by Debra Webb
Sarah nodded, but her real attention was on Melody Harvey who sat with her parents. Seemed strange that she didn’t sit with the other kids her age as her brother did. Maybe she, too, was considered a nerd like Tamara. Invisible, that’s what Melody had said.
It appeared every police officer on the Youngstown force was in attendance. Except maybe the one guarding the crime scene. The Popes sat together near the back on the other side of the sanctuary.
As if her thought had summoned him, Jerald gave Sarah one of those vague nods of acknowledgment. Sarah returned the gesture. His wife looked regal. She was the only one in the room wearing a hat and dark glasses.
Matilda had been right. Pope was a little freaky. But that didn’t make him a killer any more than his generous donations to the victims’ families did. Matilda was just a kid. Admittedly, one with an uncanny sense of those around her, but a kid nonetheless. Sarah had to stop allowing her empathy for the kid to filter her assessments.
Sarah shifted her attention from the standing-room-only crowd to the front where a long table had been arranged in honor of Alicia. Her senior portrait served as the centerpiece. More photos, trophies, crowns, and the memorabilia that represented her too short life spanned the width of the altar.
When the minister stepped up to the podium, the murmur of soft voices and the whisper of fabric in the crowd settling came to an abrupt stop.
The service began with the minister’s thoughts on the deceased. Close friends and family approached the altar, one by one, and spoke about the young woman who would be so sorely missed. Rachel Appleton sat stoically through every word of every recitation.
Sarah watched her, trying to remember how she’d felt at her father’s memorial service...or even at her mother’s. She’d felt numb, uncaring. In a way, relieved.
But not Rachel Appleton. She sat there wearing a brave face and dying inside.
With the discovery of her daughter’s body, Rachel Appleton’s life had ended. It didn’t matter that she had two sons. Her daughter had been her life.
Sarah ached for her, sensed with every fiber of her being that this tragedy could have been prevented...somehow. This woman, a mother who loved so much, gave so much, had lost a child. Sarah had not known a mother like that...maybe she ached in part for what she’d never had...for what Rachel Appleton would miss.
When the service ended, a few stayed behind to talk, the rest filtered out. There would be refreshments and grief counseling available at the high school auditorium.
It wasn’t until Sarah stood outside again that she noticed Lex August. He must have been with the crowd at the back of the sanctuary.
She could have cared less if she’d ever seen him again in this lifetime, except she wanted an update. She didn’t care where it came from as long as it was accurate.
“How did your interviews go?” She walked right into his personal space, toe-to-toe.
There had been a time she would have admired how he looked in a suit, as she had Conner. But not anymore. Because she knew all too well that behind that handsome face and well-maintained physique beat the meager heart of a complete prick.
He adopted that fake smile that seemed to work on everyone else. “Well enough for preliminary groundwork.”
Code for: I didn’t get shit.
“No new evidence?” She shouldn’t get any glee from the idea that he’d already been here over twenty-four hours and hadn’t learned anything new—that the killer didn’t give him.
But she did.
“Not yet.” He adjusted the knot of his tie. “We’re still waiting for the final test results and the full-on autopsy report.”
“No briefing today?”
He glanced right then leveled his gaze on hers. “Not today.”
Lie.
“Really?” She frowned. “At a dead end already?”
Those blue eyes she’d once thought were so gorgeous tapered. “When we have something, you’ll get it, Sarah. Don’t be a bitch.”
Such a turnabout from yesterday. Split personality, maybe? What had she ever seen in him?
She smiled, enjoying every damned minute of this. “Me? A bitch? Never.”
Walking away felt good.
Damned good.
Conner glanced up as he closed the side door of the minivan and smiled at her. Perfect white teeth. Truly beautiful eyes...and so damned handsome.
“Sarah!”
Her attention turning to the sound of her name, Sarah spotted Polly running toward her and waited.
“Hurry up, Pol,” Conner said. “Mom’s waiting.”
Polly practically bowled Sarah over, cupped her hand over her ear and whispered, “Look over by the picnic tables.”
Sarah’s gaze went instantly to the row of white picnic tables under the trees beyond the parking lot.
Matilda Calder lingered there.
“She didn’t come inside,” Polly said secretively. “She thinks nobody likes her.” Polly shrugged. “She is kind of weird but I like her. I guess I’m her only friend.”
“Thanks, Polly.” Sarah patted the hand clamped on her arm. “You’d better go. Your mom’s waiting.”
“Polly!” her mother called on cue.
Conner’s sister rushed to the minivan, and Sarah headed for the picnic tables.
She worried that Matilda would make a run for it but she didn’t. She waited, wearing the usual ragged getup, with a cigarette dangling from one hand. Sarah really should buy the girl some clothes. Give her some money for clothes and food, at least. After visiting the house on West Street, Sarah was pretty sure Matilda wasn’t getting nearly enough of either. A stop at an ATM would handle that.
“Hey.” Sarah’s lips stretched wide without prompting.
“You wear it all the time?” Matilda looked at the leather necklace before meeting Sarah’s gaze.
Sarah touched the medallion where it rested between her breasts. It fell just beneath the scooped neck of her one black dress. “I do.”
“Good.” Matilda tossed her cigarette to the ground, uncaring that anyone who saw her would consider the move sacrilegious.
“I went to your house yesterday.” Sarah noted again the dark circles under the girl’s eyes. Did she have trouble sleeping, too? Judging by the place she lived, probably.
“I know.”
“Your mom told you?”
She shook her head, stared past Sarah. “I saw you there.”
Sarah glanced back to see what she was looking at. Conner waited near Sarah’s car. “Why did you hide from me?” Matilda cut her eyes toward Conner again. “He was with you.”
Sarah folded her arms. “Oh, yeah?”
Matilda nodded.
“You don’t like him?”
She shrugged. “His family doesn’t like me.”
“They don’t know you,” Sarah argued. “There’s a difference.”
“I just came to make sure you were wearing the necklace.” Matilda took a step back. “I gotta go.”
“Matilda, wait. I need to ask you a question.” Sarah held very still no matter that she wanted to advance that extra step yawning between them.
“I can’t answer it.”
Sarah inclined her head. “You don’t know the question yet.”
“Ask.”
“When you say the devil has always been here and the cops can’t catch him...are you talking about the devil or the person who killed Valerie and Alicia?” She purposely didn’t mention Pope’s name.
Matilda didn’t answer, didn’t move for a moment, then she said, “They’re the same, aren’t they.”
Sarah’s heart thudded hard. “Are they?”
Matilda didn’t answer, just stared at Sarah.
“Do you know him?” Sarah’s pulse jumped.
“Everyone knows him.” Matilda backed up another step. “They just don’t realize it yet. Like you.”
“Then help me. You said he was rich.”
She glanced past Sarah again.
“Just
give me a name,” Sarah urged. “If you think you know—”
“He’s watching me.” She suddenly advanced those two steps she’d retreated. She went nose-to-nose with Sarah. “He’s watching you, too.”
“You’re saying it’s Pope?”
Matilda shook her head, looked confused. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m confusing all the talk and what I feel.” She banged her hand against her chest. “But I can feel the evil the same as I can see you.” She searched Sarah’s eyes. “You feel it, don’t you?”
“Yes.” Sarah recognized the feeling for what it was. She’d sensed something here...someone here. “I feel it.”
“Then find him. I keep dreaming about the ocean. I think it fuels him...makes him feel powerful. That’s why he can’t leave...he needs to be here.” She looked past Sarah again, her eyes went wide. “I have to go—”
Sarah looked back at the parking lot’s dispersing crowd. “I want to—” She turned back to Matilda.
She was gone.
Sarah’s heart hammered. Matilda was scared as hell. She was definitely confused. But her instincts were humming.
Just as Sarah’s were.
But she needed more than the ramblings, however heartfelt, of a teenager before casting suspicion on a man like Pope.
“You want to go have coffee?”
At the sound of Conner’s voice, Sarah wheeled in that direction.
Irrationally, her frustration heightened. “I’m not in the mood for crowds.”
“Who said anything about a crowd?” He searched her eyes, his saying all that needed to be said.
Sarah’s attention shifted to the last of the people drifting aimlessly down the church steps.
The Popes climbed into their regal Infiniti. Jerri Lynn hugged Tamara, then dashed over to join her family.
Rachel Appleton, her husband, and two sons drifted into Sarah’s line of sight.
Rachel turned and for one fleeting instant she looked directly at Sarah. That ache Sarah couldn’t seem to banish swelled. She watched the family walk to the waiting car and settle in. The car drove away.
Sarah blinked, then blinked again, severing the painful bond. “Yes,” she said to Conner. Determination and undeniable desperation bursting inside her. “We’ll go to your place. We’ll have coffee and then we’ll have sex.”
When she would have turned to her car, he snagged her elbow, drew her close. “We’ll go to my place. Have coffee...” He put his face close to hers. “And we’ll make love.”
She pulled free of his hold and stalked to her car without looking back.
Didn’t have to.
He would be right behind her.
He could call it whatever he wanted. Sarah would fortify herself with what Conner had to offer and then, by God, she would find the killer.
For Valerie and Alicia and their families.
For Matilda.
◆◆◆
They barely got inside the door of his house before she was tearing his clothes off.
Sarah couldn’t explain it. Didn’t try.
Thinking was out of the question right now.
She needed to feel.
Between their frantic kisses, he muttered, “Down, Angie.”
The dog had reared up to greet her master.
She slinked off to the rug in front of the couch.
“Sorry,” he muttered to Sarah.
She didn’t care...dragged him toward the bedroom.
She hadn’t been in there before but she knew the way.
The rest of his clothes hit the floor by the time they reached the bed.
He peeled off her dress, unsnapped her bra, and lifted her onto the bed. She couldn’t get enough of his taste...of the feel of his skin. Her panties skimmed her legs, caught on her sneakers. She toed them off. Kicked free of the panties.
He burrowed between her legs and she sighed.
Fear trickled past the other sensations as she realized a cold, hard fact. Here...now...with him...she felt right.
She felt safe.
Not smart, Sarah. So not smart.
Wednesday, March 4, 2:30 A.M.
The telephone clanged.
Sarah was dreaming...sweet, hot dreams.
Her lips parted, lifted.
Skilled hands moved over her skin. Seeking lips tugged at hers.
Conner...
Another long, loud clang.
The dream faded. The arms holding her released her. The hot, hard body spooning hers rolled away.
“Hello.”
Her eyes drifted open at the rough, sexy sound of his voice.
Conner. She was with him...in his bed.
Sex. Hot. Frantic. Life-reaffirming.
She was safe. With him. Her stomach knotted with uncertainty. If she got in any deeper—
“What?”
Conner rose up, dropped his feet to the floor. “When?”
Sarah pushed the hair out of her eyes as she sat up. She studied his rigid profile. What the hell had happened now?
“I’ll be right there.” He placed the handset back into its cradle. Sat stone still.
“What’s wrong?” Adrenaline cleared the last of the sleep from her head.
As if her question had reanimated him, he jumped up, groped for his trousers. “It’s Polly. She didn’t come home.”
“Wait.” Sarah scooted off the bed, her pulse scrambling. “Where’d she go?”
“With the other kids to the auditorium.”
Sarah pulled the dress over her head, yanked it down her hips. “And?” she demanded as she tugged on her panties and then her shoes. Please, no...not Polly.
He stopped buttoning buttons. Stared at her. Terror in his dark eyes. “No one’s seen her since.”
Chapter 32
Polly was cold.
So cold.
She tried to move. Couldn’t. Her hands were stuck between her legs and taped to her feet. She tried to scoot on her butt and fell onto her side. Her head hit a rock. She cried. The tape burned her lips.
God, help me!
Her silent plea shuddered through her. Made her stomach ache. She’d puked before. Almost choked. Had to swallow it or strangle to death. She’d peed her pants.
God, oh God, where was she?
What happened?
She remembered going outside to talk to Matilda. She’d promised to meet Polly there. But she hadn’t shown.
Was she here, too?
Polly’s heart started that crazy pounding again. Felt like she was going to have a heart attack.
She wiggled, scooted, jerked until she got back up onto her butt. She couldn’t see. Something was tied around her eyes.
Listen!
If Matilda was here and taped up like her, then she might make sounds Polly could hear.
The air echoed in Polly’s ears. Like she was someplace deep under the ground. She was sitting on rocks. Hard. Bumpy. Not smooth or flat.
It was cold. She shivered. So cold. She didn’t hear anybody else. Just the water. Was she close to the ocean?
She tried harder to listen.
Her body started to shake again. She cried. Didn’t mean to. Couldn’t help it.
Kale! Please come get me! Mom!
They had to find her. They would be looking. She knew they would.
Her mom and her brothers wouldn’t forget her. Her dad wouldn’t let them.
Polly’s shuddering body suddenly stilled. Her insides got real quiet. Like she couldn’t think anymore. Just nothing. No feelings...no anything. Then her thoughts came at her all at once.
What had happened to her?
Where was she?
Who had done this?
Memories of going to the memorial service with her family flooded her brain.
Then she knew the answers to all her questions.
The devil had gotten her...just like he got Valerie and Alicia.
Matilda had warned her to be careful.
Polly was going to die...
She jerked. Trie
d to get her hands free. Tried to wiggle her feet loose.
Help me.
Please, Jesus, help me.
Kale!
Her chest heaved. Mom! Jamison!
Find me. Please, please, come find me.
Chapter 33
Youngstown High School gymnasium, 7:00 A.M.
As if the dire situation needed any help, the winter storm everyone but Sarah appeared to know about had dropped three inches of snow in the last four hours.
Sarah wished she could give Conner hope.
But in this case there was no precedence for hope.
No evidence that had led to a real suspect.
There was no genuine hope to offer.
Chief Willard called for silence. The assembled mob settled down.
“You have your search areas. Stay with your assigned groups. And for God’s sake, be careful out there. We’re all worried sick about Polly but we don’t need anyone getting hurt and slowing down the search. Now let’s get going.”
Groups of citizens piled out the exit doors.
More than one bumped into Sarah as they rushed out of the gym. She tiptoed. Looked for Kale. She saw the top of his dark head as he exited with Deputy Brighton and several others whose faces she didn’t recognize.
At some point this morning, maybe during that terrifying epiphany, she’d decided to call him Kale.
If she could just find him now...
She looked around again. No luck.
“Sarah.”
Her attention shifted right. Jerald Pope approached her. She was surprised to see him here. Yeah, he was a lifelong resident but rich guys like him didn’t usually get involved on this level. Tossing money around was one thing, but trudging around in the snow and cold was entirely another.
“I didn’t see you in the crowd,” she said by way of greeting.
