LITMIR.BIZ

      Chapter Nine

      The Squaw Creek Lodge and its occupants seemed oblivious to the power outage and the severe weather—nonstop rain, thunder and lightning. Melissa Howell’s eyes circled the large room where the wedding reception was in full swing, minus the bride and groom, and she thought the rustic atmosphere would have been perfect.

      Of course, it was far from perfect. Everything that could have gone wrong had, Melissa fumed, thinking this was one of the worst days of her life. The worst day had been when her husband, Albert, had died.

      Her gaze stopped on the baby grand piano nestled in the corner near the never-ending windows that overlooked the grounds. In the pitch blackness, the beauty of the terraced lawn was lost, but then so was everything else.

      After her son Noah had made the startling announcement that his sister Randi had disappeared, shock waves seemed to have rumbled through the small crowd. Melissa had prayed that the floor would open up and swallow her, but it hadn’t. She’d had to deal with not only Noah’s untimely desertion as he headed back to work at the hospital, but the entire situation at the lodge.

      She’d squared her shoulders and walked down the endless aisle to the makeshift platform. Instantly, the room had fallen silent while all eyes focused on her. She’d felt like a freak on display in a circus tent, but she hadn’t let her feelings show.

      “I’m sorry, dear friends, about the called-off wedding. However, with the weather being what it is, I’d like to encourage you to wait out the storm and enjoy the food and drink.”

      She paused and waited until another surge of mutterings passed through the crowd, then ceased. Forcing a smile, she went on. “With the electricity out, the refreshments will be ruined. So please, join in and have a good time.”

      Now, as Melissa perused the guests doing her bidding—dancing, laughing, eating and drinking while candlelight surrounded them in its lovely glow—she wanted to scream with frustration and worry.

      While she knew she had to stay, she’d rather have been anywhere other than here. By the second, the situation was growing more intolerable.

      Once the guests had begun to partake of the goodies and started mingling among themselves, Melissa was certain they were whispering about the situation, wondering what was really going on.

      She’d like to have known that herself, especially after the lodge was searched thoroughly in hopes of finding Randi. Melissa had envisioned the worst-case scenarios, all of them terrible.

      What if Randi had passed out somewhere and lay unconscious? After all, it wasn’t uncommon for brides to get the jitters to such an extent. She’d attended a wedding not long ago where the groom had passed out during the exchange of vows.

      What if someone had hurt her? Melissa dismissed that possibility immediately. Who would do that? Every person in attendance was a friend of hers and Hal’s. Certainly none of the staff at the lodge would’ve harmed her, for crying out loud.

      Why wouldn’t Randi answer her phone?

      Too many things were amiss here. Not only was Randi missing, but so was Olivia, the groom’s mother, which Melissa thought was unforgivable, even

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