Free Always Dakota by Debbie Macomber Page A

Bernard’s wake.” Bob had talked him into trying his karaoke machine. Larry had no singing voice whatsoever, but bolstered by Merrily, he’d fallen victim. He was fairly confident they wouldn’t invite him to sing again.
    “They have a little boy, don’t they?” Larry had noticed the child at the Clemens house but hadn’t seen him since.
    “His name’s Axel.”
    “Unusual name.”
    Joshua nodded and continued to inspect the engine.
    “Haven’t seen him around much,” Larry said.
    “Seems to me Merrily said he’s got the chicken pox,” Joshua muttered.
    “Poor little boy.”
    “I’ve never seen a couple crazier about a kid,” Joshua said absentmindedly. He rubbed the side of his face, smearing a smudge of oil along his jaw.
    “Bob seems to be a good father,” Larry commented.
    “He is,” Joshua said. “Especially for being so new to it.”
    “Axel isn’t his child?” Larry suspected as much, but then, he suspected a lot more.
    “No. The boy belongs to Merrily,” he said, and reached inside the engine with a long-handled wrench. “No one realized she had a kid until she showed up with him one day.”
    Larry’s suspicions mounted. When he’d moved into the house, there’d been a pile of junk mail stacked in the post office box, waiting for him once he’d submitted his change-of-address information. Never one to toss a piece of paper without first looking at it, he’d come across some flyers, notifications of several missing and abducted children. The name Axel, being unusual, had stuck in his mind. Within a week he’d met Bob and Merrily and their boy…Axel.
    “Come to think of it, I never saw Merrily pregnant, either,” Joshua said. He twisted the wrench again and glanced up. “It used to be that Merrily would drift in and out of town. She’d stay with Buffalo Bob a few weeks, then disappear. He took her leaving real hard and never seemed to know when she’d be coming back.”
    “You never saw her pregnant?” Larry repeated.
    Joshua paused. “Funny, I never thought about it before, but no.”
    “She didn’t bring the boy with her on earlier visits?”
    Joshua shook his head. “No, not once.”
    “You’re sure the boy is hers?”
    His friend looked uncertain. “It’s clear he belongs to her,” he finally said. He held Larry’s eyes for an uncomfortably long moment. “If you’ve got something to say, then say it.”
    Larry wasn’t sure this was the time or place to voice his suspicions. For many, he was a newcomer to the community; he had no intention of wading into an explosive situation without being sure of himself.
    “Did Sarah hear from Calla?” he asked instead, purposely changing the subject.
    “She did.” Regret flashed across Joshua’s face. “Apparently Calla’s not coming.”
    Larry had been afraid of that. “Is Sarah upset?”
    “Real upset. Frankly, I don’t understand Calla. Makes me wonder what lies that no-good father of hers is feeding her.”
    “You might never know.”
    Joshua scratched his head, leaving more grease in his hair. “I told you how she ran away from his place, too, didn’t I?”
    Larry nodded.
    “Sarah and Dennis tried to talk sense into her, but she wouldn’t listen. Calla had a choice—either move back here to Buffalo Valley or return to her father. No one understood why she’d choose to live with Willie. I tell you, it’s got us all worried sick. No one would object if you mentioned it the next time you’re talking to God.”
    “I’ll be glad to,” Larry offered. And while he was praying for Calla and her mother, he intended to ask God about the situation with Axel and his parents, too.
     
    In the past few days, Sheryl had phoned no fewer than seven times. She was hounding Matt about Margaret, quizzing him about the relationship and what he was doing to promote it. Heaven help him if she ever found out about those kisses! At first, he’d assumed Sheryl’s talk about how he should marry Margaret for her ranch was