It was another sunny day, and Maryellen sat on the sofa, gazing out at the yard and folding a batch of towels still warm from the dryer. Jon was at home, working in his downstairs office. That was where he had his darkroom, along with his computer and printer for digital photographs. He’d willingly stayed in the same vicinity as his parents, which was a sign that his attitude had changed, at least a little.
Joe and Ellen had taken Katie outside to enjoy the sunshine. Like any toddler, Katie loved exploring her world. Through the sliding glass door, Maryellen could see the three of them walking around the yard, exclaiming at the flowers and studying each blade of grass.
Katie had not only grown close to her grandparents, she talked about them tirelessly. If Jon was there, he found an excuse to change the subject. He never spoke against his parents to Katie, but he didn’t discuss them with her, either.
Recently Maryellen had noticed the slightest softening toward his family. It’d started the afternoon he found his father playing with Katie as she chased butterflies. That was the day they’d first spoken. They’d exchanged a few brief remarks since then, friendly but noncommittal.
The phone rang and Maryellen automatically reached for it. Now that her due date was almost upon them, her mother called twice a day and visited often. Her sister, Kelly, was due in a few weeks, and they kept in frequent touch. This was probably Kelly; she usually phoned in the early afternoon.
“Hello,” she said, expecting to hear her sister’s voice. She did.
“How are you feeling?” Kelly asked.
“How are you feeling?”
“Pregnant,” Kelly said, giggling.
“Me, too.” Only Maryellen wasn’t laughing.
“My goodness, who knew nine months could take so long,” Kelly complained. Unlike Maryellen, her sister had difficulty getting pregnant, but—again unlike Maryellen—she had no difficulty staying pregnant. “Nothing fits anymore and I’ve got new stretch marks every day. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. It’s just that I’d forgotten how uncomfortable pregnancy can be.”
Maryellen was hard pressed not to remind her younger sister that she’d spent most of her own pregnancy trapped on the sofa in their living room. The comforts she longed for were the simple, ordinary aspects of what used to be her life. She yearned for the time she could crawl into bed and cuddle with her husband. The pleasure of a real bath was a forbidden luxury. Climbing stairs was out, too, and since the baby’s bedroom was on the second level, she’d had to leave the decorating to her mother and Ellen. It didn’t feel right not to be personally involved. She hadn’t even seen it yet.
If that wasn’t enough to unnerve Maryellen, she endured constant worries about the baby. She tried to be positive; nevertheless, she worried. Because of the problems associated with the pregnancy, she was deathly afraid that something might be wrong with her baby.
Early on, there’d been numerous blood tests and ultrasounds, and then, as the fetus developed, fewer and fewer. The physicians assured both Maryellen and Jon that everything appeared to be normal, but their words were always followed by a statement indicating that the ultrasounds offered no guarantee.
Maryellen had already accepted that because of her age and the problems she’d encountered, this pregnancy would be her last.
As was their habit, Kelly and Maryellen talked for about ten minutes. When she turned off the phone and set it aside, she was surprised to see Ellen in the kitchen, preparing a salad for dinner.
“Where’s Katie?” Maryellen asked as she folded a thick yellow towel.
Ellen glanced up, lettuce in her hands. “She’s still outside with Joe.”
Thinking she might have missed seeing her daughter, Maryellen looked again. The yard was empty, and she saw no evidence of either her father-in-law or her daughter.
“I don’t see them,” she said, struggling awkwardly to her feet.
“I’m sure they’re there.” Ellen washed her hands, and taking the dish towel with her, walked outside.
Maryellen stood at the open glass door, watching Ellen as she strolled casually about the yard. When Ellen didn’t see her husband or granddaughter, either, she moved out of Maryellen’s sight.
After a few minutes, she heard Ellen shout, calling their names. Her voice became increasingly shrill when she couldn’t locate them.
Maryellen’s heart started to pound. Something was wrong. She could feel it. Every maternal instinct she possessed went on full alert. Feeling light-headed, she made her way to the stairs that led to Jon’s office.
“Jon,” she called, trying to sound calm and collected. “Could you come here right away?”
Her fears must have been evident in her voice, because he was up the stairs in a flash.
His eyes immediately locked with hers. “What is it?”
She swallowed hard, fearing his reaction. “Joseph and Katie are missing.”
“Missing,” he repeated, gripping her shoulders. “What do you mean missing?”
“Katie was outside with Joe and Ellen. I was on the phone with Kelly. When we finished, Ellen was in the kitchen and I couldn’t see Katie or your father. You know how much Katie loves the water and—”
She didn’t get a chance to finish.
Jon was out the door, and she saw him dash across the yard toward the creek at the back of their property. The rushing water flowed down the embankment that led to Colvis Passage. If Katie had fallen in the swollen creek, it could carry her all the way to Puget Sound.
Standing on the deck, Maryellen pressed her hand against her forehead. Breathless, Ellen emerged from the bushes that lined the far end of the property. She looked at Maryellen and shook her head.
“Where’s Jon?” Maryellen shouted.
“He went down to the creek. I couldn’t make it.”
“Joe?” she asked.
“I—I don’t know. He couldn’t have made it to the creek, either. The banks are much too steep.”
Nausea built in the back of her throat, and for a moment Maryellen was afraid she’d throw up. This couldn’t be happening. None of this could possibly be real, and yet the terror that overwhelmed her was real. She had a blinding headache, and feeling nausea and dizziness, she clutched the back of a patio chair.
“I don’t know how this could’ve happened,” Ellen cried, and tears filled her eyes. “Joe was with her….”
But it only took an instant to lose sight of Katie. The little girl loved to play hide-and-seek; all Joe had to do was turn his back for a few seconds, and Katie would see it as an opportunity to slip away.
Maryellen couldn’t tell how much time passed. It felt like an eternity. Just as she was about to give way to panic, she saw movement in the bushes. Then she heard Katie’s frightened wail. The relief that shot through her made her knees buckle.
Jon broke out of the thick underbrush and onto the grass, carrying Katie. The three-year-old was covered in mud from head to foot. He held her tightly in his arms.
“Where’s Joseph?” Ellen cried as she rushed toward him.
Maryellen couldn’t hear what was being said. Ellen ran forward, and Jon handed Katie to his stepmother. As soon as he had, he quickly went back to the same path he’d just left. Within seconds, he was completely invisible in the dense trees and shrubs that edged three sides of their property.
Katie continued to wail, but her deep, gulping sobs didn’t signal pain so much as fear. Ellen brought Katie to Maryellen. As soon as Katie was in her arms and Maryellen had a fresh towel around her, the little girl stopped sobbing. She thrust her thumb into her mouth, then released a shuddering sigh as Maryellen sat and gently rocked her daughter and allowed her own heart to return to normal.
“Joe, dear God in heaven,” Ellen wept, pressing her hand over her mouth.
Maryellen raised her head to see Jon leading his father through the brush and toward the house. Joe was drenched and shivering with cold.
“What happened?” Ellen asked, coming toward them.
Joseph hardly seemed able to speak. Between deep breaths, he explained. “Katie was playing hide-and-seek, and she went into the woods.” Joe gasped for oxygen. His skin was ashen and his lips blue. “She got too close to the edge. I saw her slip and fall in, so I went after her.”
Maryellen could picture the older man, racing down to the creek, stumbling over rocks and fallen trees in an effort to catch his granddaughter before she was swept away.
“I slipped, too,” he choked out as he leaned forward, his hands on his knees, fighting for breath.
Jon ran into the house and got a blanket to wrap around his father. Maryellen could see the barely restrained anger in his movements as he spread it over his father’s back.
“Ellen,” he said sternly, “get Dad to emergency now.”
His stepmother hurried into the house for her purse.
“Do you need me to drive you?” he asked when she returned.
Ellen seemed to be in a daze. She hesitated, and then declined, shaking her head. “No. Just take care of Katie.”
“Have them check his heart.”
“I’m fine,” Joseph insisted. “As long as Katie’s all right, then I am, too.”
“Do what I say,” Jon barked, and Ellen nodded obediently.
Refusing to listen to any protest, Jon took his father to the car and helped him inside. Ellen was already behind the wheel and had started the engine.
Jon stepped away from the vehicle as Ellen pulled out, the wheels spitting dirt and gravel. He stood there watching until she turned onto the road.
When he joined Maryellen on the deck, Jon looked about to collapse. “Katie?” he asked.
“She’s shaken up but she’s fine.”
“Thank God.” He closed his eyes and lowered his head.
Maryellen did thank God. They’d almost lost their daughter. If Joseph hadn’t gone after her when he did, Katie could have drowned—probably would have drowned.
After a few deep breaths, Jon reached for the child and hugged her tight. Then he carried her upstairs for a warm bath and fresh clothes.
Maryellen changed her muddy top and when she sat down realized she was still trembling. She was shaking from the inside out, her knees literally knocking against each other.
They’d come so close to losing Katie, she thought again. So close.
When Jon reappeared, she was afraid he was going to chastise her or declare that his parents were no longer welcome in his home. From the moment Joseph and Ellen had arrived, he’d looked for any small infraction as an excuse to send them packing. He’d never said so, but Maryellen knew.
This afternoon, Joseph had given him the perfect reason. And yet…Jon had called him “Dad.”
Warm and dry now, Katie acted as if the events of the afternoon hadn’t distressed her in the least. Maryellen felt ready for a mental ward while their daughter chattered happily away.
“Are you all right?” Maryellen asked Jon.
He grimaced and took her hand. “I don’t ever want to live through another afternoon like this one.”
“Me, neither.”
“When I saw Joseph holding her, I didn’t know what to say. I wanted to rant at him and berate him for letting Katie out of his sight.”
