Gunns & Roses(41)
“Or maybe she’ll go back to see some more of the dancing,” added Alice, “when she gets done with the dogs.” Alice’s response made it clear she hadn’t believed Leathan’s claim that he needed Kyla’s help.
Peggy finished folding the quilt and stuffed it into her bag. “So, why don’t we first go to the kennel area and then try the dance stages, if Kyla’s already gone?”
“And if we just can’t find her, Emily, I’m sure they have a lost-and-found box somewhere,” Annie told the anxious girl. “We can check the brochure for its location.”
Emily’s pigtails bobbed. “OK, Miss Annie. But can we hurry?”
The adults nodded as one, and they made sure they hadn’t left anything behind. “Keep a good grip on those, Em,” Peggy said, as though she didn’t already know the girl was clutching the leather shoes as though her life depended on them. “Wally, which way to the kennels?”
Wally had been consulting the well-used brochure. He looked up, glanced around, and pointed to the left. “We need to head that way behind the first sheep pen and then around to an area near one of the parking lots. Let’s go!” Map in hand, he started off, Emily walking beside him and the adults following.
Once they reached the grassy area dotted with dog kennels of many different sizes, the group split up to look for Kyla. The adults decided that whoever found her would text Wally to bring Emily and the shoes, hopefully without spooking Leathan.
But there was no need for texting. Kyla could not be found, and her uncle was not in the area either. They all met back at the designated place to proceed to Plan B, the dance stages. Those turned out to be much trickier to comb for one twelve-year-old dancer among the sea of kilted participants and crowds of spectators. Once again the group split into two, but before long they realized it was going to be nearly impossible to find Kyla in the crush of people. A text from Ian to Wally brought all the friends back together in front of Stage 3, the shoes still clutched in Emily’s arms.
The girl’s face showed her worry. “Does this mean we have to find the lost-and-found box and dump Kyla’s shoes there?” From the tone of her voice, Emily felt as confident about the lost and found as animal lovers do about the pound. The adults looked around at one another. What was the best next step, for both Kyla and their favorite young dancer?
Annie drew in a slow and deep breath before offering her opinion. “There’s still plenty of time left in the day, and with that is the chance we can see Kyla again. I see no reason why we can’t keep the shoes with us while we do the other things we have planned. Then, if we don’t see Kyla by four forty-five, we can leave the shoes with lost and found.”
“Annie makes a reasonable suggestion,” said Ian. “Does that sound good to you, Emily?” He turned to her, smiling gently.
Emily’s arms tightened slightly around the shoes, but she nodded. “I want Kyla to know we took good care of them.” Relief and lingering concern both played across her face.
“Em, if we do end up having to put Kyla’s shoes in the lost and found, we can tuck a note inside so Kyla will know how hard we tried to find her,” Peggy told her daughter.
The little girl brightened, and she straightened her backbone, drawing her shoulders back. The dancer in her had found her balance again. “OK, Mom. I feel much better now.”
“Since we have that decided, what should we do next?” Wally asked, his eyes still scanning the flow of people going by them.
Alice also kept watch for Kyla’s sky-blue tartan as she replied, “The kilt-making demonstration starts soon. But I suspect you men would be bored.”
Wally snickered. Ian grinned and answered, “Even though I wouldn’t mind having some say in the kilt you ladies plan to make for me, I’ll just have to trust your judgment. I’ve been thinking about the events of the day and what connections there could be between Hep the hammer tosser, the singer, and the falconer. Can we discuss it while Wally and I walk you to the demo building?”
Alice looked around at her girlfriends and answered for them all. “Yup. Let’s walk and talk, as my father used to say.”
“I’ve been thinking about the connections too, Ian,” Annie confessed as they moved away from the dance platforms toward the building indicated on the map where the kilt-making class was to be held. “All the weird stuff started happening after we went through the vendor tents.”
Peggy opened her mouth to speak, and then found she needed to step backward quickly to avoid colliding with a swerving baby stroller being pushed by a teenage girl. “Whoa, there!” Peggy blurted.