Chapter 38 - The Linden Tree

Start from the beginning
                                    

“Or I saw you coming from my window.” Zoe smiled at Binny. “It’s one or the other.”

Zach handed Zoe his phone and showed her the message he’d received. “I tried texting you but you didn’t answer so we came to get you.”

“Zoe, your phone buzzed.” Gabe was holding Zoe’s phone which she’d left downstairs when she went up to her room.

“Thanks.” Zoe said sarcastically to her brother, and then to the others, “OK. Give me a minute to tell my grandfather.”

“Tell your grandfather what?” Gabriel Walker, PopPop as he was known to his family, stood over his grandchildren in the doorway examining the kids standing on the front porch.

“Oh, Hi PopPop. Gabe and I were just going to go out and play with our friends.” Zoe explained.

PopPop pursed his lips. He looked as if he was literally chewing on something. After a moment his pursed lips turned into a look of disapproval. “You haven’t eaten your dinner yet. Your parents left strict instructions.”

“We brought you sandwiches.” Cassie held up a little bag she’d been carrying. “Peanut butter and banana. My Dad makes the best ones.”

“Oh does he?” PopPop scowled at Cassie but it only made her giggle.

“Please PopPop?” Gabe said.

“What exactly are you kids planning on doing running around the neighborhood?”

“We’re getting exercise.” Zoe said.

“Exercise huh? You sure you’re not getting into trouble?” PopPop looked unconvinced.

“You’re the one who always complains that kids these days watch too much TV.” Zoe did her best impression of her grandfather.

Gabe giggled.

PopPop appeared to be making a show of being disagreeable but finally said. “Just make sure and exercise your good judgment. If you’re not back before your parents get home, trouble will have found us.”

“Oh, a kitty.” Cassie squealed with delight. Zoe’s cat was poking its head between the legs of everyone gathered inside the front door.

Zoe said, “Careful, don’t let her out PopPop!” But before the words were out of her mouth, Tango shot out the door and scampered up the closest tree.

PopPop shook his head. “Well that didn’t take long. Looks like you’ve already got some trouble to deal with. Good luck children.” Gabriel Walker went back inside the house to take a seat on his favorite chair and get back to reading his newspaper.

§

The house felt unusually quiet. Whatever excitement Samantha Trace had felt about surprising her son with an evening out doing his favorite things had completely disappeared. The unease she had felt in the morning had blossomed into a thick dread.

Ollie wasn’t anywhere on the regular path he took from the Luce campus to home. Ollie should have been home by now. But he wasn’t. Samantha Trace walked out her front door to search for her son.

§

“You guys should go ahead without me.” Zoe said teary-eyed.

“We need to hurry. We don’t know how long Rembrandt has.” Binny said. Privately she wondered if it was already too late, but she kept that to herself.

The six children were gathered at the base of the Linden tree whose branches reached out to Zoe’s windows. It was in those very same branches that Zoe’s cat Tango was now concealed.

The Madrona Heroes Register: Underneath It AllWhere stories live. Discover now