Molly didn’t think she’d ever had a more unproductive nonstudent workday in her almost-twenty-year career as an educator. Interminable meetings followed by a frustrating afternoon of attempting and failing to set up a hydroponic garden put Molly in a peevish mood. At dinner that night, her father actually told her she needed to adjust her attitude, and her mother said she needed to get laid. Molly figured she needed both, and with no prospects for the latter, she stayed in a crappy mood for the rest of the weekend.

Monday morning didn’t start off much better. She’d spilled coffee in her lap in the school parking lot, and there was no way she’d make it home and back in time for the first bell. She merely sucked it up and played dumb when someone mentioned the stain on her crotch and thigh. Then there was a fire drill. She hated fire drills. She understood the necessity of them, but, boy, she hated them. The only good thing was that the rain started after they’d returned to the classroom.

After the fire drill, the students began working on their art projects. Molly milled around the classroom, murmuring encouragements to the students, who were all diligently working on their collages while soft music played in the background. The music combined with the steady sound of rain created a soothing background, and Molly could practically feel the stress melting away.

“Ms. Mayhew? Please send Lucy Thomas to the front desk to be checked out,” the school secretary’s voice crackled over the intercom.

“I will. Thank you.”

Molly watched Lucy’s face carefully. It was obvious the girl didn’t plan to be checked out. “You okay, Lucy?”

Lucy nodded. “Mm-hmm. I thought my eye appointment was next week, but I’m supposed to try to be more flexible, so I’ll roll with it,” she said matter-of-factly as she gathered up her art supplies. “Do I need to bring my book bag?”

“Let me check with Ms. Anderson.”

Molly typed a quick direct message on the school’s messaging system and confirmed that Lucy didn’t need her bag. Molly relayed the information to Lucy and then saw Lucy and her sparkly purple purse on her way.

The remainder of the school day passed quickly, thanks to some excitement with a loose hamster in the next room and the discovery of a chipmunk nest on the playground. By the time the dismissal bell rang, Molly decided she never wanted to see any sort of small rodent again. She was tidying up the room, scooting in chairs and picking up a few stray books left over from individual reading time, when she heard the unmistakable chirp of a text message notification, though it wasn’t hers. She looked around the room and noticed Lucy’s book bag still in her cubby. The little girl had not returned from her appointment. With a growing sense of dread, Molly searched Lucy’s backpack and pulled out a very basic flip phone, which she opened, and saw a record of a few missed texts. Then the phone rang.

Seeing the contact “Daddy,” Molly picked up the call, but Buddy began asking questions before she could speak.

“Lucy, where are you?” Buddy sounded frantic.

“Buddy, this is Molly. Lucy left her book bag here when she got checked out.”

“Checked out? Who the hell checked her out? Never mind, I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Molly was out the door before he even hung up. She jogged down the hall to the front desk, where she saw Maude and a visibly agitated Sheila Doyle.

“Nancy, who checked Lucy out?” Molly asked, the small flip phone still clutched in her hand.

“That feckin’ mother of hers,” Sheila snarled.

Nancy, the school secretary who doubled as an attendance clerk, visibly paled. “Her name is on the authorized list. I didn’t even think twice about it.”

“Well, you should have,” Sheila snapped. “I know, I know. I’m not being helpful, but so help me, if I even get a whiff of impropriety, that woman will wish she never set foot in Atlanta.”

“Mrs. Doyle,” Molly gently warned with a nod toward Maude, who was searching the faces of each of the adults around her.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Sorry.” The woman blew a breath out. “But I’m serious.”

“Oh, I believe you,” Molly replied with a nervous chuckle.

Buddy burst through the door, his face a mask of concerned fury. He had his phone up to his ear, but Molly could see he wasn’t hearing what he needed to hear. “Straight to voicemail. I’m sure she didn’t charge the phone. She never charges her phone. Goddammit.” He scrubbed his face with the hand that wasn’t holding the phone. “As of right now, Natalie Rabineaux has no check-out privileges.”

“Mr. Thomas, please take a deep breath, okay?” Melissa said, going into administrator mode.

Buddy glowered at her but did as she asked, taking three deep breaths before speaking again. “What did Natalie say?”

Nancy pushed the sign-out sheet toward Buddy. “She just said that Lucy had an appointment but that she’d return before school let out. I didn’t really think anything of it when she didn’t return. Things happen, and depending on the appointment, sometimes a student doesn’t return as expected. Oh, if anything’s happened to Lucy . . .” Nancy’s voice trailed off.

An idea popped into Molly’s head. “Have you tried to track her phone? You can track her phone even if the battery’s dead.”

“Well, shit, er, shoot. It’s worth a try.”

Molly walked around the desk, and Buddy followed her. Everyone, including Maude, gathered around the computer to see the search. Molly held her breath and sent a silent prayer up that the search was successful.

There was a ping, and a small orange dot appeared on the map.

“Yes! Molly, you’re a lifesaver!” Buddy grabbed Molly and planted a kiss on her mouth. “Thank you.”

He ran out of the building, leaving everyone, but especially Molly, stunned.