Child of Mine: a psychological thriller

by Chambers, V. J.

  “Are you kidding me? The killer is after you personally. He came to my house because you were there.”

  “Yeah, I know,” said Lorelei, “which is precisely why I shouldn’t come with you. What if he follows me?”

  “He won’t,” said Mia. “It’s very remote. We’ll be safe there. I can’t leave you alone with a killer stalking you. I’ve taken you under my wing ever since you showed up in this town. You’re like family to me, and I can’t handle the thought of anything happening to you. No, you and Simon need to come with us.”

  “I don’t know,” said Lorelei.

  “Well, you’re coming,” said Mia. “I’m going home to pack, and you think it over, and when I call back later, you tell me that you want to come along. Got it?”

  Lorelei laughed a little. “I don’t know, Mia.”

  “I do,” said Mia. “I know it’s for the best. Talk to you soon.” She hung up.

  Lorelei took the phone away from her ear, shaking her head. “Well, I know why Mia picked up Jordan from school.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

  “So, I’ve been thinking about it,” said Isaac. He was standing in Lorelei’s living room, looking out the window at the parking lot just outside. “I’m starting to formulate a theory.”

  “Isaac, you’re supposed to be helping me figure out how to say no to Mia about this lake house thing,” said Lorelei.

  He turned to look at her. “Huh? Oh, right, that. Just tell her thanks but no thanks.”

  She shook her head. “That’s not going to work.”

  “Do you think Rider Holmes is attractive?”

  “Not particularly, no.”

  “But he’s not ugly.”

  “What does this have to do with anything?” She glared at him. “I didn’t do something that made you jealous, did I, because trust me, I could never—”

  “No, no.” He waved that away. “Nothing like that. I’m just asking if, objectively, he’s somewhat attractive.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I’m thinking that maybe to a girl like Jordan, he might seem worldly and interesting. He’s older, and maybe it wouldn’t take much of a push from him for her to help him out with his plan. If he showed her some attention, manipulated her, she might develop feelings for him. Teenage girls do that, right? Have crushes on older men? Fantasize about relationships with them?”

  “Well, they do,” said Lorelei, “but in Jordan’s case—”

  “So, then, maybe if he turned on the charm, made her feel special, she’d do what he asked. Together, they got Ross out of jail. I don’t know why. Maybe Holmes knows Ross. Maybe he’s sheltering him or something.”

  “If it was so easy to get Ross out of the facility, why bring Jordan into it at all?” said Lorelei. “Besides, I don’t think Jordan is attracted to Holmes.”

  “Lots of pretty women are attracted to men who aren’t easy on the eyes,” said Isaac. “Not that I think Holmes is even ugly when it comes down to it.”

  “That’s not why I’m saying this.”

  “Look, maybe he thought that it was going to be tougher to get in to see Ross. Maybe he thought a young woman would be less threatening, and that’s why he started up flirting with her.”

  “I really don’t think that Jordan would be receptive to flirting.”

  “You keep harping on this, but it makes sense to me. We know that it’s her in the security video—”

  “We don’t know that. It looks sort of like her, but it could be a number of women.”

  “You said you thought the person looked familiar,” said Isaac. “That was your subconscious.”

  “I’m not saying that it’s definitely not her in the video,” said Lorelei. “Maybe it is. But she’s not having some kind of relationship with Holmes.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because she’s gay,” said Lorelei. “I mean, I assume she is, anyway. She’s, uh, transgender.”

  “What?” Isaac shook his head at her. “The amount of makeup on that girl—”

  “Listen, I didn’t tell you before because I wasn’t sure that it was relevant, and because I swore to keep the secret to myself. But the thing is, Jordan likes to dress up as a boy, and she hides that fact from her mother, who wouldn’t be the least bit receptive to the idea. I’ve seen her in male clothing. She’s fairly convincing.”

  Isaac tapped his chin. “There is something a little bit… mannish about her, isn’t there?”

  “Maybe so,” said Lorelei. “She’s convinced that she’s a boy, to the point that when Simon and I talked about it, he uses all the male pronouns to talk about her. As far as Simon is concerned, she is a boy, and she’s his best friend.” She shrugged.

  “Huh.” Isaac sat down on the couch. He was quiet for several moments.

  “I still have to figure out how to wiggle out going to this lake house,” said Lorelei. “Because what we should do is take Jordan’s picture back down to the facility and show it around, see if anyone can positively identify her.”

  “But what about Holmes?” said Isaac.

  “What about him?” she said. “We don’t know how he’s involved at all.”

  Isaac sighed heavily. He leaned back on the couch and stared up at the ceiling.

  “Maybe I could just tell Mia that you and I are starting things up again and that I want to spend time with you. I think she’d accept that as a reason that I want to stay home.”

  Isaac sat back up. “You should go.”

  “What? No, I don’t want to go. I have a feeling we’re right on the cusp of untangling this entire thing, and I can help, I know it.”

  “You need to keep your eye on Jordan,” said Isaac. “She goes off to this lake house all alone, we have no idea what she’s up to.”

  “What do you think she’s up to?”

  “I don’t know. She sounds like a very confused individual. Maybe there’s more going on psychologically than gender confusion.”

  “Oh, come on, Isaac. This is the twenty-first century. You can’t tell me that you’re going to go with some crazy idea that being transgender makes one more likely to be dangerous.”

  “I don’t know,” said Isaac. “I know that I always want to think the best of everyone. But the fact is, if a person really is a man stuck in a woman’s body, that’s got to be hard on the psyche. Who knows how much stress it causes, right? I mean, do we have to look further than Ed Gein?”

  “He wasn’t really transgender.”

  “He was making himself a woman suit, Lorelei. He wanted to be female.”

  “I don’t know if he did. I think it was all mixed up with his mother somehow, and—” She put her hands on her hips. “But all right, the fact that she may have had something to do with letting Ross out means that we can’t be too careful. I can go to the lake house and watch her.”

  “Good,” said Isaac. “And I’ll stake out Holmes’s place until I figure out what he’s hiding. As soon as I know something, I’ll give you a call. I swear.”

  “Same here,” said Lorelei. “Assuming I find anything out at all, that is.”

  CHAPTER FORTY

  The lake house was indeed on an island. In fact, it was one of two houses on the island. The two properties were separated by a strip of wooded area that essentially bisected the island. One gravel road cut through the center of the island, tall trees on either side. The island itself was small, maybe ten acres total, five for each property.

  The house was tall and majestic, a dock jutting off the back. Despite the fact that Mia never came here, there were two boats tied to the dock, both in good condition. They gleamed in the sunshine as Lorelei pulled into the driveway behind Mia.

  Dust kicked up behind Mia’s car, obscuring the tall house at the end of the driveway. When it cleared, they could see the house, sturdy and imposing against the horizon. It was brick. Two stories with a wraparound porch.

  Mia parked her car in front of the house and Lorelei pulled in next to her. They all got out and began to
grab suitcases and other luggage to take inside.

  “I had someone do some grocery shopping for us so the place would be stocked,” said Mia. “They also did some maintenance on the boats and put them out in case we want to go out on the lake.”

  Lorelei put her hand up over her eyes to shield the sun. She squinted at the horizon. There were dark clouds there. “Is it calling for rain?”

  “Oh, I don’t know, I didn’t check,” said Mia. “It seems like we’re getting pummeled lately, doesn’t it? We had that crazy storm the other night. From the looks of those clouds, it’s going to be quite the downpour.”

  Well, Lorelei thought, as least it would be easy to keep an eye on Jordan if they were all cooped up in the rain.

  They all trooped inside with their first arm loads of belongings. Inside it looked as if the house had been redone, a modern floor plan put into the old building. There was a spacious living room full of rustic-looking furniture. The wallpaper was blue pinstripe, and the plaid cushions on the couch matched the colors. Through a wide doorway was the kitchen and dining room, one big room with a breakfast bar separating the spaces. Beyond the dining room, sliding glass doors gave a view of the lake.

  “Jordan, you and I are downstairs,” said Mia. “We’ll put Simon and Lorelei upstairs.” She gestured to a set of stairs at the far left of the living room.

  Jordan put down her suitcase. “Mom, would it be okay if Simon and I were upstairs together?”

  Mia put her eyebrows together. “Absolutely not. You two can’t be alone unsupervised.”

  “There are separate bedrooms up there,” said Jordan.

  “No,” said Mia. “I can’t believe you’re even asking this.”

  “I promise nothing bad would happen, Ms. Dawson,” said Simon.

  Mia shot Lorelei a look, as if Lorelei should now scold her son.

  Lorelei fumbled. “Uh, Simon, you know that it makes Mia uncomfortable for the two of you to—”

  “Me uncomfortable?” said Mia. “Doesn’t it make you uncomfortable? You want them up there playing doctor or something horrid like that?”

  Playing doctor? “They’re sixteen years old, Mia,” said Lorelei.

  “And?” said Mia.

  “Well, I don’t think they really… I think they’re really friends, you know, not really romantic—”

  “What?” Mia folded her arms over her chest. “Did Simon say that to you? Is it because he’s expecting more from Jordan than she’s willing to give him?”

  “No,” said Lorelei.

  “Not at all,” said Simon, eyes wide. “We are romantic. Really romantic.”

  “Really?” said Mia, sounding hopeful.

  “She’s the prettiest girl I ever saw,” said Simon.

  Mia smiled. “She is, isn’t she?”

  “But I wouldn’t dream of, um, doing something dishonorable,” said Simon. “If you let us stay upstairs together, we’ll be in opposite bedrooms the minute you tell us to put the lights out.”

  Mia chewed on her bottom lip. “Oh, I don’t know.” She looked at Lorelei. “What do you think?”

  “Uh…” Lorelei didn’t know what to say. It was occurring to her that the relationship between Mia and Jordan was possibly even worse off than she knew. The way Mia was reacting to the idea of things not being romantic between her daughter and Simon made Lorelei think that Mia was probably pretty aware of the fact that her daughter was transgender.

  Why else would Mia be so pleased their relationship was romantic? Why else would she beam like that when Simon said that Jordan was pretty? Mia knew all about it, and she was trying to squash it anyway she could. And Simon was caught up in this twisted game, pretending to be a in a relationship with someone he only thought of as a friend.

  Mia’s baggage was not only badly affecting Jordan, but also Lorelei’s son. This had to stop.

  Who knows what kind of damage this had all done to Jordan? Who knows what she was capable of?

  Lorelei opened her mouth to try to say something to Mia. But then she closed it again. It wasn’t the best time, not here on this island, isolated from everyone else.

  “I suppose it’s all right,” said Mia. “After all, Simon is a good boy.” She smiled at Lorelei.

  Lorelei realized she was supposed to respond to that. “Yes, he is. A very good boy.”

  “And anyway,” said Mia, “it’ll give us some time to ourselves without the kids hanging on every moment. That might be fun.”

  “Yes,” said Lorelei. “Lots of fun.” But how was she supposed to keep an eye on Jordan while she was hanging out with Mia every moment? And how was she supposed to talk with Mia without bringing up the fact that she didn’t approve of the parenting decisions her friend was making? She didn’t want to start an argument, but this was getting ridiculous. It was quite possible that Jordan had freed a murderer.

  But Jordan was all smiles. She rushed forward and gave her mother a big hug. “Thanks, Mom. Thanks so much.”

  Mia smiled at her daughter. “Of course, sweetie. Have fun.”

  * * *

  Mia’s idea of having the house stocked with groceries was having the whole freezer full of frozen meal kits that didn’t take any prep other than being tossed in the skillet and heated up. Lorelei should have figured. She’d never really seen Mia cook in all the time they’d known each other. Mia grabbed most of her meals at the resort’s restaurant. Occasionally, she ordered pizza or made easy food like grilled cheese and pasta.

  But Lorelei didn’t mind the easy meals. She wasn’t much in the mood for cooking herself.

  The kids were upstairs together, and Lorelei stood at the stove, stirring some kind of pasta with veggies, meat, and cream sauce in it. The stove overlooked a window, and she could see the dark clouds on the horizon.

  “Did you look at the weather yet?” Lorelei said.

  “No, did you?” said Mia, who was sitting at the table drinking wine.

  “Haven’t had a chance.”

  “Well, go on and look at it now,” said Mia.

  “I can’t. I’m cooking.” Lorelei glanced over her shoulder. “Why don’t you look it up?”

  “I can do that,” said Mia, “but you don’t really have to stir those things constantly. Sit down and relax. I poured you some wine.”

  “I quit drinking,” said Lorelei.

  Mia raised her eyebrows.

  “I did,” said Lorelei.

  Mia stuck out her lower lip. “Well, I’d say I was happy for you, but honestly, Lorelei. Way to leave me high and dry here. Now, I’m drinking alone?”

  “Sorry,” said Lorelei.

  Mia folded her arms over her chest. “That’s fine and all, but it doesn’t fix anything for me.”

  Lorelei couldn’t believe Mia was being such a child about this. “Maybe someday I can have a glass of wine here and there. My alcoholism isn’t like the typical disease. I did it to sleep, to drive off dreams, not because I liked being drunk. So maybe I’ll be able to try a little now and then at some point. But I’ve only been sober a few days. I think it’s too soon to chance.”

  “Too soon, huh?” said Mia.

  Actually, maybe Lorelei could believe it of Mia. This was typical Mia behavior. The truth was, Lorelei spent most of her time doing her best to appease Mia to stop these odd little outbursts. What was actually unbelievable was that Lorelei had done it for so long without realizing how utterly strange it was.

  Mia sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m being a brat. Of course you should quit drinking. I know it’s been a problem for you. I really am happy for you. It’s only that I’m stressed out.”

  Good. Mia was acting a bit more mature now.

  “It’s okay.” Lorelei left the stove and came back over to the table, taking her phone out of her pocket. If Mia wasn’t going to check the weather, she would.

  “I don’t think he’ll find us here, though,” said Mia.

  “Who?” said Lorelei, pulling up her weather app.

  “Dylan Wayne Ross, t
hat’s who,” said Mia. “He couldn’t possibly know about my lake house.”

  “You’re worried about that?”

  “He’s dangerous,” said Mia. “He kills teenage girls, right? He could hurt Jordan.”

  “They weren’t all teenagers,” said Lorelei. “The first ones were in college. Oh, wow, the weather looks pretty bad. There’s a flood watch. Maybe we shouldn’t stay here. If the water rises, will we be safe?”

  “Yes,” said Mia. “Safer than back home, where a serial killer knows where we live.”

  “I don’t know about that. They’re saying this storm could produce tornadoes.”

  “I want as far away from that killer as possible.” Mia hugged herself. “I hope they catch him and lock him up soon.”

  Lorelei did too. She supposed the police should be looking for him. But there was more going on than just Ross, and Lorelei wasn’t sure how deep the rabbit hole went. “Look, Mia, maybe there’s something we should talk about.”

  “What?” said Mia.

  “Well, it’s about Jordan.”

  Mia leaned forward. “What?”

  “Do you know that Jordan likes to, um…” How should she put this? She foundered for several moments and then shook her head. “Never mind.” She got up and went back to the stove.

  “You can’t do that.” Mia was on her feet. “What were you going to say?”

  Lorelei stirred. “Listen, Ross didn’t escape on his own. Someone let him out. And there’s a picture of that someone on security cameras, and we think it might be—”

  “We? Who are you talking about?”

  “Isaac and me,” said Lorelei.

  “Oh, right,” said Mia. “Isaac.” She sat back down at the table.

  Lorelei turned. “What’s that about? Don’t you like Isaac?”

  “I don’t know him,” said Mia. “You suddenly are spending all your time with him. You’ve always told me that there were reasons you left your old life behind, but now that it’s coming knocking at your door, you seem ready to let it all back in. I don’t understand, Lorelei, and I feel like you’re shutting me out.”

  Lorelei didn’t say anything. Here they were back to Mia being a drama queen. Mia was worse than usual. Maybe it was stress, like Mia said, but it was starting to wear on Lorelei’s nerves.