Vanish Read Online Free PDF Page B

started to reel, and he struggled to think logically. His first priority was to locate Rachel. There was no sign of a break-in or struggle, so wherever she had gone, she had gone willingly. His car was still in the garage, which meant she had either walked or…
    Or someone had come to pick her up.
    Had Marta come to get her? Or one of her friends?
    He had to get out of the house to find some answers. He walked to his neighbor’s door. It was 8:35 when he rang the doorbell. He could hear the chime inside and waited. No answer. He rang a few more times and knocked as well. He peeked inside the front window but couldn’t see any sign of his neighbors.
    Conner returned to his condo and dialed Marta’s number again. Again he got her voice mail. This time he decided to leave a message.
    “Marta, it’s Connie.” He paused, trying to decide how much to tell her. “Listen, I need you to call me back as soon as possible. Okay? Call me back on my cell.”
    He hung up and gathered his wallet and keys. As he backed out of his driveway, he turned on the radio. He listened to AM 1020 every morning in to work. Now static hissed through his speakers. He pressed the Seek button and the LCD screen scrolled through all the frequencies without stopping. He tried the same on FM with the same results.
    Conner headed down Baltic Avenue to Columbus. His first stop would be the police station. It might be a bit premature, but it was the place he’d most likely get some answers.
    He had driven less than a mile before he realized his was the only car on the road. He rolled past strip malls and grocery stores with empty parking lots, gas stations void of customers. There were no other cars in sight. No pedestrians. No signs of life anywhere.
    A sick feeling grew in the pit of his stomach. This was more than just his daughter missing. Everyone else seemed to be missing as well.
    Conner rolled to a stop in the middle of the road and got out. He was in the heart of the Lake Forest business district on a Saturday morning and not a soul was in sight. Silence surrounded him. No sounds of traffic. No planes overhead. Nothing.
    The sun blazed down from a hard, blue sky, and a warm breeze tugged at his clothes. It was a beautiful day. Other than the fact that he seemed to be the last man on earth… it was a beautiful day.
     
     
     

Chapter 5
     
     
    HELEN STOOD ON her balcony. Lake Michigan spread out under the morning sun like a vast, diamond-studded carpet to the horizon. Thirty-seven floors below, Lake Shore Drive snaked its way south to Navy Pier. A cool breeze wafted off the lake and tousled her hair.
    It was a daily ritual for her as soon as the weather turned warm enough in the spring: enjoy a cup of steaming coffee and the newspaper as the city stirred to life.
    Helen normally drank in the vista with pleasure, but this morning she had no pleasure, no coffee, and no morning paper. She drummed her fingers on the railing and stared out over the city. She couldn’t see a soul on the streets below. No traffic, no people. No sign of life anywhere.
    She had awakened from a deep slumber ten minutes ago, groggy and disoriented. Apparently she had fallen asleep in the deck chair on the balcony. She found no morning newspaper in the hall and had gotten no answer when she called management downstairs.
    Helen tried to reconstruct the events of the previous evening, but it was all still a little fuzzy. Kyle had come over—surprised her with a birthday dinner. They had eaten and… and Kyle had mentioned his job. He was moving to New York. She now recalled the anxiety she had felt coming to grips with her son moving so far away. She had gone to the balcony for some fresh air when… when she saw the storm.
    And that was the last thing she could remember.
    She went back to the kitchen and called Kyle’s cell phone. After two rings, an automated message came on: “
If you’d like to make a call, please hang up and dial again
.”
    Helen frowned. Had he