road in Belmont, she circled back and stopped in front of her home. Daniel headed her way.

  “Did you find him?” she yelled. Stupid question, because if he had, DJ would be with him.

  “Not yet. Why don’t you make sure he’s not in the garage?”

  “I already did.”

  Daniel’s cell rang. He glanced at it but didn’t answer.

  “I’m going to call the police.” Her voice raised two octaves higher than normal.

  “I said don’t jump the gun,” he snapped. “If DJ’s at a friend’s, we don’t want to bring the police out for nothing. Check the woods.”

  Why didn’t she bite back? It was like the night they were having dinner at his boss’ house, and her labor pains started. Daniel had been all smiles when she announced he needed to take her to the hospital. Happy at least until her water broke in his car. She’d caused such a mess he still brought it up. Like she could have stopped it if she had wanted to.

  She released a loud sigh. Seemed the only memories of her marriage left were unhappy ones.

  All her energy seemed to have been zapped. Her shoes scraped the cement walkway leading to the floral-etched glass door. Her eye caught sight of the pumpkins on the front porch. One with a tooth about to fall out. The other with one eye higher than the other. She never had the knack for carving that Daniel did. If he’d carved them, they’d be perfect. But then DJ would not have been allowed to help, only watch.

  A smile creased her lips. DJ had enjoyed digging his bare hands in to clean out the guts of the jack-o’-lanterns. Laughter had filled the kitchen when he tried to touch her with his filthy hands.

  Shoe prints in the dirt path led around the house. Small, like DJ’s. Had she missed him standing on the bridge watching the fish? How could that boy not hear them calling for him? She tore off around the corner of the house.

  “DJ!” She rushed down the path and over the bridge. “DJ!” she yelled. “Where are you?” Her voice grew faint.

  When she hit the next street over, she turned back. Her body shook. A Jacksonville news report of a missing child crashed into her as she recalled the stepfather had been responsible for taking her. They found her body a day later.

  The voice in her head shouted that DJ also had been taken.

  “No. No. No.” She tried to shake the thoughts out.

  Things like this didn’t happen in a small town like Belmont, Florida. And certainly not to a mother who took such good care of her son.

  But you didn’t take care of him. Remember?

  Chapter 3

  Jenny Carlisle sat with her arms folded on the white crisp linen. She wasn’t the biggest fan of the table, but it was something Gary had brought into the marriage. It’d been his grandmother’s and meant a lot to him. Since he’d been kind enough to allow Dad to move in once they married, she let him have his way when it came to the ugly brown table.

  Besides, plenty of people complimented them on the antique.

  She stared down at the notebook. Her to-do list. Used to be she remembered everything, but with all her new chores as a state representative’s wife, she barely recalled her own name.

  The words blurred.

  Not now.

  The pain came out of nowhere without warning from deep inside to the outer layer of her skull.

  Gary’s pounding footsteps only made it worse.

  “Are you all right?” He walked up to her.

  “Yeah, just a sharp pain. Might need to get my eyes checked.” She forced a smile. This issue didn’t start until after the election. Most likely stress, but why make her husband feel bad about it.

  “Then you need to make time to get to a doctor. I can’t have you walking into walls or anything.” He kissed her on the cheek.

  “I will. Anything new on the Red Tide Project?” she asked.

  Red tide occurred commonly off the coasts all over the world, but the west coast of Florida had had more than usual. Marine life, the fishing trade, and the tourist trade all suffered because of the smell and contaminated shellfish. Gary was working on a bill for a grant to study the tide for a solution. Businesses up and down the coast were excited about the bill. Unfortunately, he was shy a few votes to get it passed.

  “Has Sherman come on over to your side?” she asked.

  “Not yet. But if I could get him, he’d bring Sawyer and Williams. Be good for the state and be my first big piece of legislation.”

  “Maybe I can help.” Jenny rubbed her temples.

  “Only if you’re up to it.”

  “I’ll see if there isn’t some way we can convince him.”

  Sher
man Kelly had been opposing almost everybody’s bills to make himself look like a hard-ass about spending money. She didn’t care about other representatives; no one messed with her husband.

  Helping usually meant joining Sherman on one of his bills or finding something on the man.

  “You’re the best.” Gary kissed the side of her face.

  The headache finally subsided. Jenny took in a deep breath of relief.

  “I wish you didn’t have to leave so soon.” She got up and wrapped her arms around her husband’s thin waist. She hated his hour drive to Tallahassee. If they lived closer, he’d get more time at home. But then he’d have to compete with all those politicians in a new district. At least in Belmont, he was popular.

  “What can I say?” He kissed the top of her head. “Duty calls.”

  “Yes, it does.” She walked him to the front door where he grabbed his briefcase.

  He took her in his arms, pulling her against him. His tongue slid over her lips. Heat flushed through her. She cupped his backside as a hint, but he pulled away.

  “Call me if you find out anything on Sherman, okay?”

  So much for passion. “I will.”

  She waved as he drove off. Once the car was out of sight, she headed to the spare room and her personal computer. DJ’s picture caught her eye. She smiled. He was such a good kid. Anytime they were apart, she missed him terribly.

  She turned to the bills on the desk. Real estate taxes for the cabin. No way would she lose it for something so silly as not paying taxes. This property was a perfect legacy for DJ and any other children who came along.

  “Now, let’s see what we can do about you, Mr. Kelly. Everyone’s got secrets. We need to find yours.”

  The phone rang in the other room. She rushed to retrieve it. A smile came over her face. Yeah, everyone had a secret. She was just better at hiding hers than most.

  Chapter 4