Chapter 19

As Giovanni and I pulled to a stop in front of the Callahans’ house, I identified a few cars parked outside: Foley’s truck, Whitlock’s car, and a patrol car. We rushed to the front door, and as we walked inside, Whitlock was there waiting for me.

“I … we got here as fast as we could,” I said. “Have you heard anything from Cora? Do you know what’s going on?”

Whitlock placed a hand on my shoulder. “We haven’t heard from her. Why don’t you take a breath? Looks like you need it.”

I did.

I pressed a hand to my chest, feeling the quickened pace of my heartbeat. I closed my eyes, focusing on my breathing. What happened in the past couldn’t be changed, and I was no use to Cora if I couldn’t keep my anxiety in check. My focus belonged in the present.

I reopened my eyes, and Whitlock said, “Feel better?”

“A little,” I said. “What can you tell me?”

“Not much. There is one thing, though. There’s a note tucked beneath one of the windshield wipers on Cora’s car. Said something like: ‘Welcome back. Gone but not forgotten.’”

The same words written on Millie’s bedroom wall.

“We’ve been through the house, inside and out,” Whitlock said. “Officers Higgins and Decker are canvassing the area, knocking on doors. Other than the note, there’s no other information to report.”

“I don’t even want to think about what may have happened to her. After what Cora’s been through, to come back to town all these years later only to relive her worst nightmare … it’s?—”

“Hey, I understand how you feel, but there’s no use jumping to conclusions until we have a better idea of what happened here. Silas is on his way to dust her room, the window, and the area around it for prints.”

Down the hall, I heard my name being called.

Whitlock and I followed the voice to Cora’s bedroom, where Foley was waiting.

He pointed at me and said, “Before you say anything, we’re doing everything we can to locate her.”

“I know you are. It’s my fault. I feel like I’ve failed her. I was supposed to keep her safe. I shouldn’t have assumed she would be.”

“Look, this isn’t about fault. No one’s to blame. It’s been a long time. None of us had any way of knowing the perpetrator might still be in the area, let alone if he was still alive.”

I threw my hands into the air, saying, “Well, we know now.”

“Let’s concentrate our efforts on the facts. Getting all worked up isn’t going to bring her home safely. Right now, our sole focus is on making a plan and finding her.”

Finding her before it was too late … if it wasn’t already.

Thoughts flashed through my mind …

Cora dead in a ditch somewhere.

Cora being captured and tortured.

No matter what direction my thoughts went in, it wasn’t good.

“I was supposed to be the person she could rely on,” I said. “When she came to see me, she said it was the first time in a long time that she felt like she could see a future for herself, a future where she could put the past behind her.”

“You couldn’t have known the murderer was still out there until you saw the message left at the cabin,” Foley said. “There’s been no other contact since the murders took place.”

Somewhere inside the house, I heard a wailing sound, the sound of a woman in turmoil.

“I imagine Ginger isn’t taking this well,” I said.

Whitlock and Foley exchanged worried glances.

“She is not,” Whitlock said. “I’ve tried to question her about Cora’s comings and goings today, but she’s not interested in talking to us. Your aunt is with her now, and she knows we need our questions answered. We’re hoping she might get somewhere.”

I didn’t blame Ginger for not feeling like talking to the police.

At this point, I was sure she felt let down by all of us.

“Let’s get back to doing what we do best, shall we,” Foley said.

I reached in my pocket, took out my phone, and pulled up a photo. “This is a bit dark, but I thought you’d want a visual of the writing on the wall at the cabin. Guess it’s the same message that was left on Cora’s car.”

I turned my phone around, and Foley and Whitlock bent down to take a closer look. In unison, they repeated the phrase left on Millie’s bedroom wall.

“Yep, same exact words,” Foley said.

“Everything in the cabin looked like it hadn’t been touched in twenty years,” I said. “Except for this writing. It looked fresh, like the message had just been written on the wall.”

“Is there any electricity inside the cabin?”

I shook my head. “We were out there at dusk, and we had to use flashlights to look around.”

“I’ll have Whitlock stop by there tomorrow.”

In the distance, I heard, “Yoohoo, where is everyone?”

Foley rolled his eyes and said, “I don’t think I have it in me to deal with your mother right now.”

“Let me see if I can cut her off at the pass,” I said.

Foley placed a hand on my arm and said, “I appreciate you. More than you know.”

I found Harvey and my mother in the living room, standing beside Giovanni.

“Can someone please tell me what is going on?” my mother huffed. “We’re supposed to be part of this investigation, and no one is telling us anything. Well, that is to say, Whitlock reached out to Harvey to say Cora is missing. What I want to know is, how did this happen?”

My mother wasn’t part of the investigation, no matter how much she wanted to be—a fact I had no intention of arguing with her about now. I didn’t want to discuss what we’d seen at the cabin either, but I assumed she already knew, which meant there wasn’t any way around it. If she didn’t hear it from me, she’d hear it from someone else.

“Earlier, at Millie’s cabin, I discovered someone had left a message on the wall,” I said. “The same message was on a note found on Cora’s car.”

My mother turned toward me. “Yes, yes, I heard. When you say a message, what do you mean, a threat?”

“Yes.”

“Well, don’t keep us in suspense. What did it say?”

I told her.

“As soon as I read the message, I tried to get in touch with Cora, and then I learned she was missing,” I said.

“Missing for how long?”

“I don’t know. Whitlock tried speaking to Ginger about what Cora’s been up to today. She wasn’t in the mood to talk.”

My mother slid her handbag off her shoulder, handed it to Harvey, and rolled up her sleeves. “Where is she? Give me five minutes with the woman. I’ll have her singing like a lark.”

I shook my head. “You can’t. She’s in her bedroom with Aunt Laura right now, and she’s not doing well. The last thing she needs is to be questioned. I’m not saying she won’t be. I’m saying she isn’t ready yet, and we need to respect that. The more we show her some respect, the better chance we have of her telling us what she knows.”

“Time is wasting, Georgiana. You know that better than anyone.”

“I do. I also know Aunt Laura, and she’s aware of what we want to know. Let’s give her a chance to see if she can get Ginger to open up.”

My mother crossed her arms and said, “How long do you expect us to wait? Doesn’t Ginger understand we have questions because we’re trying to help?”

Harvey cut in, no doubt attempting to alleviate my mother’s concerns. “Let’s give Laura a chance at least.”

His attempt to calm my mother down did not go as expected.

“If we’re of no use here, then why are we here?” my mother stated. “I don’t see the point.”

Giovanni, who had a talent of getting through to my mother in a way no one else could, took his turn at calming her.

“Darlene, I was thinking of going for a drive. There’s nothing to do here. Not right now. If you care to join me, I’ll tell you all about our visit to the cabin today. I think you’ll find it fascinating.”

In truth, fascinating wasn’t anywhere near the right word to describe what we’d seen. But I hoped his suggestion worked.

My mother shot me a look, then Harvey, back to Giovanni. “I would love to join you. Thank you, Giovanni, for making me feel like a part of it all. No one else seems to care.”

I let the passive-aggressive comment slide and said nothing.

She took back her purse from Harvey and turned, leaving the room without saying another word. Giovanni planted a kiss on my forehead, and I wrapped my arms around him, whispering, “Thank you.”

Once they were outside, Harvey took a seat on the couch, leaning back like he wanted to melt into it.

“I need your advice, Georgiana,” he said.

“Of course. How can I help?”

“I don’t know what to do. Your mother … she’s becoming too involved. Makes me want to step back, let you and Whitlock finish the investigation. If we keep going like this, I’m not sure I can handle it.”

“Do you want to take a step back?”

“I don’t. It’s just … ever since she offered her ‘help,’ my blood pressure has gone way up.”

“Is she aware?”

He scoffed. “Not a bit. She thinks being involved in the case will somehow help me. It’s not. It’s making things worse.”

“Have you tried talking to her about it?”

“Not yet. I’m not sure how she’ll take it.”

“It’s worth a conversation. You know how important your health is to her, and she respects honesty, even if it’s hard for her to take.”

“Working on this case again is exciting. I have a good feeling about it, a feeling like we’re going to solve it this time. I thought we could do it together, but now, I don’t see how we can.”

There had to be a way to make it all work—a way for Harvey to take a step back but still feel involved, while at the same time, encouraging my mother to let Harvey and Whitlock investigate on their own.

Then, it came to me.

“I have an idea,” I said.

“Wonderful.”

“What if we kept you in the loop through text messages? You’d know everything going on, and you could message us when you have something to add.”

He rubbed his hands together and said, “Hmm, could work. It’s worth a try, I suppose. Anything to get Darlene back to her regular schedule. She’s been all over me, and we’re just getting started.”

“It’s settled, then.”

I was about to suggest we check in on Foley and Whitlock before my mother returned when I heard the front door open.

“They couldn’t be back so soon,” Harvey said. “Could they?”

“No, Giovanni will keep her out as long as he can. I bet it’s Silas. He was on his way over to dust for prints.”

I looked up, expecting to see Silas walk into the room and slapped a hand against my mouth, blinking once and then a second time to be sure what I was witnessing was real.

“Cora?” I said. “Where have you been?”

She raised a brow, as if confused. “Hey, guys. What’s with all the cars parked outside? Is something going on?”