Chapter Ten
Sunday evening, everyone got ready for the concert. Rueben arrived at the house around six and Laurie quickly rushed to answer the door.
"Where's your mother?" He asked strutting into the residence without waiting for an invitation.
"She's upstairs." Laurie replied, closing the door behind him. "Why? Is something wrong?"
Rueben turned to her. "Is something wrong? Is something wrong? You're mother expects me to take a teenaged runaway to a concert and you're asking me if something's wrong?"
Sandy. Laurie thought. Mom must have already told him. But a part of Rueben's outburst still troubled her. Did he know something they didn't? "Teenaged runaway?"
"Yeah, you know that girl your mother took in." The flustered manager took a seat on the couch and crossed his arms across his chest.
"She's a teenaged runaway? Where did you hear that?" Laurie sat beside him.
"Well? What else could she be?"
Okay, so he didn't know that for a fact. Laurie sighed in relief.
"Rueben. You're early!" Shirley came down the stairs then, the rest of the children following behind. Laurie didn't see Sandy or Tracy and figured they were still both getting ready.
Ruben rose. "Alright? Where is she?"
Shirley took a deep breath and walked over to the manager. "Are you still upset?"
"Shirley, she's a teenaged runaway. She's probably out for fame and fortune! We let her into a Partridge Family concert for free and I swear there will be no getting rid of her!"
"Rueben, be reasonable…"
"You're way off the mark!" Keith added hastily. He joined his mother at Rueben's side. "Sandy's a perfectly nice girl! She's not out for our money. She probably wouldn't even know how to count it!"
Rueben looked confused and Laurie suppressed a smile.
"Not even be able to count it?" He directed his comment at Keith.
"Well, yeah… you see…"
Just then, Sandy and Tracy came down the stairs. "We're ready!" Tracy said bounding down the stairs and over to the rest. Sandy followed closely behind, all smiles and wearing one of the dressed Shirley had bought her.
Ruben's eyebrows raised in surprise. Laurie could almost hear his thoughts: That's the runaway?
"Oh, Rueben. You haven't yet met our houseguest." Said Laurie, smiling smugly. "Rueben Kincaid? This is Sandy."
Sandy smiled and Rueben just stared, and then he frowned. He looked back to Shirley.
Shirley just resumed the conversation with her usual cheeriness, "Well? Shall we get to that concert?"
Rueben was still frowning but he nodded. "Alright. Let's go." Laurie figured he wouldn't say no to her mother, especially while he still trying to be suspicious of Sandy. Laurie knew that wouldn't last long though. Sandy was nice. She got along with everybody.
Soon, the family was piled into the bus with Shirley at the wheel. This time Keith sat beside Sandy. "You look nice." Laurie heard him whisper to her.
Laurie frowned.
Tracy tugged at Keith's sleeve. "Let me sit with Sandy." She said.
Keith could do nothing but surrender the seat to his little sister. Laurie smirked at him and he rolled his eyes, falling into the seat in front of her.
"Everyone ready?" Shirley turned around in her seat to address the group as the doors to the bus closed. She was rewarded with a chorus of yeses and soon the bus was on the road and heading towards the concert hall.
* * *
When they got to the hall that afternoon, Shirley hastily found a seat in the audience for Sandy. Laurie followed her mother, just in case she needed help.
"Alright, Sandy." Mrs. Partridge smiled as Sandy sunk into the seat in the front row. "I want you to stay here until I come back for you, is that understood?"
Sandy nodded and Laurie felt satisfied that it was understood and Sandy wouldn't be going anywhere.
Shirley nodded and then turned to Laurie. "Okay, I'll let Rueben know where she is and head back to the dressing rooms."
Laurie nodded. "I'll meet you there in a bit."
Shirley squeezed her shoulder and then left to find Rueben. Laurie sat beside Sandy, who acted as if she were glued to the seat, but allowed her eyes to wander around the empty auditorium.
"Sandy…"
Sandy's eyes turned to her.
"Um… you do know other people are going to be coming in here soon, so don't worry about it and if you have any trouble… um…" Laurie was about to advise the girl scream for help but knew that was impossible. "Just make as much commotion as you can."
Sandy looked confused.
Laurie sighed. "Never mind." She got up. "I'll catch you later. Okay? Enjoy the concert." Laurie turned and headed for the stage. She soon found the dressing room and slipped inside. Her family was already straightening the final touches on their costumes. Laurie fell into a chair in front of one of the mirrors.
"Where's Sandy?" Keith came over to her and took the seat beside his sister.
"In the auditorium. Mom's got her sworn on oath to stay seated."
"Then why are you worried?"
"I'm not worried."
"Come on, Laurie. It's written all over your face!"
Laurie hated it when her brother was right, but she had to admit she was worried. She was worried about leaving Sandy in that big auditorium to sit with hundreds of strangers she didn't even know. As much as Laurie hated it, having had Sandy around for over a week and caused Laurie to feel somewhat like a big sister to Sandy and that came with feeling responsible for the girl. "I guess I'm just a little worried about how Sandy will react around all those strangers."
Keith shrugged, "I wouldn't worry about it, Laurie. She did just fine at school."
He had a point. But at school, Sandy had been with either she or Keith the entire time. Out in the auditorium, Sandy was alone.
Soon, Rueben came in to tell them it was time to start the show. Laurie and her family followed their manager out onto the stage and stood by their instruments. They could hear the eager buzz of the audience coming from the other side of the curtain.
Shirley looked at all her children and gave them each an encouraging smile. Laurie smiled back though she was still feeling a little uneasy. The audience sounds soon diminished as the announcer came on stage and no more then two minutes later, the curtain raised and the family started with their first song, I Think I Love You.
Through the entire concert, Laurie played her best and watched Sandy in the audience. Sandy sat squished between two men in business suits. Laurie found the men strange company to be attending their concert. Usually, their audience was composed of hundreds of screaming teenagers, kids and their parents, but these two men appeared to be alone.
However, as the concert progressed, Laurie saw something more alarming as she watched her brother. His eyes didn't seem to leave Sandy for a minute and Laurie couldn't decide if it was because he worried about her too, or if he was falling for another girl again. Laurie hoped it was the first. She couldn't imagine continuing helping Sandy with school if Keith were more then casually attracted to their student. It would just be too awkward.
After the last chord was played, the audience stood up and applauded. Laurie bowed with the rest of the group and soon the curtain was dropped. They headed back to their dressing room and changed into some street clothes they had brought along. They had found it was easier to slip away after concerts if they were dressed more casually.
Shirley soon excused herself to go fetch Sandy. Laurie would have gone along, but she was already helping Tracy get out of her dress and into a pair of blue denim overalls. Moments later, the family was dressed, but Shirley still hadn't returned. Laurie was getting worried. She looked to Keith. "Shouldn't Mom be back by now?"
Keith nodded. "I'll go see if I can find her."
Laurie nodded.
"I'll go with you, Keith." Said Danny.
Keith didn't look happy about the idea, but didn't say 'no' either. Soon he and Danny exited the dressing room, leaving Laurie alone with Tracy and Chris.
"Where's Sandy?" Tracy asked her sister.
Laurie patted her shoulder. "She'll be here soon."
The door opened and the three Partridges looked to the door. Shirley entered looking tired and forlorn. Keith and Danny followed closely behind.
"Where's Sandy?" Laurie rose from her seat.
Shirley shook her head in a not-now sort of way. Laurie didn't know what to expect, but she knew something was wrong.
"Mommy!" Tracy ran up to her mother. "Where's Sandy? It's time to go home now."
Shirley gripped her youngest shoulder and stooped down. "Sandy's not coming home with us tonight, Tracy. She… she had somewhere else she needed to go."
Laurie didn't like how that sounded and she looked to Keith for a clue. Keith wore the same solemn expression his mother had, and surprisingly, so did Danny. What was going on?
Laurie didn't get her answer until they were all piled back into the bus. Keith sat beside her and took her hand.
"What's going on?" She asked him.
"Sandy's missing." Keith said, giving her hand a comforting squeeze.
Laurie looked at him. "Missing?"
"She wasn't in the audience when Mom went to look. She searched the whole premises with Rueben and the auditorium manager and then called the police. That's what took so long."
For some reason, Laurie's mind drifted back to the two men in the business suits. Sandy was missing? Could she have been kidnapped? Had those two men, so out of place, have been the kidnappers?
"Did she run away?" Laurie asked, trying to search all possibilities first.
Keith shrugged.
"Well, she could have just wandered off?"
"I don't know Laurie. All I remember was that she was there when the curtain went down and then five minutes later, she was gone."
Laurie nodded. It was the same with her story. Sandy had been there at the concert and then now she wasn't.
Moments later, Shirley entered the bus herself and closed the door. Without her usually cheery word, she started the engine and drove for home. Laurie couldn't help but glue her eyes to the window and look at every car they passed for any sign of Sandy or her kidnappers.