Finding Charlie - She's Missing!

As part of my KindleScout run, I'm sharing excepts from the beginning of my new novel, Finding Charlie. Olivia continues with her normal day, going to the office where she works as a physical therapist. It isn't until she leaves that she learns that this may not be a normal day after all:

            My father was in the waiting room when I left for the day. He looked so out of place- my big, strong dad in a room of broken, old people- and I realized he’d never visited me at work before. As I got closer, I saw he hadn’t shaved, which was abnormal for a week day.  And, come to think of it, he was not dressed for work, wearing jeans and a T-shirt that promoted a political candidate who had run and lost years ago.

            “Daddy?”

            He looked up as though he’d forgotten where he was, lost in the pattern of the carpet. “Olivia.”

            He wasn’t smiling to see me. I touched his arm. “What’s wrong?” I felt like I was bending over him, a little boy cowering over a broken toy. But he was taller than me.

            And then he stood up straighter and put his arm around me and was in charge again. I was relieved to be ushered out the woosh of the automatic door and into the warm evening air under his direction.

            Once outside, in relative privacy, he stood me in front of him and gripped my upper arms. “Charlie’s missing,” he said, getting right to the point.

            “She’s what?”

            “She didn’t come home last night. I can’t reach her on her cell.”

            I let out the breath I’d been holding, smiled warmly, condescendingly. “Daddy. She’s nineteen. I’m sure she just stayed out with a friend. Maybe she turned off her phone.”

            He let go of my arms then. “That’s what the police said.”   

            “The police?”          

            “They aren’t taking it seriously because, legally, she’s an adult.” He said “legally” like it was a made up word. Clearly, she wasn’t really an adult. Unfortunately, I tended to agree.

And so it begins. I'll share more on in the coming days as Olivia begins to lose her cocky certainty that Charlie's fine. To read the full excerpt and vote for me in the competition, go here: https://kindlescout.amazon.com/p/1ZEZ9K2DLCYOB