Page 119 of Night Hawk
She studied Lisa, who was calmly reviewing their father’s journals. She’d been calm ever since she was reunited with Rachel. Not happy. Not sad. Just an even calm that felt a bit eerie. Maybe it was a coping mechanism Lisa had developed over the years. Toni wanted to ask, but she wouldn’t put Lisa on the spot.
Thankfully, most of the girls they’d discovered at the barn had been reunited with their families, and a special FBI task force was working to identify the girls whose photos were found in Rader’s garage. They were also working on the videos, and Toni couldn’t be happier that she was still on leave and didn’t have to view them again. She wasn’t sure what she would do once her leave ended other than to talk to her supervisor about moving to a different unit.
Lisa looked up. “Dad really didn’t stop looking for me, did he?”
“No.”
Her eyes creased, the first sign of real pain. “Why didn’t they tell you about me?”
“I wondered the same thing, but I’ve come to believe they wanted to spare me the pain.”
“That makes sense. If Rachel or Henry were in your place, I might’ve done the same thing.” A soft smile played on her lips. “Thank you again. You and your friends saved Rachel in the nick of time. If she’d had to…” She shook her head. “I’m not going to think about that. No point in it. God brought you to us in time.”
“Can I ask a question?” Toni asked.
A wary look Toni had seen on their mother’s face so often landed on Lisa’s. “I guess.”
“How did you keep your faith through all of this?”
Lisa let out a slow breath. “It was the only thing they couldn’t take from me or exploit. And, better yet, my continued belief in God made them mad.” Lisa’s gaze darkened. “When I was in horrible situations, I called up my favorite verse and repeated it over and over again.”
“What’s the verse?”
‘“For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” That calm that Lisa had been exhibiting returned. “I clung to the promise of hope and a future. And here I am with two beautiful children, my future wide open. No man to control us anymore. Richey interacted very little with our children so they’re used to not having him in their lives, and they’ll be fine without him.”
“I can’t believe how strong you are. I hope as we get to know each other that my faith strengthens.” Toni told her about her struggles. “But my challenges are nothing compared to what you experienced, and I have so much to be thankful for.”
Lisa touched Toni’s hand for the briefest of moments. “I see strength in you. Reminds me of Dad. He always wanted me to be strong. To be able to withstand the world he’d said was deteriorating by the day. He never told me that, of course. I was just a kid, but I heard him talking to Mom.”
“He raised me the same way.”
“I miss them.”
“Me too,” Toni said, tears coming to her eyes.
Lisa’s eyes glistened too, and Toni wanted to hug her sister, but Lisa clearly didn’t like to be touched. Toni would have to wait for Lisa to initiate physical contact.
A knock sounded on the door, and Lisa pulled back, her calm evaporating in a puff of air. “Who is it? Who could be here?”
“You’ll have to get used to the fact that not everyone means to harm you,” Toni said as she got up.
Lisa gnawed on her lip. “Who do you think it is?”
“Let me find out.” Toni crossed the room, enjoying the sound of Henry and Rachel playing in the bedroom. Toni peered through the peephole. “It’s Clay.”
What was he doing here? She’d last seen him two days ago when he dropped them off after visiting her grandparents, and he hadn’t tried to contact her at all. She appreciated the break. He’d given her the space she’d needed to realize without a doubt that she wanted him in her life. She’d been planning to go to Portland this week to tell him.
Now he was here. Had he come to tell her how he felt? To talk about a future?
She smoothed a hand over her hair and took a breath to calm the butterflies in her stomach. She opened the door and drank in the sight of him. He wore his usual attire of tactical pants, a knit shirt, and boots. He looked tired, but when he smiled, the fatigue disappeared, and his face glowed with happiness.
Could his reaction be from seeing her? Because the same feelings filled her heart.
“I wasn’t expecting you.”
“I should’ve called, but I didn’t know if you would see me, and I have something I want to talk to Lisa about.”
He’d come to see Lisa. Not her. That stung. Big time. “I’m not sure if she’s ready for a visitor, but I’ll check.”
