Vanishing Act. Liz Johnson

Andy had been her only family since she moved to Crescent City, and she had only loved one man on earth more.

      Blinking furiously at the tears that sprung to her eyes at the sudden reminder of her own failure, she cleared her throat. Her cowardice had cost her her entire world.

      She’d failed in the past, but not this time. Swiping at her eyes with the back of her hands one more time, she rubbed against the burning in her eyes. “Is there something else you need me to do while you’re out of town?”

      Andy sighed softly and started another sentence. “Well…actually there is something else. You know how I’ve been teaching the Intro to Auto Shop class at the college?”

      “Mmm-hmm.” Andy left work at four-fifteen every Tuesday and Thursday for the last two weeks to teach at the Crescent City Community College. She knew firsthand that he was a great teacher, but what could it possibly have to do with her?

      “While I’m with my mom, there’s no one at the college to cover the class, so I was wondering if you might be able to fill in for me. You could close the shop early, and it should only be for a couple a weeks. Just four classes or so.”

      “Oh.” It was the only sound that Danielle could manage in her shocked state. Andy knew her better than anyone. After all, it was Andy who gave her a place to live and a job, teaching her how to be a mechanic when she’d had to start over. He knew just how long it had taken her to open up to him, to get comfortable talking with him.

      She hated talking in front of people. Hated being the center of attention. What if someone recognized her? What if someone knew her past? Knew that she’d left her father to die in an alley more than a year before?

      Her life was all about blending into the crowd, matching the flowers on the walls. It had to be.

      Teaching a class in the largest community in town, wasn’t blending. Not by any stretch of her imagination.

      She hated letting him down, but she just couldn’t risk putting herself on display.

      She’d had dreams of the gunman in the alley night after night when she first arrived in Crescent City. It had taken her months to realize that he probably wasn’t coming after her. Whatever Goodwill had wanted from her had died with her dad.

      But what if she was wrong? What if there was someone out there still looking for her?

      “Andy, I’m sorry. I just can’t.”

      “Danielle, I know this isn’t easy for you, but I’m begging you. Please. There’s no one else even remotely qualified to fill in for me, and there’s no one else to look after Mom. I have to go.”

      Taking a deep, calming breath, she said, “Let me think about it a little while. I’ll call you back.”

      After hanging up, she plopped onto a kitchen chair and stared at the receiver in her hand. What could Andy possibly be thinking asking her to teach a class?

      He was her best friend. Her only friend. And she really wanted to help him.

      But it meant putting a big target on her back.

      Hanging her head, so low that her chin rested on her chest and her brown locks fell in front of her face, she rubbed the ends between her fingers thinking about everything she’d done to disguise herself. The short hair, which she’d promptly dyed a deep chestnut color after leaving Portland. The colored contacts to cover her uniquely golden eyes. She’d even dropped about fifteen pounds.

      That had been by accident, of course. Too much stress and she couldn’t eat.

      She was barely recognizable as Nora Marie James—even to herself.

      So why am I afraid that someone else will recognize me?

      Deep in her heart she heard a voice telling her that she didn’t have to be afraid. She knew that voice, trusted it, but still… “God, if You want me to do this for Andy, You’ll have to give me the strength.”

      As she fell silent, an inexplicable peace filled her heart, and she knew that she could do this for Andy—no matter the cost.

      As Nate strolled the ten short blocks from his apartment to downtown Crescent City, brightly colored posters adorned the window of every barber shop and country store. He stopped to read one. Immediately a middle-aged man in an apron walked to the open door of his woodworking business.

      Nodding to the vibrant poster, he asked, “You in a band? I hear they’re still looking for groups for the battle of the bands at the college.”

      The other man’s eyes traveled up the road, and Nate’s gaze immediately followed. “Nope. Just curious about what’s going on.”

      “There’s a big bulletin board up at the quad at the college. They post just about everything happening in town there.”

      “Do you know if they’re still accepting students?”

      The little man pointed a stubby finger at another flyer, which announced that college registration was still open, and community members were welcome to sign up for two more days.

      If he weren’t consumed with the task before him, he would have liked to see what some of the other posters offered—theater, concerts and martial arts classes—but he didn’t have time for any of that. Crescent City wasn’t a vacation destination. Nora James was his sole reason for being here. He had to find her—and the Shadow.

      Doubt flickered through his mind for a split second. What if Nora wasn’t here? What if this entire mission was a wild-goose chase?

      He shook his head and tried to clear away his misgivings. He’d done exactly what he was supposed to. He’d followed the only tip they had. Better to send someone after the girl than let the Shadow have her without a fight.

      “Thanks,” he said, waving to the man, as he headed farther into town.

      As the special agent in charge of the Portland bureau office, Nate didn’t get much field time anymore, and he missed it. Most days overflowed with paperwork and bureaucratic meetings. The wind blowing in his face and the sound of his shoes clapping along the cement sidewalk built excitement in his soul as he picked up speed.

      Nate shot up a quick prayer of thankfulness that he hadn’t had another field agent to send on the assignment. Myles Borden was on his honeymoon. Heather Sloan was stuck in the office following hip surgery. And Jack Spitz was stuck in a car on stakeout for another case he was working.

      He lifted his face to the warm sun. Man, this felt good.

      Torn from his thoughts by an annoying ring from his cell phone, he pulled it from the back pocket of his jeans. The display told him that it was coming from Heather’s cell phone. “What’s up?”

      “Have you talked to Mitch yet?”

      “We talked yesterday.”

      She sighed audibly. “Okay. I just remembered that he called the office and wanted me to have you call him. I forgot to tell you.” She sounded a little sheepish.

      “No problem.”

      Silence reigned for several long seconds. What was making her so hesitant to speak?

      “Heather, what going on?”

      She sighed. “It’s Jack. He’s driving me nuts every time he’s in the office. When are you coming back?”

      He laughed. Why did adults—moreover, adults with law degrees—insist on acting like kids? “I won’t be gone long. I figure I’ve got two weeks at the most. Longer than that, and I’ve lost her to the Shadow. And I’ve lost Parker, too.” But failure wasn’t an option in this case. “I’ll be home in ten days. Twelve, tops.”

      The college buildings loomed large a couple blocks ahead. The big gray buildings seemed out of place among the quaint shops of downtown, but it was still the hub of the community. He needed to get connected and figure out what the Shadow knew that he didn’t.