Page 13 of Enigma (Pros and Cons Mysteries #6)

N either Jason nor Olive could answer that question. They’d been interrupted with the waitress delivering their food—a welcome distraction.

Jason offered a quick prayer, and then they both began eating silently.

Olive hated the tension between them, but she didn’t know how to fix it either.

Just when she’d taken the last bite of her sandwich, Jason’s phone buzzed on the table between them.

He glanced at it and frowned.

“It’s the hospital.” He snatched the phone and answered. “This is Jason Stewart.”

Olive watched his expression change as he listened to whoever was on the other end. His face grew pale, and his grip tightened on the phone.

“What do you mean he’s missing?” Jason’s voice sounded sharp with alarm. “How does a patient just disappear from the hospital?”

Ice formed in Olive’s stomach.

Something had happened to Lloyd.

“We’ll be right there.” Jason ended the call and looked across the table at Olive.

Fear and anger warred in his gaze.

“My father is gone,” he said. “No one saw him go, and he didn’t sign himself out. But security cameras show him leaving the hospital with someone twenty minutes ago, even though he was supposed to stay overnight for observation.”

“What about Nancy? She said she was going to stay with him while he rested. If she left, I’m surprised she didn’t call first.”

“Good point—and I’m not sure. The nurse who called said his room was empty when they went to check on him. His hospital bracelet and gown were left on the bed.” Jason stood and threw some cash on the table to pay for their meals.

As they hurried toward the exit, Olive’s mind raced.

How had this happened? Had Lloyd left on his own? Or had he been coerced?

“Jason,” she said as they reached their vehicles. “Do you think Nancy is somehow involved in this?”

Olive hadn’t been sure if she should voice her thought aloud, but she knew she needed to. It was a possibility they had to explore.

He turned to look at her, his keys in his hand. “What do you mean? You think Nancy is involved in his disappearance?”

“I think we need to consider every possibility,” Olive said. “And we need to find your father before whoever took him decides he’s too dangerous to keep alive.”

When Olive and Jason arrived at the hospital, they immediately headed toward Lloyd’s room and found his nurse in the hallway.

“We don’t know what happened.” Nurse Kelly shrugged. “One minute he was here, and the next he was gone.”

“What about Nancy?” Jason asked. “His girlfriend.”

“Visiting hours were over at 8:00 so she had to leave. That was probably about fifteen minutes before he disappeared.”

“Did Nancy say anything before she left?” Olive asked.

The nurse shook her head. “No. I don’t suppose there was anything to say. She understood that he needed his rest after what had happened, that his body had been through a lot.”

“And there are no signs of foul play, correct?” Jason’s hands went to his hips as he stared intently at the nurse.

“Not as far as I know. But you’re welcome to see his room for yourself.” She paused. “Would you like for me to file a police report?”

“Not yet,” Jason muttered. “First I’d like to see his room.”

“Feel free.” The nurse pointed at his doorway.

Olive followed him inside the room and glanced around. Just as Jason had told her, Lloyd’s hospital bracelet and gown were left on his bed. She’d assumed that his clothes were probably evidence, that he’d found something else to wear when he left the hospital.

Had his abductor brought clothes for him? It seemed odd, but the option was possible.

Nothing else appeared out of place.

Jason stepped back into the hallway and found the nurse again. Olive could hear their conversation from her place inside the room.

“Do you know if my dad got any calls to his room?” Jason asked. “Is there any way of finding that out?”

She twisted her lips in exaggerated uncertainty. “To be honest, I’m not sure. But you can probably check with security. They’re located on the first floor in the east wing.”

Without saying anything else, Jason nodded and began walking that way, his stride so fast that he was practically sprinting. Olive had to rush to keep up.

Before she could ask him any questions, he had his phone to his ear.

A moment later, he muttered something beneath his breath and then shoved his phone back into his pocket.

“What’s wrong?” Olive asked.

“I tried to call Nancy to see if she knew what was going on. She’s not answering.”

Olive’s heart pounded harder. “That’s suspicious.”

“Yeah, tell me about it.”

They stepped onto the elevator, and Jason hit the One button several times.

His erratic actions were out of character for him.

Olive crossed her arms and tried to sound casual as she asked, “What do you know about Nancy?”

“Not much. I call Dad every week, but he’s not one to talk much about his love life.”

“What did he say?”

He blew out a breath and rolled his eyes up as if thinking. “She’d been widowed three years earlier after a thirty-year marriage to a high school principal. She has two adult children—a daughter in Seattle and a son in Denver—who visit occasionally, but they have their own busy lives.”

“Anything else?” Olive pushed.

Jason shook his head. “Dad mentioned something about the fact that she wasn’t looking for someone to take care of her or make decisions for her. She values her independence, which my dad seems to like.”

Her gut tightened. “I don’t know what’s going on here, but I don’t like this, Jason.”

His jaw tightened. “I don’t either.”