“Sure. I’ll point that out,” he said, but he seemed strangely indifferent, as if he didn’t care one way or the other about finding homes for his dogs.

Ada had never met a less impassioned shelter owner. Because she loved dogs—owned three—she generally connected with others who did, too. But maybe it was that she’d dropped in on him unannounced and he wasn’t pleased. He hadn’t asked her in or mentioned letting her see the dogs in hopes she might get one for her mother.

And there was something else that struck her as a little odd. If he was having prospective pet owners come here, why didn’t he at least sweep the floor? She could see trash and busted egg cartons at his feet. Apparently, he just waded through it. “Okay. Sorry for bothering you.”

“No problem,” he said.

She rubbed her arms. She should’ve brought a jacket. Thanks to the rain, it was unusually cold for June. But when she’d driven over to see why her mother wasn’t answering the phone, she hadn’t been planning to stay out all day. She’d just wanted to share the news she’d received yesterday afternoon—that she was expecting a baby. She felt it would lift Edna’s spirits, give her something to look forward to, especially because, unlike her other grandchildren, this child would be geographically close to Edna so she could be more involved.

When Ada reached her car, she stopped and turned to look back. She assumed her mother’s renter would’ve gone inside, but he hadn’t. She found him still in the doorway, watching her with an expression that made her feel … uneasy.

It probably seemed weird to him that she was rambling around, looking for her mother. But Edna refused to get a cell phone and didn’t have a computer. She wasn’t open to new technology, wouldn’t tackle the learning curve, so there was little that Ada could do to find her except go out and physically search.

She forced a smile as she waved and called her sister on Bluetooth the moment she drove away.

“Any word?” Nadine asked as soon as she answered.

“No. None.”

“What do you think has happened to her?”

Ada felt like crying. “I don’t know. I’ve looked everywhere. I’ve been to the grocery store, the gas station, her hairstylist, her dentist. I’ve called all her friends. No one has seen her.”

“You sound like you’re panicking.”

“I am.” She still couldn’t shake the strange feeling she’d had while visiting the egg ranch.

“Then what I have to tell you isn’t going to help.”

Ada tightened her grip on the steering wheel. It was Nadine who’d been telling her to calm down, that everything would be fine in the end. And yet she could tell her sister was now as worried as she was. “What is it?”

“I spoke to the Merriweathers.”

“The neighbors across the street from Mom? They came home?”

“Yeah.”

“Why didn’t they call me? I left a note.”

“When I got hold of them, they’d just walked through the door and were rushing to get their suitcases. They’re leaving for California for two weeks. Scott said he was going to call you from the car. They were afraid they might miss their flight otherwise.”