The River Girls

by Melinda Woodhall

  Eden nodded and ushered Duke into the small room. An empty desk stood in a corner, and several office chairs were positioned around the stark room. The bare walls were a dingy white, matching the scuffed white tiles on the floor.

  “I guess I shouldn’t be shocked that she’s dead.” Denise sat at the desk and sighed, the lines in her face cruelly exposed by the overhead florescent light. “I’m assuming it was an overdose of some kind? These young girls treat their bodies like garbage nowadays. It’s a real shame.”

  Eden recoiled at the lack of sympathy in the woman’s tone. While the older woman was definitely taken aback by the news of Jessica’s death, she didn’t seem to find it particularly sad.

  “She seemed like a nice kid,” Trevor said, his face somber.

  “She was a nice kid,” Leo replied. “And she didn’t die of an overdose. She was murdered.”

  Trevor gaped at Leo, his eyes wide with disbelief. “You aren’t serious? She was…killed?”

  “I’m sure you’ve heard about the girl they found,” Eden said. “She was strangled and dumped in the river. It’s been all over the news.”

  “That was…Jessica?” Trevor whispered. “Oh my god! Do the police know who did it? Do they know who killed her?”

  “I’m sure they’re working on it,” Leo said, “but we’re trying to find out what we can for Jessica’s mother, who is a client of mine. She reported Jessica missing before her body was found. We think she was missing a few weeks before she was killed.”

  “Well, she hasn’t been here for weeks,” Trevor said, running a slim hand through his thick blonde hair. “I don’t know where she went once Mom…I mean, um, Denise, told her she couldn’t come back or we’d call the police.”

  “She was a runaway, and a minor. I have liability insurance to consider.” Denise stood up and squared her shoulders. “I wish we could help, but there’s nothing we can do.”

  “Can we at least speak to the resident that knew her? The girl she stayed with?” Eden pleaded. “Please…another girl may also be in danger. A girl named Star. Young and blonde. Do you know her? Could she be a resident here?”

  Eden saw Trevor and Denise exchange a long look.

  “No one named Star has ever stayed here as far as I remember. And, as I already said, our residents are guaranteed privacy. However, in this case, I couldn’t let you speak to the resident even if I was willing to break my client’s trust, since the girl no longer lives here.”

  Denise paused as if thinking. “I guess she completed her stay around the same time as Jessica stopping hanging around.”

  “Fine, then just give us her contact details and we’ll be on our way,” Leo said, crossing his arms across his wide chest.

  “You know I can’t do that, Mr. Steele. If I give you the name of my minor resident her parents would likely sue me for everything I’m worth.” Denise didn’t seem bothered by the prospect.

  “I wish I could help,” Trevor said, his eyes worried. “I knew Jessica had a drug habit, I mean, that’s one of the reasons we didn’t want her hanging around here, but I never thought she was in danger of anything other than an overdose. I can’t believe she was killed. And strangled? It doesn’t make sense.”

  The young man looked genuinely puzzled, and Eden felt her hopes drain away. It was unlikely he knew anything that could help them.

  Leo seemed to come to the same conclusion, and he grasped Eden by the elbow and guided her toward the door. The shock of his warm skin on hers made her inhale sharply, but Leo didn’t seem to notice her discomfiture.

  “Someone just killed a girl who stayed in your facility, and other young girls in similar circumstances could be in danger. I hope you’ll have enough sense to warn your residents accordingly.”

  Leo opened the door and let Eden and Duke pass through. Trevor followed them out.

  The rain had stopped, and a weak sun was shining through the remaining clouds as Eden walked toward Leo’s car.

  “Cool car,” Trevor said, looking at the rain-splattered BMW with a half-hearted smile. “My mother was going to get a beamer, but then she decided on an Audi.”

  “Taking in recovering addicts must pay well,” Leo said, his eyes on Trevor’s face. “You like working for your mother? It can’t be easy.”

  “Yeah, she can be a bit hard to take, but I like it here,” Trevor said, looking over his shoulder. In the sun Eden could see he was younger than she had thought. Maybe early twenties. A thought popped into her mind.

  “Trevor, did you know Tiffany Clarke?”

  Trevor considered the question. “The name sounds familiar somehow. Who is she?”

  “She’s a girl that went missing a few years ago. Her body was found in the same river as Jessica’s. Just wondering if there could be a connection. For example, could she ever have stayed here?”

  “Oh yeah, now I remember. There were all those posters everywhere with her name and picture. That must be why I recognized the name. But no, I never knew her. She definitely didn’t stay here.”

  “Okay, just thought I’d ask,” Eden said, handing Trevor her card. “If you think of anything that could help us, please contact me.”

  “Sure, will do,” Trevor said, and turned on his heel to walk back inside.

  Eden watched him walk back to the office and noticed Denise Bane staring out of the window. She looked back at Eden with hard eyes, before the curtain dropped back into place.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Leo stood next to his car but didn’t open the door. He surveyed the surrounding buildings. He knew someone in the neighborhood must have seen Jessica coming and going. She didn’t have a car, so it’s likely she was on foot.

  Someone must have noticed a pretty, young girl hanging around.

  “We need to talk to some of the neighbors,” Leo said as Eden approached.

  “Let’s take Duke for a little walk. He’ll get a chance to stretch his legs while we scope out the area. I might even knock on a few doors and show Jessica’s photo.”

  Eden looked over her shoulder. “Do you think Ms. Bane will have a problem with us leaving the car here?”

  “If she does, then it’s her problem, not ours.” Leo was already walking down the sidewalk toward the corner. “Let her call the cops if she has an issue.”

  Eden shrugged and dug in her purse for Duke’s leash. She clipped it onto his collar and they set out after Leo.

  On foot the neighborhood appeared more neglected than Leo had noticed as they’d arrived. Of course, he’d been in a rush, and hadn’t paid much attention, but now that he was walking down the block, he could see that the area was in serious decline. Rundown apartment blocks shared the road with several small shops that had gone out of business, the dirty windows displaying only empty shelves. Parking lots were cluttered with overflowing trashcans and stacks of empty boxes and crates.

  As they approached the corner, Leo saw a small park set back from the road. A woman was walking out of the park pushing a toddler in a stroller, and a few young men were leaning on a bicycle rack on the sidewalk outside the park entrance.

  “Let’s take Duke over there,” he said, pointing to the Baymont Neighborhood Park sign. “He can run around a bit.”

  Leo crossed the street and saw that the park consisted of a fenced-in square of weedy grass outfitted with a rusty metal jungle gym and a few concrete benches. He waited for Eden and Duke to pass through the gate before turning to face the three young men on the sidewalk.

  Two of the men seemed to be having a heated conversation, while a third was pacing while talking on his cell phone. They all wore jeans and t-shirts. Leo looked down at his suit and tie with a grimace, wishing he followed the casual Friday tradition most companies had adopted.

  So much for fitting in with the local vibe.

  “Hey guys, you live around here?” Leo asked, already reaching into his suit pocket and pulling out Jessica’s photo. “I’m hoping you can look at a picture for me.”

  The two men s
topped in mid-conversation and stared over at Leo with suspicious eyes. They both had their dark hair gelled up into tousled quiffs, although one was tall and skinny while the other was short and stocky.

  “Have you seen this girl around here?” Leo asked.

  “You a cop?” the short man said, ignoring the picture, keeping his eyes on Leo’s face.

  “No, I’m a lawyer, and this girl is missing. Her mother is my client.” Leo waited for the man to react. When he didn’t move, Leo said, “You know how mother’s worry.”

  “Stop being such a dick,” the taller man said, jabbing a long finger into the shorter man’s arm. He turned to Leo. “Let us see the picture.”

  After a quick look both men shook their heads.

  “Never seen that girl around here,” the tall man said with confidence.

  The shorter man agreed. “No, never seen her. I’d remember her if I had. She in trouble?”

  “Yes, you could say that,” Leo said, trying to reign in his disappointment as the men walked away.

  “Who are you looking for?”

  Leo heard a deep voice from behind him and turned to see that the third man had ended his phone call. He was a tall, muscular black man with close-cropped hair and a strong jaw.

  “I’m looking for information about a girl named Jessica,” Leo said, holding out the picture.

  “Jess? Yeah, I know a girl named Jess,” the man said, taking the picture from Leo and studying it. “That’s her all right, but she didn’t look like that when I saw her.”

  Leo’s heart beat faster. “What did she look like…um, sorry, what’s your name?”

  “I’m Charles. Charles Wyatt.” He held out a big hand and Leo shook it, noting the man’s strong grip.

  “I’m Leo Steele. I’m a lawyer for Jessica’s mother.” He stopped himself from saying more. He wanted to hear what Charles knew before telling him that the girl was dead. Murder tended to scare people away.

  “So, you said Jessica looked different?”

  “She had short, blondish hair. Kind of punk, I guess. I met her a few times…right there,” Charles said, nodding toward the bench inside the park gate where Eden was sitting as she watched Duke explore. “She said she knew a girl staying at Clear Horizons. It’s just around the corner.”

  “We’ve just come from there, but they couldn’t tell us anything. Confidentiality and all that.” Leo motioned over to Eden to join them.

  Eden stood and walked toward him, eyebrows raised.

  “Eden, this is Charles Wyatt,” Leo said. “He met Jessica here a few times…and he’s familiar with Clear Horizons.”

  “Yeah, I live a few houses down from there. I went to school with Trevor. His mother owns the place.”

  “When did you last see Jessica?” Eden asked, her eyes hopeful.

  “It’s probably been a few weeks. She was pretty excited. Said she’d found a boyfriend and had a new place to stay.” Charles frowned and shook his head.

  “Trevor’s witch of a mother had been giving her a hard time about trying to stay there, so she’d been roughing it. I was glad for her to get off the street.”

  “Did she tell you the name of her new boyfriend?” Leo asked, his pulse racing as he imagined tracking down whatever miscreant Charles named.

  “No, she didn’t say. Acted like it was a secret or something.” Charles looked down and Leo had the feeling he was holding something back.

  “Can you tell us anything else?” Leo asked, his voice pleading. “Anything you can tell us would be helpful.”

  “Well, I don’t like to talk bad about people, but…well, I’m pretty sure Jess was high on something the last time I saw her. She was acting…different.”

  “So, you think that was the first time you saw her under the influence of drugs?” Leo asked. “She always seemed straight to you before that?”

  “Yeah, she seemed like a really smart girl. We talked a few times, mainly just killing time, but she didn’t seem like a druggie. Not until that last night,” Charles said, his brow furrowed with the memory.

  “Something was different that night. I haven’t seen her since then. To be honest, I didn’t expect to, based on what she’d said about getting a new place with her boyfriend.”

  “Have you met anyone named Star?” Eden asked. “She’s a friend of Jessica’s.”

  Charles looked as if he were thinking. “No, that name doesn’t ring a bell. But there’s always a few girls from Clear Horizons hanging around the park. Most of them are too young to drive, or have lost their license, so they get bored.”

  Eden looked crestfallen, and Leo sighed, putting his hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay, we’re just getting started. We’ll find her.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure Jess is okay,” Charles said. “She’ll turn up.”

  Leo felt guilt stir in his stomach. He may as well come clean. “Charles, I’m sorry, I should have told you before…but it’s not really my place to say. Not until the police make it public.”

  “What are you talking about? What should you have told me?” Charles asked, his eyes worried.

  Eden stepped forward and said in a quiet voice, “Jessica is dead, Charles. She was the girl they found strangled in the Willow River.”

  Charles’ face registered shock and then anger. “What game are you playing? Why did you let me say all that stuff, believing she was…was still alive?”

  “We’re just trying to find out what might have happened to Jessica. As well as find her friend, Star, who is still missing,” Eden said, stepping closer to Leo, her voice soft but firm. “Leo and I are just trying to do the right thing.”

  Leo looked over at Eden, noticing how green her eyes were in the dappled sunlight. He felt a warm rush of emotion. He hadn’t had many beautiful women jumping to his defense lately.

  Too bad she’ll hate me again when she comes to her senses.

  Charles clenched his jaw and shook his head. “I can’t believe it. Why would someone kill her? She was just a messed-up kid.”

  “Charles, do you have any idea who could have done this to her?” Leo asked, worried by the look of anger growing on the young man’s face.

  “No, but I know whose fault it is that she’s dead. That witch that runs Clear Horizons could have saved her. Could at least have given her a place to stay. She’s an evil woman. She always has been from what I’ve heard. And her son isn’t much better.” Charles clutched his head and released a shout of frustration.

  Both Eden and Leo stepped back, and Duke ran over to Eden, the fur on his back standing on end.

  “Take it easy, Charles,” Leo said, stepping in front of Eden, shielding her. “There’s nothing to be gained by acting out.”

  “I tried to warn Jessica…and the other girls. Tried to tell them something bad could happen,” Charles said, ignoring Leo’s plea.

  “What other girls?” Leo asked, confused. “Who did you warn?”

  “Does it matter?” Charles cried. “Jessica is dead, and Brandi is gone. It’s too late now.”

  “Who is Brandi?” Eden asked, her eyes wide with fear, her voice shaky. “What do you mean by gone? Do you know another girl that’s disappeared?”

  “Charles, you need to go to the police station and make a report,” Leo said, knowing they couldn’t handle this on their own any longer. “You’ve got to tell them what you know. So they can try to help.”

  But Charles wasn’t listening. He was already jogging down the street, his hands fisted at his sides. Leo felt a tug on his arm, and turned to see Eden gasping for breath, one hand on his sleeve, the other hand clutching her throat. Leo looked over his shoulder just in time to see Charles disappear around the corner.

  Chapter Twenty

  Eden sat in Leo’s car, still shaky in the aftermath of her panic attack. She looked over at Leo, her cheeks red with embarrassment.

  He probably thinks I’m crazy. Just another hysterical woman.

  But she had to admit he didn’t look exasperated; he looked worri
ed. Once he realized she was having a panic attack, he’d practically carried her to the car and then talked her through breathing exercises until her breathing had slowed, and her heartbeat returned to normal. And when he had insisted that they put a halt to their inquiries for the time being, Eden hadn’t argued.

  She wanted to go home, hug the kids, and never leave her house again. The temptation to open her purse and pull out her pill bottle was strong, but the thought of Leo watching her give in to her weakness stopped her.

  Her phone buzzed in her pocket, and she quickly pulled it out and looked at the display. It wasn’t a number she recognized. Not Sage or one of the kids. Not Reggie or Nathan. She almost decided to ignore the call, but then she thought perhaps it was someone she’d given her card to. Someone who might have information on Star.

  “Hello?” she said, her voice wary, half expecting a telemarketer to start pitching her the best deal ever.

  “Ms. Winthrop? Is this Ms. Eden Winthrop?” The deep male voice had the clip of authority. “This is Detective Reinhardt, with the Willow Bay Police Department.

  “Yes,” Eden stammered, scared now that something bad had happened to Hope or Devon. “I’m Eden Winthrop.”

  “I’m calling because Detective Nessa Ainsley asked me to assist her with a missing person investigation that you submitted. I’ve gone through the report and have some questions. Do you have a few minutes now?”

  “Yes, of course.” Eden tapped the mute icon and turned to Leo. “It’s a policeman calling about Star.”

  Leo nodded and motioned to her to continue.

  “Ms. Winthrop, I see on the report that you feel you’ve met the missing juvenile female at your foundation on a previous occasion. Says here you may be able to uncover the girl’s legal name and last known address?” The detective paused, waiting for Eden’s response.

  Something about the man’s tone, and the formality of his words, rankled Eden. She didn’t hear even a shred of compassion or emotion in his voice.

  Star is just another case to this guy. Just another missing drug-addict.