Not by Sight (13 page)

Sheriff Virgil Granger collapsed on the glider on his front porch, every bone in his body aching. He unbuttoned his navy uniform shirt and let the evening breeze cool his bare chest.

He closed his eyes and listened to a cricket choir fill the night with the sweet serenade he had loved since he was a boy.

The front door opened and closed, the fragrance of gardenia wafting under his nose and bringing a smile to his face. “Hey, sugar,” he said.

Jill Beth came up behind him and gently massaged his shoulders.“You ought to sleep like a log tonight. It’s been a long time since you were up thirty-six hours straight.”

“At least we should know soon if Micah’s dental records match the skull we found.” Virgil shook his head. “Shoot, even after five years, it’s hard to think that way. I can still see Micah as a scrawny little squirt wearing a Superman cape, wanting to hang out with the big boys. I’ll always regret we didn’t let him.”

“You were kids, Virgil. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

“I’m just glad we taught our sons better.”

Jill Beth kissed his cheek and came around and sat next to him on the glider.

Virgil slipped his arm around her. “I talked to Kate just before I came home. Abby’s at it again. She photographed a little girl she thinks looks like Riley Jo and has been making inquiries around Foggy Ridge.”

“Poor kid.”

Virgil cleared his throat. “It’s hard to say this, but it’d probably be the best thing for everybody if the remains turn out to be Micah’s.
And
Riley Jo’s. At least the family could go to sleep at night knowing they’re not coming home.”

Jill Beth put her head on his shoulder. “They deserve to find closure.”

“Thing is, even if we determine that Micah and Riley Jo are both dead, that might not be enough closure unless we determine how they died. This could open up a whole new nightmare for the Cummings.”

“I’m sure it’s nothing that hasn’t crossed their minds a thousand times.”

Virgil nodded. “But it’s different when the truth of it looks you right in the eye. It really hit
me
today.”

“I just hope Kate can move out of the past. I think Elliot Stafford is sweet on her. Of course, he’s too much of a gentleman to admit it while Kate’s situation is hanging in midair.”

“Elliott, huh? I haven’t paid much attention.”

Jill Beth sat up straight and captured a yawn with her hand. “I’m not sure Kate will ever let herself fall in love with another man. She seems to have Micah on a pedestal.”

“Some of it could be guilt,” Virgil said. “Don’t forget they’d been having a tiff for a couple weeks about some business thing they disagreed on.”

“Yes, but all couples go through trials. That didn’t have anything to do with what happened.”

“Unless Micah was fed up and wanted out of the marriage.”

Jill Beth looked up at him. “You don’t really think that?”

“I don’t want to,” Virgil said. “But given the right circumstances, good people are capable of shocking choices.”

“Kate needs the truth—whatever it is—so she can live in the present.”

“I agree, sugar.” Virgil ran his fingers through Jill Beth’s thick dark hair, which was noticeably void of gray since her last beauty appointment. “The truth is in the remains. We just have to wait and see what pathology tells us.”

Abby lay wide awake in the dark, staring at the ceiling fan. The more she thought about it, the more scared she was about the caller’s threat. The only way to find Ella was to ask around and show her picture. That had become dangerous.

Now what? Jay had left her hanging just when she needed him most. Not what she expected from a best friend.

Abby wiped away the tears that ran down the sides of her face. What if the remains turned out to be her father’s? Could she let go of years of hope and accept the grim finality of it? At least if her father had died in the woods, he hadn’t run off with another woman. Which meant he hadn’t chosen to take Riley Jo because he loved her more.

Shame scalded Abby’s face, and she wondered how her mother would react if she knew that, all these years, the biggest fear Abby had about Daddy and Riley Jo’s disappearance was something so completely self-centered.

Abby sat up and blew her nose. She checked her phone to see if Jay had left a text message. Nothing. The last thing she wanted to do was go to the sheriff, but now that she suspected that Ella was a missing child, how could she keep the information to herself?

Chapter 15

Kate sat at the kitchen table, still dressed in her bathrobe and doodling on Thursday’s to-do list, vaguely aware of footsteps moving in her direction.

“Good, you’re still here,” Dad said. “I was about to head over to Flutter’s. Have you heard from Virgil?”

“I just got off the phone with him.” Kate whisked a tear off her cheek. “There’s been a new development.”

Dad sat next to her and clasped her hand. “Tell me.”

“Deputies got an anonymous tip and found what appears to be a mass grave in the woods—about a mile from where they found the first remains. Virgil said they’ve found skeletal remains of at least eleven people—five of them children. They’re not finished looking.”

“Dear Lord …” Her dad’s voice failed.

Kate swallowed the wad of emotion that threatened to throw her composure out the window.

“I’m sorry, baby. I really am. If I could take your pain myself, I would.”

“I know, Dad. I’ll be okay.”
Will I?

“You want me to tell the kids?”

Kate looked over at him, her vision totally clouded with tears. “I’ll tell Jesse. Would you tell Hawk and Abby?”

“Sure I will.” Dad leaned over on the countertop and picked up the box of tissues and set it in front of her. “Let’s sit a minute and let this sink in.”

Kate plucked a tissue and wiped her eyes. “I can accept that Micah and Riley Jo might be dead. It’s something I’ve wondered a lot about. What’s really difficult is wondering if they suffered. And now, a mass grave …? I have so many questions that no one can answer. We may never know the truth of what happened to them.”

“Feels like we’ve been sucker punched,” Dad said. “I didn’t think there were many missin’ persons cases still unresolved in Raleigh County.”

“Virgil says there aren’t. These are probably the remains of people from outside the area, or the remains of people never reported missing. Unless Micah’s dental records match the skull they found Tuesday night, it could be another long wait before we know
anything
. I just want to lay them to rest. Is
that
too much to ask?”

Her dad didn’t say anything. Why would he? He knew she wasn’t about to ask God for anything. Not after all the times He had ignored her prayers—if He’d heard them at all. Faith was a bottomless pit she wasn’t going to fall into again. Whatever courage, whatever strength she needed to get through this, she would find within herself.

Abby cringed as Hawk slammed the front door of the house hard enough to rattle the windows.

Grandpa Buck squeezed her hand. “You okay?”

Abby shrugged. “Not really. I understand why Hawk’s so upset.”

“We’re all worn out with waitin’,” Grandpa said. “But this is gonna drag out a while longer.”

“How’s Mama?”

“Scared. Sad. Anxious to know the truth.”

“They’re not going to find Daddy and Riley Jo’s remains.”

“What if they do, Abby? You have to prepare yourself for that possibility.”

She shook her head. “I asked God to bring them home.”

Grandpa looked at her with those kind gray eyes that seemed to speak even when he wasn’t. “Honey, maybe He has.”

“But that’s not what I meant! I want them home alive.”

“We all do,” Grandpa said. “But like we talked about before, with God all things are possible, but not necessarily probable. He has a bigger plan than the one we can see, and we don’t always get what we pray for. He knows what’s best. We have to accept that.”

“Well, I’m not accepting something that hasn’t happened.”

Grandpa stroked his mustache. “Are you still looking for Ella?”

“Yes. Mama promised not to bug me about it if I agreed to see Dixie.”

“Your mother’s worried about you.”

“She doesn’t need to be. I’m fine.” Abby exhaled. “Look, I know Mama thinks my imagination’s gone bonkers, but she’s wrong. Ella looks so much like Riley Jo it’s uncanny. I can’t believe none of you see it.”

“We see it, Abby. But we see her in a lot of sweet faces. Sometimes it’s the big blue eyes. The elfin smile. The button nose. Heck, I’ve even thought I heard her giggling once. That’s just part of the grief. Part of lettin’ go.”

“Then why do I feel such a connection to Ella? I’ve never felt that before.”

Grandpa brushed the hair away from Abby’s eyes. “Maybe you just want it so badly, it’s got a hold on you. Hope is a powerful motivator.”

“Then let me hold on to it while I can. It’s a lot better than being depressed.”

“Can’t argue with that.” Grandpa put his arms around her and held her tightly. “I talked to Savannah before I called you home. You don’t have to go back to work today.”

“But I want to,” Abby said. “I can’t sit around thinking about this, or I’ll go nuts.”

“Are you going to be with Jay this afternoon?”

Good question
. “We haven’t made plans. Maybe.”

“It’s probably better if you’re not alone. How does
he
feel about your search for Ella?”

“Jay’s been helping me. And he knows about the other two times,” she quickly added, feeling guilty for deliberately not mentioning the threat to her life or Jay’s insistence that she stop searching.

“Abby, I don’t know whether looking for this girl is healthy or not. I’ll leave that call up to Dixie.” Grandpa stroked her cheek. “But I’m serious about this: you need to prepare—mentally and emotionally—for the possibility that your daddy and sister might be identified from those remains.”

Abby pressed her lips together and forced back the tears. She wasn’t going to think about possibilities. “I should get back to work. Savannah’s going to be shorthanded.”

Abby brought an empty tray back into the kitchen and heard her text message signal. She went into the restroom and locked the door.

She read the new text message from Jay.
Slope at noon? Eat before you come. This is urgent.

Abby quickly keyed in her reply.
I’ll be there.

She put her phone in her pocket and opened the door. Savannah was waiting outside.

“You okay, honey?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Abby said. “Did I do something wrong?”

“Heavens, no.” Savannah smiled. “I’m just worried about you. Sure you don’t want to go home?”

“I’m sure. I’ll do better if I can stay busy.”

Savannah put her hand on Abby’s shoulder. “Truthfully, you’re the best waitress I’ve got. Things run more smoothly when you’re here.”

“Really? Thanks.”

“You have a great work ethic, kiddo. Not all that common in young people today.”

“My parents taught me to finish whatever I started and to give it a hundred percent.”
That’s how I plan to find Ella.

“Order two’s up,” Benson hollered.

Abby nodded toward the order shelf. “That’s mine.”