Chapter Fifteen
Gabe
I traveled back to South Dakota with a heavy heart. Lana hadn’t been in touch and I was starting to accept that I had made a huge mistake in asking her to marry me. I didn’t even know how I stood in terms of the fake marriage, so I didn’t know what would await me when I arrived back at the farm.
When I pulled into the drive, Matt was coming up the track towards the house. He looked happier than I had seen him in a while.
“Hey Gabe. Good to have you back.”
We went inside the farmhouse and I dumped my bag on the floor. “You’re a lot chirpier than I expected you to be,” I said, eyeing him suspiciously.
He smiled and handed me a beer. “Just happy to see you.”
“Matt, what’s going on? Have you seen Lana?”
He cocked his head to the side. “Oh gosh, didn’t she tell you?” He came over and patted me on the arm. “I’m sorry man. I thought she would have called to let you know, given the whole debacle with your proposal.”
“What are you talking about?”
“That must have been awkward for you, getting a rejection like that, huh? I always said there was something hinky about her.”
“No, you didn’t. You were just jealous that she liked me more than you when we were growing up.”
Matt’s lips curved into a slight smile, his eyes narrowing in derision. “That may well be the case, but I hate to break the bad news to you, bro. She’s gone.”
“What? Gone where?”
“She took off a couple of days ago, said she needed a break.”
I couldn’t believe it. Did she really resent me that much that she couldn’t even stay to see through the fake marriage?
Matt patted me on the shoulder again. “Sorry dude. Looks like you’re going to forfeit the farm.”
I took a large glug of my beer and slumped down on the couch. “I thought she would at least call me. Her mom said that she would speak to her.”
“Yeah, well, it looks like she made up her mind.”
A black cloud seemed to descend over me. I just couldn’t take it in. “Well, if she’s not here, then I guess it means you’re going to get the farm. Congratulations Matt. I’m sure you’re very pleased with yourself.”
“Yes, I am. Aren’t you disappointed that I’ve won?”
All my energy had drained out of my body. I didn’t want to talk anymore. “No, man. It’s what you wanted. Anyway, I’m exhausted from all this traveling. I’m going to get an early night.”
I ignored my brother’s smirk as I trudged upstairs to my old bedroom. I lay down on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. I must have dozed off because I woke with a start a while later. I could hear the front door being opened, so I went over to the window and saw Matt crossing the field with a plastic food container in his hand. I wondered where he was going at this time of night.
Sitting on the bed, I began to feel uneasy about the way Matt was behaving. Something seemed off, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I lay back and tried to get some sleep, but sleep eluded me, and I tossed and turned for the rest of the night.
The next day, I went across the track to Lana’s parents’ house. Marta answered and greeted me with a huge hug.
“Oh, it’s so good to have you back!” She exclaimed. “Lana must be so excited to see you again.”
I frowned, confused. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand. I thought Lana had gone away for a few days?”
“No. She’s over at the farmhouse. She decided to move back in to wait for your arrival.”
“That’s strange. She’s not at the farmhouse. Matt said that she wanted to get away to think.”
Now it was Marta’s turn to look confused. “Matt said that? But why would he say such a thing? It was Matt who told me that Lana had moved into the farmhouse. He seemed to know all about what was going on, and was happy that you two were getting engaged for real.”
Alarm bells began to ring. “What? But I haven’t spoken to Lana since before I left.”
“But that doesn’t make sense. She said she was going to call you. She realized that she does love you after all.”
I ran my hand over my head, panic beginning to rise within me. “What? Marta, this is important. When did you last speak to Lana?”
“Two days ago. I mean, it’s unusual not to see her but I just assumed she was catching up on her studies at the farmhouse.”
“Marta, we need to find Julio. I think something has happened to Lana.”
“What do you mean?” Marta’s eyes were wide with terror.
“I don’t know, but I strongly suspect my brother has something to do with it.”
“Call Julio and tell him to come to the farmhouse immediately. I’ll meet you over there.”
Marta quickly dialed her husband’s number and I ran out of the small house and back towards the farmhouse. Matt was nowhere to be seen. I looked through every room in the house and checked the loft. There was no sign of Lana or Matt.
Frantically, I dialed her number on my cell. Downstairs, I could hear the faint sound of a ringtone. I dashed downstairs and searched in the vicinity of the sound. I found Lana’s cellphone in Matt’s coat pocket.
Julio and Marta arrived and I showed them the phone. “I don’t think Lana left at all. I think Matt’s hiding her somewhere.”
Marta’s hand shot up to her mouth. “Oh my God! We have to find her! If he’s hurt my daughter, I’ll kill him!”
“Not if I kill him first,” I snarled, through gritted teeth.
We ran out of the farmhouse and took off in different directions. I sprinted across the field towards the livestock sheds and checked inside. “Lana! Are you in here?” I checked every corner of the large building but there was no sign of her.
I could hear Julio shouting her name in the distance. I took off in the opposite direction. After checking more buildings there was still no sign of her. One of the farmhands came over to ask what was wrong.
“Have you seen Lana?”
“No Gabe. Last I saw her was two days ago. Not seen her since.”
“Where was she headed to.”
He pointed towards the creek.
I trudged through the mud as fast as my feet could take me, my eyes desperately searching for a clue. I saw the old original buildings down at the creek and sped up. The first building was empty, as was the second. I was just approaching the third building when I saw Matt coming out of the entrance and bolting the door behind him. I crouched behind an old piece of machinery and waited as he walked past, whistling nonchalantly to himself.
Once I was sure he was gone, I ran to the building and banged on the door. “Lana? Are you in there?”
I heaved the heavy bolt up and opened the door wide.
Lana covered her eyes with her hands. “Gabe? Is that you?”
I scrambled to the ground and she huddled into my embrace. “Oh my God, Lana! Are you okay? Did he hurt you?”
“No,” she sobbed. “He just wanted to keep me here until it was too late to save the farm.”
I kissed her forehead and squeezed her tight. “I’m so sorry, Lana. I’m so sorry.”
“I’m so glad to see you Gabe Dawson. I’ve never been so glad to see someone in all my life.”
I cupped her face in my hands. “When I arrived, Matt told me that you had gone away to clear your head. When you didn’t call me, I just assumed that you didn’t want to talk.”
“He took my cellphone when he locked me in here. I was just about to call you when he grabbed it from me.”
“He told your mom and dad that you were staying over at the farmhouse, so they didn’t even know you had gone missing.”
“Oh my God, Gabe. He’s lost his mind!”
I hugged her again. “It’s okay. I’ve got you now. You’re safe.”
She buried her face in my chest and cried. I dialed Julio’s cell and told him that I had found his daughter. We arranged to meet back at the farmhouse.
“Are you okay to walk?” I asked her gently.
“Are you kidding? I could literally run away from this dank old building.”
She took my hand and we stood up together. On our way back to the farmhouse we bumped into Marta and Julio, and they had a joyous reunion.
After we finished hugging it out, Julio took me aside. “What are we going to do about this, Gabriel? I feel like wringing every last breath out of him with my bare hands.”
I nodded towards the farmhouse. “He doesn’t know that we found Lana. Marta should take her back to your own house. Call the Police. You come with me to talk to him.”
Marta took Lana back into their house and Julio and I continued on to the farmhouse. Before we entered, I turned to Julio. “Let me do the talking.”
Julio nodded grimly as I opened the door and we went inside.
Matt was sitting on the couch having a beer. He smiled pleasantly at us as we sauntered in.
“Hey fellas, come on in. Nice to see you Julio, there’s beer in the fridge if you want one.”
I casually walked to the fridge and pulled out two beers, handing one to Julio before setting the other one down on the table.
“Hey, Matt. Where did you say Lana was again?”
Matt froze for a moment before taking a gulp of his beer. “I don’t know exactly where she is dude. She could be anywhere.”
“But I thought you said she had gone away for a few days? Is that right?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“That’s real strange,” Julio interjected. “I could have sworn you told Marta that Lana was staying here.”
Matt shifted uncomfortably in his chair.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out the cellphone. I found the number I was looking for and pressed the dial button. Matt’s cellphone rang in his pocket. He dug it out and checked to see who it was. The color drained from his face.
I smiled at him. “Aren’t you going to pick that up? It could be an important call.”
Matt gingerly pressed the answer button and held the cellphone up to his ear. “Hello?”
Still smiling, I held up Lana’s cellphone to my ear and spoke. “Why did you have Lana’s cellphone in your coat pocket, Matt?”
He gulped as I ended the call and slowly placed Lana’s cellphone on the coffee table.
Julio stepped forward. “I think you’ve got a lot of explaining to do, son.”
Matt’s eyes darted from Julio to me and back. I could practically see the cogs whirring in that devious brain of his. He stood up quickly and made for the door. Both Julio and I lunged for him and tackled him to the floor.
“What the hell were you thinking, you crazy sonofabitch!” I yelled into his ear. He struggled against us, but Julio pinned him down. “Did you honestly think that this was the answer to anything? I’m ashamed to call you my brother!”
Lana walked in with her mom and two police officers. She pointed to Matt. “The one being held down. That’s Matt Dawson. He’s the one who locked me up.”
Julio and I backed off as the police officers pulled Matt to his feet. They arrested him and bundled him out the door, all the time Matt was yelling at me and blaming me and dad for all of his ills.
Lana slid her arm around me and reached up to kiss me on the cheek. “Your brother has some serious anger problems he needs to work out.”
I kissed her back. “Don’t I know it. I’m just glad you’re okay, Lana. I don’t know what I would have done if he had hurt you.”