by Raven Snow
Rowen didn’t blame her cousin. She wouldn’t want the whole family hovering if she was her. She would want to be around people, but she would also want room enough to breathe.
Sutton spoke with her once before she left. Rowen tried to listen in, but it proved difficult. She couldn’t tell if he was speaking with her in a professional sense or in a more personal capacity. She supposed that didn’t matter so much in the grand scheme of things right then.
Eventually, Margo left for the station. The rest of the family probably wasn’t going anywhere for the rest of the night. They had too much to talk about now that they were freed up to do so.
It was a scary thing. No one had seen it coming or knew why it had happened. That was the scariest part. Rowen hoped it was a random act of violence. Someone had broken in to rob her or to assault her in ways Rowen didn’t care to think about. She doubted that was the case, though. Her gut told her there was more to it than that. Common sense told her the same thing. It just didn’t add up.
Everyone went to the trailer at Rowen’s suggestion. They didn’t go inside, but they did walk the perimeter in hopes that they would pick something up. No one did.
They were back inside drinking hot cocoa and eating some soup Aunt Lydia had heated up for everyone when there was a knock on the door. It was still dark out. It wouldn’t be light for a couple more hours. (They had all given up on getting any more sleep.) Rowen’s first thought was that the knock on the door was Ben and Margo returning. She should have realized Margo would have just let herself inside, but sleep deprivation was working against her common sense.
Rowen opened the door to find Julia Martinez standing on the front steps. Rowen’s first instinct was to shut the door in her face. She definitely didn’t feel like dealing with Channel 2 News right now. The fact that she didn’t see a camera or their van anywhere nearby gave her pause. “What is it?” she asked, her tone guarded.
Julia Martinez was dressed too casually for work. She had on a blouse and a nice wool coat, but she was also wearing blue jeans. They weren’t the sort of thing she would be seen wearing on television. “I heard about what happened.” She was looking past Rowen, like she was trying to see what was going on inside.
Rowen stepped out onto the front porch, closing the door behind her. “Now really isn’t a good time.” Now that she was outside, she took a good look around for any sign of a camera crew. The main road was some distance away. She wouldn’t be surprised if they were waiting out there. “Can you do us a professional courtesy and—”
“I’m not here for a story,” Julia said quickly, raising her hands as if calling a truce. “You know I like Margo. I consider her a rival, but you know we get along.”
That was true. They did meet up a lot. Margo was the only reason they had an okay relationship with Channel 2. “What do you want?”
“I want to know if my friend is okay.” Julia frowned. Her brow creased. She looked annoyed that she even had to state that.
“You could have called.”
“Look, if you want me to go—”
“No,” Rowen said quickly. “I’m sorry. I’m being rude. It’s been a long night.”
“I can only imagine.” Julia composed her face back into an expression that was more sympathetic. “Look, I promise I’m just here as a friend and someone else in the industry that respects you guys. I’m not going to lie and say we’re not going to cover this story. It’s news. Reporting it is what we do.”
Rowen nodded. She understood that. She would have done the same in Julia’s shoes.
“I wanted to check in with you guys first, though. I want you to be involved… And that’s not just a ploy to get the facts from you. I’m…” Julia trailed off and groaned. “I’m not very good at it, but I’m trying to do the right thing here. I’m trying to be respectful.”
“I’m sure Margo would appreciate that.”
“Where is she?”
“She’s down at the station.”
Julia nodded like she should have guessed as much. “How’s she holding up?”
“Oh, you know. Not great. Someone tried to kill her.” Rowen probably shouldn’t have said that. Julia’s eyes widened and Rowen could practically see her mentally filing that bit of information away for later.
“So the intruder was definitely making an attempt on her life.”
“We don’t know if that’s why he broke in,” Rowen said quickly. “It’s just… Well, I doubt it’s any secret— he shot at her. So, I figure it’s safe to call it an attempted murder.”
“Right.” Julia’s gaze went distant and she fell silent for several seconds. She shook her head after a moment, like she was trying to put the pieces together and couldn’t do so in an order where everything made sense. Finally, she took a step back, hands in her pockets. “Well, if Margo isn’t here, I guess I’ll leave you alone.”
Rowen felt a twinge of guilt in her chest. “I’m sorry. I’d invite you in, but—”
Julia raised a hand to cut her off. “It’s fine. I get it. Your whole family is in there, right? I wouldn’t let me in either.” She was smiling when she said it, as if to highlight that there really were no hard feelings.
“I’ll talk with Margo,” said Rowen. “Probably not tonight, but maybe when she wakes up. I’m not sure she’ll want to talk to you, but I’m sure she wants this guy caught as much as any of us. The more people this news gets out to the better, if you ask me.”
“Well, you have my phone number. You guys take care.”
“Yeah. You too.” Rowen watched Julia head down the stairs. She stepped back inside, nearly running into Rose in the process. She had been outside for a little while. It was no surprise someone was coming out to check on her.
“What’s she doing here?” Rose asked, watching Julia and keeping her voice low.
“She was just checking on Margo. I really think she means well. I don’t think there was a hidden camera or anything.”
“Oh. Well, that’s nice, I guess. She and Margo do have a pretty good relationship.” Rose kept her volume down as she continued. “Probably a good idea you didn’t let her in, though. Aunt Lydia might have flipped.”
“Yeah, I figured the same.”
Rose brought a hand to her chin. She tapped her lower lip thoughtfully, gaze going distant for a few seconds. “That does remind me… Well, not remind, I guess. I’ve kind of been thinking about it all night.”
“Reporting on what happened?”
“Yeah,” Rose said slowly, guiltily. Like even thinking about work so soon was wrong somehow.
“Yeah, I haven’t been able to really get it off my mind either. It’s something we’ll have to do.” Rowen didn’t see any way around it. “We have a responsibility to report on it, don’t we? I’m not sure Margo has had a chance to really think about that side of things, but I’m sure she’ll understand. It goes without saying that she doesn’t have to be involved. I figure we’ll be giving her some time off work.”
“I’m not sure about that.” Rose folded her arms in front of herself. “If nothing else, I kind of want her to come in to work just so we can keep an eye on her. I can’t believe all this.”
“Me neither.”
“What if…” Rose trailed off. She glanced back to make sure no one was nearby before she finished her thought. “You don’t think this has anything to do with breaking up with Jasper, do you?”
Rowen winced. She had hoped no one would actually confront her with that possibility. “I don’t think so. That… That really doesn’t seem like him, does it?”
Rose seemed to relax a bit, hearing Rowen say that out loud. “You’re probably right.”
“I mean… I’m not going to lie and say I didn’t wonder the same thing, but… He sure doesn’t seem like the type.”
“Have you heard anything from him?”
Rowen shook her head. “I assume he’ll find out at some point tomorrow.”
“Whoever this was… You don’t think they’ll try
again, do you?”
Rowen wanted to say no. She wanted to say that that sort of thing was unlikely, that this was probably a random, isolated event. She couldn’t bring herself to say that, though. She wasn’t someone who lied to family if she could help it. “I don’t know. I hope not, but… I don’t know.”
Eric talked Rowen into going home early the next morning. Margo was still at the station. Aunt Nadine had called and said it was fine, that she was taking a nap on the sofa in the break room. She was out cold apparently. No surprise there. She had to be exhausted after everything that had happened. Besides, she would probably be having trouble sleeping for a while. Rowen knew she would if she was in her shoes.
Best to let her grab her sleep where she could. Being in the police station probably made her feel safe. Rowen wondered if she would want to go back to the Greensmith household at all. Obviously, she wouldn’t be going back to the trailer any time soon.
Willow and Peony were already staying the night. Ben came to get Rose and take her home, but the house was still very crowded. It was also loud, what with two children having woken up for the day. Rowen figured she would be better off grabbing rest where she could too. It seemed mean to make Eric stay. It wasn’t like he would be going anywhere without her.
Rowen didn’t realize how tired she was until she sank into bed. It was soft and warm and Chester was already curled up at the foot of it. She groaned and flopped down face first into her pillow.
“What time do you want me to set the alarm for?” asked Eric. She could hear him shimmying out of his clothes. She didn’t hear him walking across the room to the hamper, so there was a good chance he just left them in the floor.
Rowen turned her head a little. It was light out. If she got eight hours of sleep now, she wouldn’t be waking up until it was dark outside again. “Don’t. Just don’t wake me up. Who needs a healthy sleep cycle? Not me.”
“I’ll set it for about four hours,” said Eric.
Rowen didn’t bother arguing with him. She would need to get up around then and she knew it. She wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep if she didn’t check on Margo. She would probably be back from the police station by then. She would need to figure out where she was staying. Rowen supposed she could ask if she wanted to stay at her place. She would discuss that with Eric later. Now was time for sleeping.
Sleeping time didn’t last as long as Rowen would have liked. She was floating in that in-between place, body awake but mind blank. The beginnings of dreams creeping in around the corners of her mind. It’s only then that a thought came to her. Natalie.
Chapter Six
“Who’s Natalie?” asks Eric, yawning.
Rowen tried to get a little more sleep after her realization woke her, but it didn’t quite work out. She was too worried about Margo and too caught up in the idea of getting answers. She woke up before Eric’s alarm went off and headed down to the kitchen to make a pot of coffee.
Chester went right on sleeping, but Eric followed. He was a good guy. He probably thought that she needed him right now, what with everything going on. He was right, of course.
“You know, Natalie.” Rowen was standing in front of the coffee pot, staring at it like that would make it brew faster somehow. Out of the corner of her eye he saw Eric shake his head.
“I don’t think I know any… Wait. You don’t mean—”
“Natalie the ghost.” It had been a while since Rowen had even thought about her. Natalie was a spirit Rowen had met in a morgue. She was mostly annoying but, occasionally, helpful. She liked Margo better than any of the other Greensmiths, a good indicator for the sort of personality she had. Last Rowen had checked, Natalie was still living in the trailer with Margo. She knew that Margo left the television on for her a lot.
Maybe that was the presence Rowen had sensed the night before. It would make sense. There was also a good chance Natalie had seen what went on. Of course, there was an equally good chance that Natalie had been distracted by a television program or was off haunting the still living members of her own family. It was certainly worth checking out, though.
“So, do you think she’s in the trailer?”
“That’s the first place I’d look for her.” Rowen got a mug ready even though the coffee still had a while to go. Maybe it would feel some pressure to hurry up if she stood there like a hungry orphan boy.
“And do you think the police will let you in the trailer yet?”
“I think I can call Ben and get him to let me in.” Now that Rowen had an idea of what she wanted to do next, she would like to see anyone try and keep her out.
Fortunately, it didn’t come down to breaking and entering. Ben came down himself, giving Rowen special permission to enter. He went with her, making them the only two people in the trailer. Eric had come along as well, but he waited outside.
Ben wasn’t looking great. His clothes were disheveled. His normally pressed button up shirt and trousers were wrinkled like he’d fallen asleep in them. There was an ink stain in the breast pocket of his coat that looked like he’d put a pen in there without first capping it. His blond hair was mussed and there were dark bags under his eyes. He stifled a yawn as he entered the trailer behind Rowen.
The trailer itself was cold. The door hadn’t been able to close properly ever since being kicked in. It had been slightly ajar all night and, consequently, any heat was let out. At least Rowen had thought to bring her own coat this time. She shoved her hands into the satiny lining of her pockets as she took a good look around.
“Margo is still at the station,” Ben said, in case Rowen didn’t know.
Rowen did know. She had called ahead and gotten that piece of news from a very concerned Lydia. She had been trying to decide whether or not she should leave the kids with their father and go down to the station herself. Rowen had contended that that was probably a bad idea. Nadine and Norm were still with her. Lydia being there wouldn’t make much of a difference.
“I guess she doesn’t want to come back anywhere near here after what happened,” Rowen said. It was easy to see why. A side table had been knocked over. Walking forward she could also see the bathroom door. The haphazardly spaced bullets in it made her blood run cold. “Maybe I’ll talk with her after this. She can come stay with me.”
“That might be a good idea,” Ben said with a nod. “I like that she feels safe at the station, but I can’t have her moving into the break room. I guess we could always work out some sort of… police protection. It’s not something we have to do often. I’ll have to look at our resources, figure out how to best go about it.”
Rowen nodded. “I’ll talk to Eric about it.” That could come after she was finished with this. She closed her eyes and tried to clear her mind. “Hey, Natalie?”
Closing her eyes and clearing her mind had been unnecessary. The voice that rang out in her head was loud and clear, Oh my God, I forgot you could hear me.
“What?” Rowen probably didn’t need to talk out loud. She could have thought really hard and this would probably be less awkward for Ben. She didn’t want to invite Natalie to start reading her mind, though. “There are only, like, a handful of people around here you can even communicate with. How did you forget?”
Well, if you’re going to be rude, I’m not sure I even want to communicate.
“I’m sorry,” said Rowen without meaning it. “Look, I'm here about Margo. You heard what happened, right?”
Heard it? Natalie scoffed. Honey, I was here when it happened. I saw it.
Even better. Rowen waited for her to continue. “And?” she prompted when Natalie didn’t. “What did you see?”
Hmm. Natalie had extorted the Greensmiths for favors before. Rowen could tell that her mind was working at that now, trying to puzzle out how she could use this situation to her benefit. Rowen winced. She really should have seen this coming. I mean, it’s difficult to say what I saw exactly. It all happened so fast.
“This is serious. You know that, right? T
his could be life or death for Margo. I thought the two of you got along. I mean, if you’re still living with her, she’s clearly doing something right.”
Oh, I love Margo. Natalie assured her. We get along great. I have to say… I wouldn’t mind if…
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
What?! I’m sorry, but death means a lot less to those of us who’ve experienced it. It’s just a transition, and if it was a transition that Margo went through soon… Well, I don’t think that would be the end of the world. Frankly, I think we could spend a lot more quality time together if that were the case.
“And you think she’d want to hang out with you after that? Even if she didn’t move on immediately, you’d best believe that I would tell her you could have helped but chose not to.” Rowen couldn’t believe this was something she was having to argue.
Natalie groaned. Fine. God, learn to take a joke. I was kidding. Rowen sincerely doubted that Natalie had been kidding, but she let it slide. Let’s see… What do I remember? It all happened very fast. I was watching a sitcom. It was a rerun, but I honestly don’t mind those. Margo was in the bedroom. I believe she was on her computer. I didn’t hear anyone come up to the door, but I most definitely noticed when the door was kicked in. I’m not ashamed to say I screamed. They had the gun pointed right at me. Maybe they heard the TV on and thought Margo was sitting there watching it?
“Could you tell if it was a man or a woman?”
Oh, a man. Definitely. His clothes were a little baggy, but I could tell.
“What did he look like?”
I couldn’t see his face. He had a ski mask on. He had kind of an average build. Black sweater, black sweat pants. Gloves. It was all very tacky. None of it went together very well. I mean I assume the crime was premeditated. You would think that some of that premeditation would go into choosing an outfit. Frankly, it was embarrassing. I felt bad for him.
