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But that didn’t explain the clench in her stomach as they drove. It was too easy to recall her trip through the graveyard with Autry hours before they’d both ended up captured. She remembered the guilty whispers that had reached out beyond the graves, entwining around her like a poisonous vine. And that hadn’t been the first time it’d occurred.
Did crematoriums have bodies refrigerated somewhere like a morgue or funeral home? When making Julia’s arrangements she’d tried to spend as little time in the funeral home as possible. But Reese had to believe they did. The furnaces—and the aquamation vessel—were expensive, and of course, handled only one body at a time. Her palms had gone inexplicably damp. She wiped them on her jeans.
“Are you too warm?”
“No, I’m fine. I’m not a fan of mortuaries. Or cemeteries.”
“Few are. When we get back to the motel, we’re watching something completely mindless on TV. We need a diversion.” She looked at him, and a flicker of regret crossed his expression. “Not that kind of distraction, unfortunately. At least, not now.”
“As long as it doesn’t include aStar Warsmarathon, I’m game.”
“I’m left to wonder at your questionable taste, but okay.”
Her phone rang in her purse. Figuring it was Kervin again, she almost didn’t answer.
“You going to get that?”
Reluctantly, she withdrew her cell. “It’s my editor.” Her ire earlier this week when she’d learned he was feeding Raiker information about her had faded. But she hadn’t spoken to him since, either.
“Figured you’d be deep into happy hour.” It was a joke. Gordon rarely drank and had never joined in the knot from the newsroom who got together at week’s end. But he did smoke like an overactive chimney stack and kept a package of beef jerky in his desk drawer to gnaw on, in his words, “so he wouldn’t have to chew his people’s asses” all the time. Given what she knew of him, she wouldn’t say the habit was effective. But for all his brusqueness and lack of a filter, the man was like family.
“Just left the office. Figured you weren’t going to check in, so wanted to reach out. It hasn’t made the news, so I’m guessing they haven’t tracked down the scumbag yet.”
“They’re working on it.”
“Taking their sweet time. You still have a babysitter?”
How Hayes would hate that description. “Sitting right next to me.”
“Good. Keep your head down. Waiting sucks, but that’s exactly what’s required here.”
“Such profundity. I should embroider it on a sampler.”
He made a sound somewhere between a laugh and a bark. “Like you can sew.” In the next moment, he shifted topics, and she realized the purpose of his call. “Keisha Quintin contacted me. Made a point to remind me about Asha’s baptism next week.”
The invite still sat on the counter in her apartment. After some unsubtle arm-twisting from Gordon, Reese had met with Keisha a few weeks after Autry’s death. It’d taken all her inner strength to force herself not to bail on the meeting. She’d been prepared for the woman to blame her for her colleague’s death. But Keisha had only wanted to hear about Autry’s last hours. And she’d seemed comforted by the fact that even while on assignment, her husband had spoken glowingly about her and the upcoming birth of their daughter. They’d seen each other a few times since. Keisha was as hard to say no to as her husband had been. And while Reese had zero experience with children, she had to admit that Asha had inherited both parents’ charm.
“I know.”
“She was also feeling around about whether you were writing the book we discussed.”
Something scuttled in her chest, like a crab ducking into a hole in the sand. “I’m kind of busy at the moment.”
“Doesn’t stop you from thinking about it, though. Closure, Reese. Giving voice to the victims might just bring you peace, too.”
“So you’ve said.”
“Anything of note occur this week?”
That surprised a laugh from her. “It’s been pretty eventful.”
“I’ll want details. And let me know when they catch Thorne. We’ll scoop all the competitors.”
She promised to do so and disconnected, Gordon’s earlier words echoing in her mind.
Peace. Reese wasn’t sure delving into the worst experience in her life was the key to tranquility.
Just like she was uncertain whether she was capable of opening herself up to the kind of relationship Hayes wanted.