LITMIR.BIZ

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seemed that Linnette had found the kind of person she needed, but had he? Mack shook his head.

      And yet, he couldn’t forget Mary Jo Wyse.

      Which wasn’t remotely logical, considering that their relationship consisted mostly of him taking her blood pressure.

      And yet …

       Chapter Eleven

      Linc drove down Harbor Street, peering out at both sides of the street. Fortunately, the snow had let up—Ned was probably disappointed by that. He wasn’t sure what he was searching for, other than some clue as to where he might locate his runaway sister. He’d give anything to see that long brown coat, that colorful striped scarf …

      “Nice town,” Ned commented, looking around.

      Linc hadn’t noticed. His mind was on Mary Jo.

      “They seem to go all out with the Christmas decorations,” Mel added.

      Ned poked his head between the two of them and braced his arms against the back of their seats. “Lots of lights, too.”

      “There’s only one that I can see,” Linc said, concentrating on the road ahead. His brothers were so easily distracted, he thought irritably.

      They exchanged knowing glances.

      “What?” Linc barked. He recognized that look. In fact, he’d already seen it several times today.

      “In case you weren’t aware of it, there are lights on every lamppost all through town,” Ned pointed out slowly, as if he was speaking to a child. “The street is decorated with Christmas lights. And that clock tower, too, with the Christmas tree in front of it.”

      “I was talking about traffic signals,” Linc said.

      “Oh, signals. Yeah, you’re right about that.” As Linc drove through the downtown area, there’d been just that one traffic light. Actually, he was going back to it. He made a sharp U-turn.

      “Where are you going?” Mel asked, clutching the handle above the passenger window.

      “Back to the light—the traffic light, I mean.”

      “Why?” Ned ventured with some hesitation.

      Linc’s mood had improved since they’d arrived in Cedar Cove. The traffic was almost nonexistent and his sister was here. Somewhere.

      He tried to think like Mary Jo. Where could she be? It had started to get dark, although it was barely four in the afternoon. Twilight had already settled over the snowy landscape.

      “Practically everything in town is closed for the day,” Mel said, pressing his face against the passenger window like an anxious child.

      “Stands to reason. It’s Christmas Eve.” Ned sounded as if he was stating something neither Linc nor Mel had discovered yet.

      Linc waited for the light before making a sharp left-hand turn. The road ended at a small traffic circle that went around a totem pole. The building to the right with the large mural was the library, and there was a large, mostly vacant parking lot situated to his left. Directly in front of him was a marina and a large docked boat.

      The sign read Passenger Ferry.

      Linc immediately went through the traffic circle and pulled into the parking lot.

      “Why are we stopping here?” Mel asked in surprise. “Not that I’m complaining. I could use a pit stop.”

      “Yeah, me, too,” Ned chimed in. “Let’s go, okay?”

      “Come on,” Mel said. “I wanna hit the men’s room.”

      “How did Mary Jo get to Cedar Cove?” he asked them both, ignoring their entreaties. “The ferry, right? Isn’t that what we figured?”

      “Yeah, she must’ve taken it to Bremerton,” Mel agreed. “And then she rode the foot ferry across from Bremerton to Cedar Cove.” He pointed to the boat docked at the end of the pier.

      Linc playfully ruffled his brother’s hair. “Give the man a cigar.”

      Mel jerked his head aside. “Hey, don’t do that.” He combed his fingers through his hair to restore it to order.

      Linc swung open the truck door and climbed out.

      “Where you goin’ now?” Mel asked, opening his own door.

      “It’s not for us to question why,” Ned intoned and clambered out, too.

      Linc sighed. “I’m going to ask if anyone saw a pregnant girl on the dock this morning.”

      “Good idea,” Ned said enthusiastically. “Meanwhile, we’ll visit that men’s room over there.”

      “Fine,” Linc grumbled, scanning the street as he waited for them. Unfortunately he hadn’t found anyone to question in the vicinity of the dock. The only nearby place that seemed to be doing business was a pub—imaginatively called the Cedar Cove Tavern.

      “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” blasted out the door the instant Linc opened it. A pool table dominated one side of the establishment; a man was leaning over it, pool cue in hand, while another stood by watching. They looked over their shoulders when the three brothers came inside.

      Linc walked up to the bar.

      The bartender, who had a full head of white hair and was wearing a Santa hat, ambled over to him. “What can I get you boys?”

      “Coke for me.” Linc was driving, so he wasn’t interested in anything alcoholic. Besides, he’d need a clear head once he tracked down his obstinate younger sister.

      “I’ll have a beer,” Mel said. He propped his elbows on the bar as though settling in for a long winter’s night.

      “Coke,” Ned ordered, sliding onto the stool on Linc’s other side.

      The bartender served them speedily.

      Linc slapped a twenty-dollar bill on the scarred wooden bar. “You seen a pregnant woman around today?” he asked. “Someone from out of town?”

      The man frowned. “Can’t say I have.”

      “She’s real pregnant.” For emphasis Mel held both hands in front of his stomach.

      “Then I definitely didn’t,” Santa informed them.

      “She arrived by foot ferry,” Ned told him. “Probably sometime mid morning.”

      “Sorry,” Santa Claus said. “I didn’t start my shift until three.” He rested his bulk against the counter and called out, “Anyone here see a pregnant gal come off the foot ferry this morning?”

      The two men playing pool shook their heads. The other patrons stopped their conversation, glanced at Linc and his brothers, then went back to whatever they were discussing.

      “Doesn’t look like anyone else did either,” the bartender told them.

      The brothers huddled over their drinks. “What we gotta do,” Mel said, “is figure out what her agenda would be.”

      “She came to find David’s parents,” Ned reminded them. ”That’s her agenda.”

      “True.” Okay, they both had a point. Turning back to the bartender, Linc caught his attention. “You know any people named Rhodes in the area?”

      Santa nodded as he wiped a beer mug. “Several.”

      “This is an older couple. They have a son named David.”

      The bartender frowned. “Oh, I know David. He stiffed me on a sixty-dollar tab.”

      Yeah, they were talking about the same guy, all right. “What about his parents?”

      “Ben

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