Since She Went Away (16 page)

Jenna opened the computer and logged on. The conversation came back up, although Domino had logged out. Naomi studied it for a few moments, reading it over a few times. She didn’t take any notes, but her brow wrinkled as she read along.

She pointed at the computer. “I’m going to take a screen capture of this.” And she did, the fake camera sound filling the room. “And this guy hasn’t ever gotten too weird before?”

“No.” She tried to keep her voice level. “Okay, the last time we chatted he asked more pointed questions. He wanted to know where I lived. He said I ‘sounded’ like a southerner, whatever that means. And he asked me if I’d ever had the desire to visit famous crime scenes. He said he’d been to cities all over the country where these kinds of kidnappings had taken place.”

“And that wasn’t weird to you?” Naomi asked, her eyebrows lifting above the owlish glasses.

“Do you know what the people are like on these sites?” Jenna asked.
“They all think they’re some kind of junior Sherlock Holmes. It’s a hobby. Some people collect stamps. These people study crimes.”

Naomi leaned back in the chair. It creaked under her weight. “True. It’s a great thing the members have been able to help solve a few crimes. Really, it’s amazing. And rare. And now it’s encouraged them. More and more probably joined the fun, thinking they could figure out things the police couldn’t.” She swiveled the chair a little, pointing her body toward Jenna. “I’ll be honest with you, we just don’t have the technology here to trace something like this. If the guy is using his own computer to talk to you, then the state crime lab could trace it. They have a unit devoted to online stalking and harassing. I can turn this over to them, and they can look into it.”

“It seems like there’s a but coming.”

“It’s all a long shot. The guy didn’t threaten you or anything.”

“He said my name.”

“Did you reveal something personal about yourself?” Naomi asked. “Something that would make him think you are who you are?”

Jenna felt like a fool, remembering. “We talked about Celia, of course. That’s all we talked about. I think I gushed a little too much. I know I told him once that it was emotional for me to talk about. That was early on. I think I might have mentioned having a son too.”

“He took a shot in the dark, and now you’ve let him know he was right.” Naomi held up her hand. “I’m not blaming you. I’m just saying the guy got under your skin a little, and he knows it now. Mission accomplished as far as he’s concerned.”

“Ugh.” Jenna raised her hand to her head and rubbed her eyes. “I shouldn’t talk to anyone. It just makes things more complicated.”

“You had a rough couple of days. Don’t beat yourself up over it.” Naomi’s face looked placid, calm. She’d seen it all and didn’t let any of it bother her. “I have a psychologist friend. She says when we make
a mistake and then beat ourselves up over it, we hurt ourselves twice. Kind of makes sense, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah. Too much sense. But this guy mentioned that Celia might be alive. He said he doesn’t think there’s a connection between Holly Crenshaw and Celia. He seemed so certain.”

“Everyone seems certain online,” Naomi said.

“Do you believe any of those sightings? The ones where people claim they’ve seen Celia?”

Naomi looked thoughtful. She lifted her hand to her chin. “There’s a drawback to all this information circulating about a missing person case. It means everybody knows everything. So everyone suddenly decides they’re seeing the victim somewhere. If I thought any of them were truly credible, I’d hop on the next plane myself. But we’ve looked into the ones that did seem credible. Nothing yet.” She cocked her head. “You told me the other day she wouldn’t run away from her life. Why are you asking me this now? Did something change?”

“No, it didn’t. But I’d rather she ran away than accept the alternative. I’m trying hard not to accept the alternative.”

One of the uniformed officers appeared in the doorway. He informed Detective Poole that they hadn’t found anything unusual outside. No signs of break-in, no tracks in the mud. “Do you want us to do anything else?”

“Are you assigned to this sector tonight? Do you mind keeping a closer eye on things here for me?”

“No problem, Detective.”

When the cop was gone, Jenna said, “I should tell you I saw Ian Walters today. We had lunch together.”

Naomi’s voice remained steady. “How did that come about?”

“I went to see him. After I talked to you this morning, and you asked about him, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Why hadn’t I seen or talked to him since Celia disappeared?”

“Why hadn’t you?”

“I don’t know. It’s always been a little weird between him and me. Like we were competing to see who could be closest to Celia. He was always going to win that one. He and Ursula. It’s pretty tough for an outsider to break into a tight family unit like that.”

“That’s what you think they are? A tight family unit?”

“They seemed that way to me,” Jenna said. “Is that why you were probing me about the affairs this morning?”

“And you really didn’t know about them?” Naomi asked.

“I didn’t.” Her voice was sharp. Jenna leaned back, resting her butt against the top of the desk. Her carrots and dip still sat by the laptop, but she didn’t feel hungry anymore. Even the odor of Jared’s grilled cheese hadn’t tempted her stomach. “I had no idea.” She picked at a loose piece of skin on her thumb. “I told you Celia and I weren’t quite as tight as we once were these last few years. She had new friends. Different friends. But you know how it is with a best friend. You don’t need to talk every day or know every detail about their life.” She stopped picking. “Clearly I didn’t know every detail.”

“No one did.”

“Why were you asking about it now?” Jenna asked. “Ian seemed to think you got a new tip or something.”

“Not exactly,” Naomi said. “More than anything, we just like to go over old leads and see if anything new turns up. Sometimes a second pass reveals something different.”

“I guess that makes sense.”

“Now that you have that little piece of news, do you have any new light to shed on their marriage?”

“I’ve been thinking about it all afternoon,” Jenna said. “I’m still processing it. I’ve been thinking about Ursula a lot, the effect the affair must have had on her.”

“Naturally.”

“Ian told me the guy, the dentist, isn’t a suspect.”

“He’s not.”

“But if she was having an affair, doesn’t that make it more likely she’d run away?” Jenna asked.

“Without the guy she was having the affair with? Why would she do that?”

“Because . . . I don’t know. Shit. Maybe one of those guys, her lovers, was following her.”

“Unlikely as far as we can tell,” Naomi said.

“Ian told me he even gave you a name, some business associate of his.”

Naomi took a moment to answer. “We’ve looked into everyone Celia or her family ever came into contact with. We’ve looked into every possible motive.”

“You didn’t really answer my question.”

“That’s true. I didn’t.” She reached up and scratched her forehead. “Some of these leads haven’t been completely closed. We’re keeping our options open.”

“Is there any news about Benny Ludlow?” she asked.

“I can’t say much about him either.”

“Of course.”

“But he’s denying he hurt Celia. Or Holly Crenshaw. We have to figure out where he was at the times these women disappeared. That’s tough to do with a guy who mostly lives and travels alone.”

“But it’s possible,” Jenna said, sounding like a kid wishing for a miracle snow day.

“He hasn’t been cleared,” Naomi said. “Like I said, we’re keeping our options open.”

The conversation seemed to have reached its natural end. Detective Poole rose from the chair and said, “I think I need to be heading home. Rosie and I were just about to watch
Sherlock
.”

“Rosie?”

“My cat.”

Jenna eyed the detective’s hand. She still wore the wedding band. “And your husband?”

Naomi held her hand up, looking at the ring as though she’d forgotten it was there. “Oh. He died two years ago. I still wear the ring.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Naomi said. “I’d have all these young guys chasing me if they thought I was single.”

Jenna walked the detective to the front door and retrieved her coat. Jared was out of sight, the door to his room closed once again. The backpack was out of the kitchen, so at least he was doing homework. Once the detective was zipped up, she turned to Jenna. “I’d tell you to try not to think about this too much, but I know you will.”

“I think you’re getting to know me too well.”

“It’s kind of the job. You know, you mentioned Ian and Celia’s daughter back there, Ursula. How is she doing?”

“I haven’t seen her either.”

“Good kid?” Naomi asked.

Jenna knew Naomi knew the answer to that question. She was a cop, investigating the disappearance of Ursula’s mother. If Naomi wanted to know something about the girl, she knew it. But Naomi clearly wanted to get Jenna’s opinion. Someone who’d known Ursula since the day she was born.

“She’s a smart girl,” Jenna said. “Popular. She’s become a little brattier over the last few years.”

“Teenagers do that.”

“Sure. But she has a tougher edge than most teenagers. She runs in a prominent crowd at school. Rich kids. Why do you ask?”

“You said you were worried about her. What did Ian say about her?”

“I asked him today. He said she’s doing her best.” Jenna remembered
what a willful child Ursula was. Sweet most of the time, but also endlessly stubborn. When she and Jared played together as children, there was never any doubt as to who the leader would be in any game. It was always Ursula, not easygoing Jared. In her own mind, Jenna used to think how perfectly the girl was named. Ursula. The Bear. “I’m just remembering something.”

“What?”

Jenna paused for a moment as the memory crystallized in her mind. “She shoved Jared once. They must have been three or four and were playing some game together. Jared didn’t do things the way Ursula wanted. I guess he actually stood up to her and said no for a change, and she shoved him. Hard. He hit his head against the coffee table.”

Naomi cringed. “Ouch.”

“It was scary. I thought he was going to need stitches. You know how head wounds bleed. But it stopped eventually, and Ian and Celia fell all over themselves apologizing.”

“That makes me glad I only have cats,” Naomi said, her voice deadpan.

“She got into that fight at school right after Celia disappeared.”

“I remember that,” Naomi said. “Kids fight sometimes.”

“Ursula always had Ian wrapped around her little finger. God, I hate when girls do that.”

“Do what?” Naomi asked.

“That whole ‘I’m Daddy’s little girl’ thing. You know? Climbing into her dad’s lap? Acting like butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth? Ursula always did that with Ian. I guess he went along with it because he wasn’t around as much. With everyone else, Ursula could be a challenge. I guess she’s more like her dad. Tough to read.”

“It looks like her mom was tough to read too,” Jenna said.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

O
n Friday, Jenna came into the break room where the employees drank coffee or ate their lunches or retreated when patient demands and craziness grew too intense. When she entered the room, two of her coworkers were already in there, and the moment she stepped through the door, the conversation halted. Jenna knew they were talking about her.

She looked at the two women, their faces sheepish. Emma was another nurse and Charlaine helped with the books. Jenna didn’t know them well, didn’t care much what they thought of her. She thought about just doing what she came to do—grab a cup of coffee and slip away without speaking—but why should she let things go unchallenged? If they had something to say to her, they should say it.

“You don’t have to treat me like a china doll,” she said to them. She went over to the pot, pulling a mug down from the cabinet above her head. “What is there to talk about now? I haven’t cursed on TV for a few days, and none of my other friends have disappeared.”

Jenna kept her back to them while she added sugar, stirring with a beat-up spoon, the metal clanking against the side of the mug the
only sound until Charlaine cleared her throat. Jenna turned around. The two women looked sad and not offended. Their eyes were full of sympathy, the corners of their mouths turned down.

Something was going on.

“What?” Jenna asked, looking down. “Am I wearing two different shoes?”

“It’s not that, honey,” Charlaine said.

Honey?
Charlaine never called her “honey.” No one called her honey except her mother and maybe Sally.

“What, then?” Jenna asked.

Emma said, “Didn’t you watch the news today?”

“No. I’m kind of done with the news these days.” But her mind raced. News? Celia? She set the mug down and moved closer to the women. “What is it? What happened?”

The two women exchanged looks, each hoping the other would speak up.

“What?” Jenna asked as images of Celia rushed through her head.

A body found. A break in the case.

“You don’t want to hear this kind of news from me,” Emma said.

“What news?”

Finally Charlaine took one for the team.

“Why, Jenna, it’s that Holly Crenshaw girl, the one who disappeared from Clay County? They found her body this morning. She’s dead. We just thought you’d have heard.”

•   •   •

Jenna paced in the break room, the phone to her ear. Everyone else had cleared out, giving her space, and word rippled through the office to stay out of Jenna’s way.

She dialed Detective Poole over and over again, getting voice mail every time.

Sally came in once while Jenna dialed. She placed a reassuring hand on Jenna’s shoulder and then folded her up in a hug. Jenna gave in to the human contact for a long moment, letting some of her weight fall into Sally’s surprisingly strong grip. But then she just as quickly pulled out of it, straightening up and trying Naomi’s number again, leaving her third voice mail of the morning.