Judy moved closer, leaned in to whisper the rest. “And Felix must’ve said something to Laurel Smith’s mom because she wants to talk to you.”
“Oh, great. Before we even get there? How do you know that exactly?”
Judy let out a long sigh. “Felix gave her my phone number first before I sent her yours. Mrs. Smith called me this morning before we headed over here.”
“What did you tell her?”
“Well, I went through the usual routine, sounded kind of hollow to me, but it’s what we do, what we say to the family at initial contact. But this time, I confirmed we’d be there on the ground by the end of the week.”
Skye sat up straighter. “Okay. We’ll start with Laurel Smith’s mom instead of Sara’s. Gotta start somewhere, right? What else? There’s something else you aren’t telling me.”
Judy’s shoulders relaxed. “Since I saw Sara at that campsite, I keep wondering why her of all the victims. Or why me for that matter? Then this morning, heading over here, we reached the end of our street, and I saw Sara walking on our block, standing on the corner like she was waiting for us to drive by. Reggie caught sight of her, too. There’s no doubt in my mind it was her, Skye. I know it was Sara. She looked exactly like she looked at the campsite, same clothes and tennis shoes.”
Skye scanned the backyard and the people milling about. “You know, I think it’s time I came clean. Something similar happened to me last January when we first made the move to the mainland and moved out of the farmhouse. On the last ferry ride from Bainbridge Island, I saw someone that fits Sara’s general description. This teenage girl rode the ferry with me, stared at me the entire trip. She disembarked with me. Then, a week went by before I saw her again at the end of my street, standing right down there at the corner. Those aren’t the only times she popped up. I also saw her standing in front of the building, next to the sign that listed the Artemis Foundation. I watched her from the window of my office. She stared up at me for perhaps five long minutes, just waiting.”
“All this, and you never said a word.”
“Yeah. A few times, she gazed right at me. Or maybe through me. But the day I saw her at the office, Josh had Sierra, so I grabbed my jacket and decided to run downstairs to get a better look. That day, she let me get within a few feet of her. Almost as close as the two of us are now.”
“And?”
“Each time she appeared to me, Sara mouthed the same words. Find me, she said. Clear as the day she disappeared.”
“Wow.”
“It’s the strongest vision I’ve had in years. Significant for a reason, I’m sure.”
“But still, you did nothing.”
Skye narrowed her eyes. “I went through the database…twice, putting in the girl’s height and weight and using her overall description as a guide. I found nothing that connected her to Idaho. Which probably indicates a great big hole in our system. Her missing poster was buried at the bottom of a stack. I know because I went through the pile myself, one by one, searching for any sign of a teenage girl that looked like the one I’d seen. Obviously, the old-fashioned way doesn’t work. Do you know how many I had to paw through? About five hundred. And yet, I still didn’t find the right flyer or connect the sighting to the cases back in Idaho. And the computer wasn’t much better. There’s a flaw in the way we put in the data. Last night I plugged in Sara’s name, and she popped right up. But I noticed the flaw. If we don’t have a name, it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack. Plus, her description that was added to the database was way off. It got her ethnicity wrong and her height and weight incorrect.”
“How is that possible? We take pride in getting our facts right.”
“I don’t know how it happened. But I’ve spoken to Leo about the problem. He’s already on it. In fact, he promised to develop a brand-new database that exclusively holds the names of missing and murdered Native American women, U.S. to Canada. But there’s always a hole in the system somewhere. Why? Because some women are never reported missing. We can’t get them in the system if we don’t know they ever existed.”
“That’s sad. It turns my stomach. I guess Reggie and me walking into your kitchen Friday night didn’t exactly jump-start this whole thing then,” Judy said flatly. “You’d already seen Sara multiple times.”
“But I couldn’t find out who she was. Don’t you see? Your encounter with Sara on your return trip to Seattle happened for a reason. As for me, I should know better than to ignore my first instincts. I knew it was a powerful vision when I saw her on the ferry…and…you’re right…I did nothing. I must be losing my touch.”
Ready to make her friend feel better, Judy rushed to defend the very person she’d been accusing of not lifting a finger to help. “It’s not your fault. Most of the time, you’re running on fumes. I’ve seen you try to multitask with a toddler. You can’t be everywhere at once. And you certainly had no way of knowing where that girl came from. I’m just glad you finally told me. I think it’s significant that three people have seen her and talked to her.”
“Your encounter was much stronger than mine and lasted longer, much longer. With all the campgrounds in that area, it’s not luck that you picked that place to spend the night.”
“Then what is it?”
“Fate.”
“It’s eerie that she’s been…haunting you, for lack of a better word. You moved in here almost five months ago. That’s a long time for Sara to hang around.”
“What else does the poor girl have to do? She’s been patient for ten years, and nothing’s happened. The guy she fell prey to hasn’t been identified. In fact, he’s been allowed to continue. Let’s see if we can do something about that.”
Lena came out of the house carrying a tray with a pitcher of lemonade and several glasses. An excited Zoe trailed behind her, toting another tray filled with snacks and an assortment of dips and chips.
“I hear we’re headed to Idaho,” Zoe burst out before collapsing onto the nearest bench, pretzels spilling out of the bowl. The girl, who’d just finished her freshman year at UDub, looked nothing like the street urchin Lena had taken in years earlier.
With a fresh-scrubbed look about her face, Zoe wore her dark hair pulled back into a ponytail. She had on a purple University of Washington sweat top and a pair of jean shorts.
These days, Skye thought of the girl as a little sister. “And what does Travis say about you coming with us?”
“He says it might keep me out of trouble.”
“He did not say that,” Skye fired back. “I’m surprised he isn’t putting you to work for the summer waiting tables at Country Kitchen.”
Zoe rolled her eyes at the direct hit. “Velma talked him out of it. She said I’d do more good in Idaho, helping track down this asshole murdering little girls than wasting my time waiting tables.”
Skye narrowed her eyes. “This just keeps getting better. Pretty soon, you’ll be telling me that Travis bought you a new car.”
“He’s considering it since you refuse to sell me your Subaru.”
“I didn’t refuse. I just opted to hang onto it for sentimental reasons.”
“I could use wheels,” Zoe insisted. “Even your old Subaru still runs.”
“That’s because I still take it to the shop and maintain the service records. And it’s not that old,” Skye pointed out, defending her wheels. “Besides, you live on campus now. Everything you need is within walking distance. You don’t need your own car. Walking’s good for you, good exercise.”
“Says who? I can’t take the bus out to Everett every time I want to visit Mom and Dad. Now, can I?”
“Yeah. Right. Like you want to go visit your parents.”
“I do. But I could use my own wheels for other stuff, too. My driving instructor says I’m one of his best students.”
The bickering left the Subaru behind and moved on to the other touchy subject, the upcoming trip.
As the discussion ramped up, Lena listened to the back and forth
until her head felt like it wanted to explode. Her brain couldn’t take the good-natured squabbling another minute. “Girls, could we please take it down a notch? You’re making people feel uncomfortable with your arguing.”
Skye cut her eyes from Lena back to Zoe and gave her ponytail a yank, which annoyed the younger woman. “As the older and wiser one here, sure, I’ll back off. But we’re already dragging half the staff with us to Idaho. It’s hard for me to believe Travis really wants her tagging along on a murder investigation…in another state.”
“There’s no reason not to go. I can take care of myself. Tell her, Judy.”
Judy poured two glasses of lemonade and got to her feet. “Don’t drag me into this. I’m keeping my mouth shut. Besides, Reggie looks thirsty. See you guys later.”
Zoe leaned across the picnic table. “Judy has the right idea. I’m taking Travis a well-deserved, cold beverage. We’ll see who gets him to say yes.”
Skye turned to Lena and shook her head. “You’ve spoiled that little brat.”
“Probably. But that little brat adores you, and she has a good head on her shoulders. I think Travis is trying to reward her in some way. Her freshman year, she kept up a 3.5 GPA. Not bad for a kid who used to live on the streets. She isn’t just book smart, either. She knows a thing or two about how hard life can be. Speaking of which, what the heck is going on with Winston? He seems more down than usual. I know you’re trying to find his birth mother. Any luck with that yet?”
Skye studied Winston, who’d been following Jenny around all afternoon like a schoolboy. “Not so far. Finding that answer has proved to be more difficult than I first thought. It’s like she disappeared off the face of the earth after giving birth. There’s also something very fishy about his birth records and the entire adoption.”
“How so?”
“It’s impossible to nail down his exact date of birth. The birth wasn’t registered for two years after he supposedly made it into the world.”
“Strange.”
“Yes, and he got himself all worked up about it. He let his imagination go into overdrive. It might be my fault.”
“Nonsense.”
“No, it’s true. Winston was all excited about finding her, and then had such a letdown when every lead turned into a dead end. Without a positive set of results, the months have dragged on. He’s been depressed about it ever since. I might have to go the genealogy DNA route to get anywhere.”
“That boy needs some good news for sure. Maybe I could have a talk with Jenny.”
“Why would you do that?”
“Because I wish she’d pay a little more attention to him.”
“Sorry, but you can’t force her to make time for him. She went through a horrific ordeal, an ordeal she still hasn’t been able to get past.”
“I know, I know. Bonnie Raitt sang a song about that.”
“Bonnie who?”
“Oh, stop it. I know good and well you know who Bonnie Raitt is.” Lena swiped at a band of hair that fell in her face. “What do you suppose happened after Winston was born? Something nefarious?”
“Honestly, I suspect he might’ve been sold. But I haven’t told him that yet. I won’t give up until I get to the bottom of it, though. I’m convinced there’s a story to be told…somewhere…I just have to come across the right records.”
“I hope you find him some answers and soon. Look, at him moping around after Jenny.”
“I’m trying not to.”
“Don’t take this the wrong way or anything, but I don’t miss you guys living at the farmhouse. Now that you’re living here, I don’t have to pretend anymore. You might have loved that place…but…I’m glad you guys moved back to the mainland.”
“I didn’t realize you felt that way.”
“I didn’t want you to know, but sometimes when Travis and I stayed there with Sierra, the place seemed…too remote…too isolated for my tastes, even spooky. It got to me more than I was willing to let on.”
“You never said a word.”
“Well, it’s one reason we wouldn’t let Zoe stay there by herself with Sierra. She came home once, after one of the first times she babysat and insisted she’d seen someone walking along the beach behind the house.”
“I don’t remember her mentioning that.”
“That’s because we wouldn’t let her tell you.”
“And what if it had been a threat to us?”
Lena shook her head. “The way Zoe described the incident, we figured it wasn’t a real person. Once, before Zoe had her encounter, Travis heard strange noises coming from the apple orchard. He grabbed a gun he’d brought with him and went strolling out into the night to check it out. Even with me trying to stop him.”
“Jeez. And?”
“He came back and said it was restless spirits. I didn’t argue. But I also never slept a wink that night. Which is why I was glad when you guys announced you’d found this house.”
Before Skye could respond further, Josh yelled out, “Burgers are off the grill. Time to eat!”
“We’ll finish this discussion later,” Skye promised. “I wished you’d said something.”
“You loved that property way too much for me to ruin it for you,” Lena admitted. “And it was a beautiful place. A stretch of sandy beach. Fruit orchards. Access to town. Everything you ever wanted in a home. Why should I be the one to tell you it was haunted. You had to already know it.”
“Yeah. There were times we couldn’t ignore the signs. But we had Kiya to look out for us. She never failed to alert when there was a…presence…for lack of a better word. And then there was Atka. I take it you and Travis compared notes about the situation with Josh’s parents.”
Lena grinned. “Many times. But we all agreed it was your business and we should butt out. If you and Josh wanted to live in a spooky farmhouse far be it for us to spoil it.”
“That sounds kind of ridiculous now, doesn’t it? And yet, in spite of everything you felt, you all continued to show up whenever we needed you to look after Sierra.”
“That’s what families do.” Lena threw an arm around Skye’s shoulder. “And that’s what we’ll continue to do. But I like this house much better than your old one. Are you planning to get someone to house sit while you’re away?”
“We hadn’t really talked about it. Any recommendations?”
“You know me too well. Jarod’s moving back to Seattle.”
“Your son is moving back here? The guy I haven’t laid eyes on since your wedding is coming home? What gives?”
“He recently broke up with a woman he can’t seem to shake. Dina’s a little on the crazy side.”
“Lena, you and I both know there’s no such thing as a little crazy. What happened?”
“We think she tried to poison him.”
Skye grabbed Lena’s arm and stopped walking. “What?”
“Yeah. Dina talked him into taking out a huge life insurance policy—seven hundred thousand dollars to be precise—and making her the beneficiary. That’s when he started getting sick.”
“Wow. You think it was the girlfriend?”
“Travis and I have stayed up late at night discussing this at length from all angles. I think you inherited his suspicious nature. Your dad’s the one who planted the seed that it was Dina by pointing out that exactly six months after he signed on the dotted line, he came down with a mysterious stomach ailment that he’d never had before. You see, the policy has a six-month clause that states if Jarod was to die during the first six months, she wouldn’t inherit anything. We think she waited that long before deciding it was time to collect. That was eighteen months ago. Since that time, Jarod’s not been feeling like himself, no energy, in and out of the ER on five separate occasions. Each time he was ill to the point of missing work, so sick at times that he ended up going through testing for lead poisoning. Each time it’s happened, he’d consumed a meal that Dina had made for him. Special, she called it.”
“Can’t be a c
oincidence,” Skye muttered. “Have you asked Harry to do a background on her?”
“Nope. But that’s a good idea.”
Skye’s eyes flitted around the yard until she focused on Harry, who had his head leaning into Deborah’s. “I’ll add Dina’s name to the list. He’s not leaving here today without instructions to find out more about her.”
“Thanks, but Jarod’s already convinced she tried to poison him. He broke up with her last Christmas and changed the beneficiary on the policy, but she’s continued to stalk him. At work. At home. Even at the grocery store. He tried moving on, tried dating, but Dina refused to let him. So, last month he put in his notice and quit his job. He’s leaving San Jose because as long as he stays there, he can’t seem to get her to leave him alone.”
“That’s harassment. This Dina, is she unstable?”
“I’d say so.”
“You do realize that moving probably won’t stop the harassment, right? From my experience, Dina will simply change tactics.”
“I’m sure that’s true. But at least here, he’ll be around family. He arrives next week, staying in my old house. Two months ago, I didn’t re-up the lease with the renters I have there, so it’s available.”
Skye beamed over at Lena. “Mama was hoping her boy would come home. And now he has. Under the circumstances, I don’t blame you.”
“I was. And now that he’s made the decision, I feel like there’s hope. I thought Jarod might have some extra time on his hands if you need a house sitter, that is.”
“Sure.” Skye linked her arms through Lena’s. “Don’t despair. There’s a lot of cruel, weird people in the world. Bullies are everywhere.”
“Sad to say. If what’s happening to Jarod isn’t a classic case of trusting the wrong person, I don’t know what is. Then you have only to look at the missing kids in Idaho to know it’s a bad world out there. It only takes making that one mistake to end up dead. Enough about Jarod’s problems.”
“Now who’s talking ridiculous. It’s normal to be worried about your boy. You’ll get him back into the fold, and we’ll see to it that Dina leaves him alone.”
Forgotten Bones Page 7