“Plastic surgery? She actually said that? That’s where she’s going today?”
Danna’s eyes welled with tears. “You don’t have to yell at me. It’s not my fault.”
Brad took a deep breath and unclenched his fists. He spoke in a soft, low voice. “Danna, I’m sorry I yelled, but I’m worried about Grace. Can you please tell me where she went?”
She sniffed. “I don’t even know. She just said her appointment was at eleven.”
He groaned, checking the time. It was nine-thirty. He still had time to stop her if he could find her. “I can’t believe she’s really doing this.”
“It’s probably your fault, you know.” Danna’s lifted her chin as she spoke the harsh accusation. “If she was secure in your love, she wouldn’t feel the need to change.”
“That’s so not true! I love her just like she is. She’s beautiful, and I don’t want her to change. But you’d better call the police before this stalker shows up.”
“What stalker?” she asked, with wide eyes.
“Brian Whatever-his-name-is. He’s stalking her.”
“He is?”
“Never mind! I’ve got to go stop Grace before she makes a huge mistake.” He ran outside to flag a taxi.
“Where to?” asked the driver.
“I don’t know yet,” Brad said, pulling out his cell phone as another text came in from Grace.
Please call me soon. I need to tell you something before you find out from someone else.
He dialed her number, cursing when the expected busy signal sounded in his ear. “Just drive toward Mercy General Hospital for now.”
He called Olivia, reaching her voice mail. “Please call me about Grace and, if you talk to her, tell her to call me. She still has my number blocked.”
He covered his face with his hands, mumbling his frustration, before trying Spencer’s number. Again he left a message. The pattern continued through all four of Grace’s siblings. He called Josh, planning to leave a message, and was surprised when he answered the call.
“What’s up?”
“Josh, have you heard from Grace?”
“No, but I thought you went to see her at her school this morning.”
“I did but... You won’t believe it when I tell you.”
“Tell me what? What happened? She wouldn’t talk to you? Or they wouldn’t even let you in the school to see her?”
“No. She le
ft the school to go to a surgery appointment—a plastic surgery appointment.”
“There’s no way, Brad. Did you get this story from Ben? Because I think he may have been kidding us about that whole thing. Grace would never—”
“The girl at the front desk at her school told me. And she specifically mentioned plastic surgery.”
“Okay, now hold on, Brad. This couldn’t be happening without her family knowing about it. Maybe she’s just going for a consult. I don’t believe she’d ever have the nerve to do something like that, even if she was actually crazy enough to consider it.”
Brad felt his tight chest ease a bit. “You’re right. She couldn’t possibly be having the surgery today. She’s probably just going for a consult. I’ve still got time to talk her out of it. She texted me and asked me to call her, but she still has me blocked. Can you call her and ask her to call me or unblock me or both?”
“What did her text say?”
“Just that she wanted me to call her and she was sorry and she didn’t want me to hear something from someone else. I assume she’s planning to tell me about this crazy plastic surgery idea. I know I’ll be able to talk her out of it. And at this point, I don’t care what kind of promise I made to Ben. She’s going to tell me about this stalker. I think the guy has figured out where she works now.”