“Was she here?”
“At the clinic? No.” I don’t have time to come up with a feasible lie, so I go with a partial truth. Partial truths can be verified but still won’t give any real information. “Right before the snows started, I saw someone who looks like her at Broken Toy’s. She was looking for a ride.”
“Did you give her one?”
“No.” I scowl at him. “I don’t have time for that crap. I bought her some donuts and left.”
“Donuts?”
“She was hungry.” I shrug, hoping to appear nonchalant. “There were a couple of tourists in the shop. Maybe they picked her up. Kirk would know.”
“Kirk?”
“He runs The Broken Toy’s Gas and Goods just northeast of town.”
“I’ll check that out, Mister…?”
“Bishop.”
“Mr. Bishop, thank you.”
The man takes his leaflet and heads toward the door just as Amanda comes back with a prescription and instructions.
“Definitely keep her hydrated,” she says. She holds up another package. “This might help as well. It says it’s for kids, but it’s good for adults, too.”
She hands me the medication along with six bottles of electrolyte fluids.
“Thanks for your help.” I glance around nervously, but the man has left.
“Do you want to take one of the snowmobiles back?” she asks.
“Nah, I’ll be all right. If I get stuck, I’ll manage.”
“All right,” Amanda says. She gives me a big smile. “I’ll tell Margot you said hi.”
“I’d rather you didn’t.” Amanda opens her mouth to say something, but I stop her. “Seriously, let’s just keep this between us, all right? I know Margot means well, but I don’t need her checking up on me.”
“If you say so,” Amanda mutters, and I scowl at her. “Fine. I won’t say anything.”
“Thanks. Do I owe you anything for this?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“I’ll bring you some gas for the snowmobiles when I can.”
“Sounds good.”
Outside, I see the same guy again. He’s leaning up against a large SUV with big tires, talking to the man in the driver’s seat. I take a roundabout way to my Jeep to get a little closer to them.
“She’s been here,” he says. “She was spotted north of town.”
“You think she’s still around?” the driver asks.
“She couldn’t have gotten much farther in the winter,” the man says. “She has to be somewhere in the area.”
“She could have gotten a ride to Yellowknife. If she did, we’ll have trouble locating her.”
“I don’t think she did,” the man says. “I have a feeling she’s close by. This is a close-knit community with lots of good Samaritans around here. Someone would have taken her in for the winter. You know how well Iris can manipulate people.”