It took almost ten minutes, but finally the crane began to withdraw the hook from the well. As it passed the old broken rim of the well, Bert could see the shreds of blue material still clinging in places to the skeleton of Janice Campbell. He called Becky as the crane began lowering its grappling hook back into the well.
Becky, Lizzie, Norah, Patty, Susan, and Summer all came out of the church and walked toward Bert. The adults gathered around him as he explained what he’d observed so far. None of them noticed Summer as she drifted toward the well operation. During the twenty or so seconds that she wasn’t being observed, the child began running across the grounds, dodging the patches of remaining snow as she ran full speed toward the operation.
“Summer!” screamed Lizzie. “Stop, stop, come back.”
Bert and Becky began simultaneously to run full out down the lawn toward the well. Lizzie was behind them. The little girl was running as fast as she could, and she was oblivious to the shouts. Bert could see that she was running straight at the gaping hole of the old well. Despite his desperation, he knew he couldn’t catch up to her in time. All he could do was try.
Summer was only a few feet from the hole and running out of control. She couldn’t stop even if she saw it in time. The gaping hole was waiting to swallow her, when a tall, thin figure leaped over the hole from the opposite side and grabbed her. He carried her the fifteen feet to the one bench which the crew didn’t have to move.
Becky and Bert, with Norah beside them, and Lizzie almost caught up, stopped about ten feet from the man and little girl. They watched and listened in growing amazement.
Summer was clinging to Robert with her arms wrapped around his neck. Both were crying and sobbing. Summer was saying through her sobs, “BB, BB, my BB, I’ve come back to you, BB.”
Robert was crying, but something was different, Bert realized. Robert was saying, “It’s you. You’ve come back to me? I’m so sorry that I didn’t say anything before now. I knew I should have but I just couldn’t do it. I will tell them now, mommy. Everything.”
Summer held him tightly around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. She continued to repeat, “BB, BB, my BB. I missed you. It’s okay, BB, it wasn’t your fault.”
Becky turned to Bert, knowing that Norah and Lizzie were also listening. “Guys, do you believe in reincarnation?”
Bert turned to watch the crane slowly drawing the grappling hook from the well. He knew that Vicki, or at least what was left of Vicki’s body, was in its grasp. Had this woman, this mother, found a way back to her son? Had Vicki’s spirit found a conduit in the tiny child in Lizzie’s womb, ready to be born within hours of her death?
As the shock of hitting the cold water brought her back to consciousness from near strangulation by the sash; as she stared up at the midday sun framed by the impossible walls of the well; as darkness replaced the light when the lid was back on the well; and as she slowly lost her grip on the wet rock wall, and on her life; had she found in this little girl, a way to come back to the son that she loved?
She appears to have found a pathway to come back into the light.
SNEAK PEEKS BACKWARD
This third book in the “Bert and Norah” series follows the first, “The Nickel Dime Murders,” and the second, “The Missing.”
“The Nickel Dime Murders” introduces the team of B & N Investigations and highlights their unusual methods. It establishes the background and basis for the following books. Initially drawn into the search for missing couples, the private investigation team gets sucked into the hunt for what appears to be a serial murderer.
In “The Missing,” the team calls upon all their unusual skills and abilities in order to find a kidnapped child of a high-level figure. The list of possible suspects is extensive and baffling and includes even some of the investigators.
From “The Nickel Dime Murders,” chapter one:
“The few remaining deciduous leaves and evergreen needles flittered in the strong breeze. It was still too early in the spring for most of the dormant vegetation to return fully to life in receding winter’s grip in rural, upstate Wisconsin. The grey overcast sky and 30-degree temperature made the wind chill and wet ground feel even colder to exposed skin. Marshland and meadow had given way to a shallow hillside, dotted with a mix of spruce, cedar, ash, and tamarack trees. One could hear the wind whispering through the trees and taste the odor of the damp pine needles, wafting in the background of the senses. This gloomy day was in stark contrast to a rescue mission, which was underway. Oblivious to the rescuers, the life they would save was destined to profoundly affect their lives and the lives of others yet unknown.”
From “The Missing,” chapter one:
“. . . Samuel Patterson, sat in stunned silence for a few seconds, then slowly pushed his chair back and stood up. He quietly said, “Well, Mr. Lynnes, I think I’m beginning to see why you’re the man I need for this job. The man I’ll trust to get my little girl back safely.” With tears struggling to roll down his cheeks, he turned abruptly and walked toward the men’s room.
Bert and Jim turned to small talk, continuing to get to know each other.
Out on the sidewalk, a middle-aged man with dark but greying hair, wearing a brown leather jacket and matching hiking boots, seemed to look in Bert’s direction through the window, then resumed his walk and motioned to his Husky. They disappeared from Bert’s view as they passed the large picture window. Bert thought to himself, “I wonder who that guy is? Never seen him around here.””
SNEAK PEEK FORWARD
The fourth book in the “Bert and Norah” series will tentatively be called “Murder in the Ozarks.”
Everyone in this small mountain town knew that Izack had killed his wife. He even joked about it and made lewd insinuations, literally taunting the local law. Yet, he walked freely among the community, causing a sense of both fear and disgust among his neighbors. The problem was that there was no proof, because there was no body.
Two years had passed since his aunt had vanished. Billy Joe couldn’t take the anger and frustration any longer. He knew his hated uncle had killed his favorite aunt, and the murderer was getting away with it. The case was going cold. He contemplated bringing the uncle to justice himself. Being a crack shot, he knew he could do it. However, he didn’t want to spend his remaining life in prison.
So, he searched online for someone who might have the resources to uncover the truth and see that an eye was given for an eye that was taken. He found a private investigation company in Cody, Wyoming, that might be unique enough. He called B & N Investigations.
* * *
[BB1]Nay
Into the Light Page 23