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able to screen her calls, but how could June be expected to know which ones to put through? Stop micromanaging, she thought. Enjoy the peace and quiet. ‘I’m sure she knows what she’s doing,’ Caitlin said aloud to no one in particular. Suddenly, Caitlin’s cell phone rang and she jumped. She fumbled to pick up the phone which she had not expected to ring.
    ‘Mrs Eckhart?’ said an unfamiliar voice.
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘This is Miss Benson. I work in the office at Geordie’s school. I tried to reach your husband but his phone seems to be turned off.’
    ‘He’s in court. What is it?’ Caitlin asked. She thought about Geordie’s complaints of illness this morning. Maybe he wasn’t faking. Maybe he really wasn’t feeling well. ‘Is Geordie sick?’
    There was a silence at the other end of the line. ‘I was just calling to ask you that,’ the woman said slowly.
    Caitlin frowned, instantly wary. ‘What do you mean?’
    ‘Well, he is not in school today. It’s our policy to check on all absent students.’
    Caitlin could hear the thudding of her own heart in her ears. ‘There must be some mistake. He is in school. I took him there myself this morning.’
    There was another silence. Then Miss Benson said, ‘I will double check this and call you right back. It will only take a moment.’
    ‘Wait a minute. What’s going on?’ Caitlin cried.
    Miss Benson hesitated. ‘Geordie’s teacher reported him absent to the office.’
    ‘Mr Needleman? That’s got to be a mistake. I talked to Mr Needleman at the Fall Festival this morning.’
    ‘I’m sure it is. I’ll call you right back after I check.’
    ‘No. Wait. Don’t hang up,’ Caitlin pleaded.
    ‘I won’t. I’ll call on the other line.’
    Caitlin’s hands were sweating on the phone. She wiped them on the pants of her suit.
    The woman came back on the phone. ‘I’m sorry. There’s no mistake. Geordie did not show up in Mr Needleman’s class. We are going to make an announcement and search the building. I can call you right back.’
    ‘No. No. I’m coming over there right now.’
    Before the woman could reply, Caitlin ended the call, and scooped up her purse and her jacket. She felt dazed, as if she had just been punched in the face. She stopped by June’s desk just long enough to say that she didn’t know when she would be back. Ignoring June’s protest and questions, she headed out the door.

THREE
    A s she raced up the school steps two at a time, Caitlin prayed. ‘Let it all be a mistake. Oh, please, God. Let it be a misunderstanding.’
    A big, colorfully painted sign announcing the Fall Festival was set up in the school lobby. Caitlin rushed past it, threw open the door to the office and saw the knot of people standing there. Before anyone spoke a word, she knew.
    Mr Needleman approached Caitlin directly. ‘Mrs Eckhart. We are combing the school.’
    Caitlin shook her head. ‘I told you at the festival. He was here.’
    ‘I know. I know. But he never turned up in my classroom,’ Mr Needleman said.
    ‘I don’t understand . . .’
    Mr Needleman looked pained. ‘As soon as I realized . . .’
    The principal, a stout, middle-aged woman named Mrs Hunt, stepped forward and spoke soothingly. ‘Let’s not panic. There’s any number of possible explanations. His father may have picked him up. So far we have had no luck reaching him.’
    ‘He’s still in court. I called the court house on my way here,’ said Caitlin. ‘I told them to send his father over here right away.’
    ‘Good. Hopefully, he may know something about where Geordie is. But we don’t want to waste precious time, just in case. I’ve called the police and they are on their way. Meanwhile, the entire school is being searched. He could be hiding somewhere. Kids do that sometimes.’
    ‘Oh my God,’ said Caitlin. ‘The police?’
    ‘Just a precaution. Here, sit down,’ said Mrs Hunt, offering her a chair. Caitlin wanted to refuse, but her knees were shaking