Page 23

CHAPTER 23

T hirty minutes later, Olive stepped into Reginaldo’s.

After she’d been hit with the stick, her world had spun for several minutes.

By the time it stopped, the man was long gone. She’d looked for him, but he must have gone to the park on the other side of the woods and escaped.

She was still grumpy with herself that she’d let him get away. But there was nothing she could do about it now. To make matters worse, her head still ached and her side was still sore from being thrown into the wall when Motorcycle Man went after her.

She’d been tempted to cancel her meeting with Sabrina. But she didn’t.

Reginaldo’s appeared to be housed in an old fast-food joint. The scent of garlic, simmering marinara sauce, and bubbly cheese hit her.

Even though Olive had tea with Mitzi earlier, she suddenly couldn’t wait for this meal. Her stomach even rumbled.

The place was busy, with hardly any open tables. Soft instrumental music played overhead, adding to the old-world vibe, and the lights were dim.

Sabrina grinned at her from a table near the window, seeming truly happy to see Olive.

For some reason, Olive had thought everyone in town might hate her. From a logical perspective, her reasoning didn’t make much sense. Most of the people now in Oasis didn’t know anything about her dad. Didn’t know her dad could’ve been a con man. Didn’t know her family had been murdered.

But Olive knew.

She needed to be careful how she acted. People tended to treat others the way others treated them. If Olive treated people with suspicion, they’d treat her the same way.

“You’ve got to tell me all about your life,” Sabrina said as a waitress brought a basket of bread, a saucer with olive oil and herbs, and two glasses of water.

“It’s really not that exciting.” Olive shrugged as if it wasn’t a big deal.

“Olive, you’re a filmmaker.” Sabrina said the words slowly. “A filmmaker ! That is totally more exciting than teaching second grade.”

Olive truly did want to catch up with Sabrina. But . . . she also hoped at some point this conversation would turn to Rebecca. She needed to give it time.

“People think being a filmmaker is so glamorous, and I suppose if you make it big, then it is,” Olive started. “But I do my job because I love it. I choose causes that are close to my heart to pursue, even if there’s not a big paycheck that comes with them.”

Sabrina stared at Olive and shook her head. “I love hearing that. This job seems to fit you so well.”

“Earlier you said you halfway expected me to go to Hollywood.” Yes, Olive was feeling Sabrina out. Olive wanted to know what her old friend had meant when she said those words. They’d remained on her mind since then.

She didn’t usually care about other people’s opinions. This time, she did, for some reason.

“Oh, I don’t know why I said that.” Sabrina waved her hand as if brushing off her statement. “It’s really nothing. Your dad just seemed like someone who could be a Hollywood star, you know? He had that personality that was bigger than life. I can see parts of your dad in you.”

All the moisture left Olive’s throat. Most people were probably honored to be told they were like their parents.

Not Olive. If anything, she wanted to take what her dad had taught her and turn it on its head. She wanted to use those skills to help people, not to hurt them.

She tore off a piece of bread and dabbed it in the olive oil. She knew the questions that would come next and wanted to avoid them if at all possible. Questions about how her family was doing now.

Answering those inquires was always a downer.

She needed to change the subject before Sabrina went there.

“Earlier, you said something about Jason changing after I left,” Olive started. “What did you mean by that?”

Sabrina blew out a breath. “I don’t know. He was more withdrawn. He didn’t date anyone else. He actually told me once that he was going to find you.”

Surprise washed through her. “He said that?”

Sabrina nodded. “He did. I guess nothing ever came of it.”

“I guess not.”

“Young love . . . it’s filled with so much drama, right?”

Olive forced a smile. “Absolutely. So, I’m curious.” Olive held her bread, about to take a bite. “Do you know Rebecca Hansen?”

Sabrina’s eyes widened. “Of course. Everyone in the area knows Rebecca. She’s like a mini celebrity, which sounds weird considering the reason she’s famous is because she’s sick. It was just so heartbreaking when we heard the cancer came back.”

“I can imagine. It’s great how the whole town has pitched in to help her.”

A bittersweet smile tugged at her lips. “I know. Isn’t it? I try to help when I can. I’m even on the committee for the fundraiser this weekend.”

“Are you? Maybe I should interview you for the documentary.”

Sabrina laughed and waved her hand in the air. “I don’t really have a face for the camera. I’m just glad to do what I can. Sometimes, I even babysit Willow. Really, they’re such small things, all things considered.”

Olive tried not to show any excitement. “That’s kind of you.”

Sabrina shrugged. “It’s the least I can do. Plus, my daughter, Paisley, likes to play with Willow, so it all works out.”

“Does Rebecca’s daughter ever talk about what’s happening with her mom? I imagine it’s hard on her. Or maybe she’s not old enough to understand.”

“She doesn’t say much.” Sabrina shrugged. “She just said her mom goes shopping a lot. Maybe that’s what Rebecca tells Willow, so she doesn’t get freaked out about the hospital visits.”

It was a possibility.

Or what if Rebecca really was going shopping while she told people she was at medical appointments?

That was another possibility.

They continued talking. Olive learned that Ellis was now a traveling salesman. They had one daughter, who was four years old. Sabrina still hated being the center of attention, but she did head up the local Reading Council.

Olive listened to her friend’s updates. She was happy Sabrina was doing well. She deserved only good things.

But she kept thinking about what Sabrina had said.

Was Rebecca really going shopping when she was supposedly at her medical appointments? At this point, it wouldn’t surprise her. Olive only wished she could prove it.

After eating some lasagna and catching up with Sabrina, Olive went back to the hotel, anxious to talk to Nova and see if she’d found out anything.

A new excitement filled Nova’s gaze when she ushered Olive into her room, almost as if she’d discovered something important.

Olive settled on the couch and waited for her colleague to start. More empty containers of Chinese food sat on the table, adding the scent of steamed broccoli to the air. Several pairs of dirty socks were scattered on the floor, and Nova’s equipment was set up on every available surface. The woman was brilliant but a slob.

“Okay, I’ve been chomping at the bit for you to get back so I can tell you a few things.” Nova lowered herself on the couch also, wearing plaid pajama bottoms and a black top as she sat cross-legged.

“Sorry it took me so long,” Olive said. “I ran into an old friend, and we had dinner together. I was trying to feel her out about what she might know about Rebecca. But I can share that with you later. I’m much more interested right now in hearing what you have to say.”

“Okay, then. I’m going to start with this camera we found. I believe someone else put these cameras in Rebecca’s house.”

Olive sucked in a breath. “Why do you think that?”

“I managed to connect the camera to my computer. I did a few more technical things—I can spell them out if you really want.”

“Not really.” Technical details generally bored her. “I trust you.”

“That’s what I thought. Anyway, long story short, I was able to trace the IP address where the footage is being sent.”

“And?” Olive held her breath.

Nova held up her phone. “I found an address about twenty miles from here.”

“You’re brilliant.” Olive meant the words. Her colleague was grumpy but amazing.

“I know.” Nova closed her computer and smiled. “But there’s more.”

Olive’s eyebrows shot up with surprise. “Please tell.”

“I kept thinking about what you said about Rebecca meeting with her cousin yesterday, so I decided to dive a little deeper. It turns out Rebecca doesn’t have any cousins.”

“What? Doesn’t everyone other than me have cousins?” Olive’s parents had been only children, and her grandparents were dead. Her family situation had always seemed unusual.

On more than one occasion, Olive had tried to look up statistics on how common that was, but she hadn’t been successful in finding any information.

“Actually, no, not everyone has cousins,” Nova said. “I know several people that don’t have cousins. I don’t have any cousins either.”

“Maybe it’s not as unusual as I thought.”

Nova shrugged. “So anyway, neither of Rebecca’s parents had siblings. Well, her mom had a sister at one point, but she died when she was younger. And her dad did get remarried, so he has a stepson, but this stepson doesn’t have any children.”

Olive tucked that information away. “What about Matt? Could the man have been one of his cousins?”

“I thought of that also and looked into it. He does have two cousins, but they both live in California. One, according to social media, is currently on a cruise, and the other is expecting a baby at any moment. So it wasn’t either of them.”

She loved it when Nova was so thorough. “Okay . . . so the man Rebecca met with isn’t a cousin. Then who is he?”

Nova shrugged. “Without seeing his picture or a license plate, it’s nearly impossible for me to know.”

Olive’s shoulders slumped with disappointment. “I guess that makes sense.”

“But there’s more.” Nova grinned and raised a finger. “I actually did more of a deep dive into Rebecca’s family. She said they lived in California, right?”

“Right.”

Nova’s eyes lit with excitement. “Well, apparently, Rebecca is estranged from her family. She and her mom haven’t talked in years.”

Olive knew there was more to that statement. “Do you think that’s relevant to this case?”

“Interestingly enough, I called Rebecca’s mom and told her I was a reporter doing a story on Rebecca.”

“Brilliant. And?”

“She told me she and Rebecca haven’t spoken in six years,” Nova said. “I asked why. She said her daughter has a lot of problems, and she was tired of being pulled into them. She also said when Rebecca moved away, it was an answer to prayer.”

“Ouch.” Olive’s eyebrows shot up again. “That’s harsh.”

“Yes, it is. But it could definitely hint that Rebecca has some issues.”

“I’d love for you to look into Rebecca’s past more. See what she was like in high school or college. Find out if there were ever any issues with her lying in the past. There’s a good chance she’s set up a pattern of deception.”

Nova nodded. “I’m on it.”

Olive nodded slowly. Maybe this information would give them a launching point for their investigation.