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Chapter One Love at First SightDenton prided itself on being an ideal family community. That was, until three teenagers disappeared without a trace. No one believed that a five-year-old boy could identify his dead brother's killer. When he did, it turned the town upside down about people's beliefs in life and death.
Denton was draped with color. October had dressed all the trees in their fall splendor. Beneath them, a warm green blanket seemed to spread forever, over the rolling hills of the surrounding Kentucky horse farms.
For Christina Hardigan, the day was even more beautiful. Not only was it her twenty-seventh birthday, but she also had just learned about her promotion to junior partner. She could hardly wait to tell her mom and dad. She knew they were planning a party for her, and she relished the chance to surprise them with her promotion.
Surly she deserved it, she felt. She had worked hard for Hickok, Watson, and Ponder for more than five years, ever since she graduated from the University of Kentucky and passed her CPA exams. The firm was also rewarding her for the number of new clients she had brought in. Christina's captivating personality made her a natural in a field where precision accounting doesn't necessarily win new business.
Jim Hardigan had helped steer his daughter to a degree in business with a major in accounting. She was always a whiz with numbers in high school, even though her grades reflected her heavy involvement with sports and other extracurricular activities. Like her mother, Pam, she was a charming and popular girl on campus, with guys and gals alike. No wonder her clients lovedher.
Christina wasn't fond of her name. But out of respect for her parents, she tolerated it as a small child. School buddies started calling her "Chris" and the nickname stuck. She liked it and her parents finally grew accustomed to using it.
Jim and Pam Hardigan had persuaded their daughter to continue to live with them. After all, they had a big house, and Chris was so busy she really didn't need a place of her own yet. Hickok, Watson, and Ponder was located in a southern suburb of Cincinnati, an easy thirty-minute drive from Denton. Chris passed the commute time playing music or book CDs and found it a good time to think about the day's activities.
Her work seldom required her to travel for any length of time, although she frequently worked into the evening. She'd call her parents if she knew she'd be home unusually late. This naturally took its toll on her love life. But she'd not met many men she really liked, and marriage was the farthest thing from her mind.
In the other direction from Denton, Ted Anderson had worked himself up in a franchise restaurant business based in the northern suburb of Louisville. He had been with them for almost ten years, completing college part time as he worked. He enjoyed his job and liked the people who ran Soup Kitchens.
Although also classed as fast food, their restaurants appealed to people who wanted something other than a hamburger, fried chicken, or pizza. For more than twelve years, you could find there just about any kind of soup and a robust salad with a variety of fixings, for a modest amount of money.
The management liked Ted. He had a winning personality, knew the business, and was very good with people--both staff and customers. He too had worked very hard and long hours. For his dedication, he had recently been promoted to Director of Marketing.
But Ted too had had little time for dating and had never been serious about any girl. At twenty-seven, he thought he still had plenty of time to get married and raise a family. Just not right now.
Ted's parents, Sue and Joe Anderson, also lived in Denton. They were very proud of what their only son had accomplished. They had a daughter, Jennie, who continued to live with them. Ted had his own apartment near Louisville. The three of them only saw Ted every few months, because he often traveled weeks at a time in his new position.
Jennie was twenty-three and had many boy friends. She was beginning to get concerned about her brother's lack of female companionship. Knowing Ted would be home for Christmas, she came up with the bright idea, "Mom, let's find Ted a girl for Christmas!"
With Christmas Day on Sunday, Ted would be coming home the Friday before and probably stay through the following Monday. Plenty of time, Jennie contemplated. Now, if I can just find the right girl!
Both the Hardigans and the Andersons were members of the Denton Methodist Church. The Hardigans had been very active in the church choir for many years, but the Andersons had just joined a few months back. The choir always celebrated Christmas with a big family get-together. This year it would be on Friday night, so families could have Saturday Christmas Eve to themselves.
"Oh, son, we're so glad to have you home!" Sue Anderson greeted Ted as he walked into the house. "You got here just in time to go to the choir Christmas party with us." With hugs and kisses all around, it looked like it would be a great family Christmas.
The party was festive with lots of camaraderie.
Toward the end of the evening, the Hardigans came over to where the Andersons were sitting, to wish them a merry Christmas. Jim remarked, "I'm glad to see you brought your family with you. I hope they're having a good time. We always enjoy this Christmas party."
"By the way, do you know our daughter, Chris? You probably haven't seen her at church--she's not in the choir. She's so busy."
Sue Anderson responded, "Thank you, Jim, it's been a great party. Do you remember our son, Ted? He now lives in Louisville and is seldom home to go to church with us. We're so glad to have him here for the holidays. I think you know our daughter, Jennie."
Chris and Ted eyed one another momentarily. Then, almost simultaneously, they exclaimed, "We were in high school together!"
Chris said to Ted, "I haven't seen you in years. What have you been doing?"
Whereupon, Ted came back, "Yes, it has been some time. I work for a fast food chain in Louisville. What have you been up to all this time?"
Jennie, on the sidelines, thought, Aha!
Saturday, Christmas Eve, was pretty much committed to being with family--Ted, because he was hardly ever home, and Chris, because she's an only child. At the Hardigan's, both Pam's and Jim's parents were there.
Pam's mom and dad lived in Denton. Her mom, Barbara, was sixty-nine and not in very good health. Secretly, Pam feared that this might be her mother's last Christmas. Her dad, Harold, was seventy, but in better health.
Jim's parents, Jean and Dave, lived in eastern Kentucky. Both in their early seventies and plagued with multiple health problems, they didn't come to Denton very often. This Christmas, however, everyone would be together.
Barbara and Harold Thompson were Chris's favorite grandparents, perhaps because she saw so much of them while she was growing up.
Her father's parents lived some distance away and, even when they were younger and in better health, they came to visit only once a year.
Grandma and Grandpa Thompson often baby-sat with Chris as she was growing up. Barbara had, more than once, told Chris, "You remind me so much of myself growing up." The two of them shared much in their times together and had a very close relationship.
Their favorite pastime was a shake or soda at Sweeney's, where all the locals gathered. "Not a better chocolate milkshake in fifty miles," Barbara used to claim.
Chris remembered that, in her younger days, Grandma Barbara was very much the extrovert and a fancy dresser. She charmed everyone with whom she came in contact. Now those days were past.
"Too many cooks in the kitchen," Pam announced. "Chris, why don't you take Mom and Jean into the family room and relax! You haven't had a chance to visit with them for a long time. Dinner will be ready in an hour or so."
Jim was already there making up for lost time with Chris's two grandfathers, pulling out photos of fishing trips they all had shared.
As they sat down, Chris asked, turning to Barbara, "Grandma, what's this I've been hearing about you? Aren't your doctors treating you right?"
"That's part of the problem," Barbara complained. "They won't stop treating me! I just wish they'd find out what's really wrong with me."
Harold interrupted, "They don't cure one thing before another pops up. There's always something more!"
By the time all the elders had a chance to lambaste the medical establishment, Pam called from the dining room, "Dinner is served. Come with a good appetite!"
After the meal, Chris excused herself and slipped away upstairs for last-minute wrapping of gifts. She had time on lunch breaks in Cincinnati to buy presents, but most were still in store bags.
Now it seemed she just might need an additional present if Ted happened to bring her one. Pam helped by letting her use a tie, gift box and all, which someone had given to husband Jim the previous Christmas but had never been used.
By mid-afternoon, Barbara excused herself, "I'm afraid I'm getting a bit weary. I hope you folks don't mind if I take a little nap."
So Jim and the two granddads migrated to his basement workshop to examine his most recent projects.
Pam and Grandma Jean moved back into the family room and sank into some very comfortable chairs with cups of coffee.
After making sure that Chris was out of earshot, Jean brought up her concern for her granddaughter, "Pam, does Chris have any boyfriends? I'm just worried that she's never going to get married!"
"That's just what my mom asked me this morning!" commented Pam.
That evening, Ted called Chris. "Would you like to go out for a while? Maybe we could run by Sweeney's. Catch up on old times."
Chris informed her mom and added, "But I hate to run out on Grandma and Grandpa Hardigan. I don't see them often. Do you think..."
Pam assured her, "They'll be here for almost a week. I'm sure they'd want you to go."
"Sure," Chris told Ted, "that would be nice. Pick me up about eight o'clock?"
As happened, it turned out to be a long evening. Chris got home after midnight, tiptoed quietly past the glowing holiday parlor and slipped into bed.
Ted ran into Jennie on his way into the house. It appeared that she had been waiting up for him.
"So how did it go tonight, brother dear?" she chirped.
"Why? What do you mean?" Ted intoned.
"Nothing. Just wondering," Jennie replied.
Since Christmas fell on a Sunday, the Denton Methodist Church had decided to have a joyous Christmas morning service rather than the traditional Christmas eve service.
Jim and Pam Hardigan and Joe and Sue Anderson sang in the choir. Chris, Ted and Jennie dutifully attended to hear their parents sing. Barbara was not feeling well, but the other three grandparents came too.
Pastor Garrison Stack delivered a moving Christmas sermon to a packed house. As usual, Christmas was one of those times when most families try to show up in church.
He focused on the importance of family unity, emphasizing that all family members should try to be together at Christmas. "This is a celebration of love, and we should love one another just as God loves us." He reminded everyone how fragile and limited life can be, and he urged each person to use this occasion to renew family ties. "Just think, what if this were your last Christmas together?"
After the service, Ted came over to where the Hardigan family was gathered. After Pam and Jim introduced Ted to their parents, he asked Chris if she'd like to join him for a ride around the countryside. Several inches of snow had fallen overnight and the trees and grounds were glistening.
Concerned about what her grandparents might think, she glanced at her mother and received an almost imperceptible "go" signal.
Again, Jennie took note of the happening.
Later, alone with her parents, she observed, "Seems as if Ted and Chris took a liking to one another." Her parents just smiled.
Back at the Hardigan home, Pam reassured her mom, "I think maybe your worries about Chris are unnecessary. She met one of her old high school classmates at the church choir party Friday night. He called her last night for a date, and this afternoon they are out together enjoying the beautiful countryside!"
When Barbara clapped her hands, Pam continued, "His name is Ted Anderson. I think you know his parents, Joe and Sue."
"Yes," Barbara reflected, "I remember him growing up. He always seemed like a nice young man. Well, hurrah for Chris!"
