Page 42 of Last Chance Christmas

“What picture?”

“The picture I had of Lily.” She pointed to an empty spot inside the door. “It’s gone.”

Four

A deep chill sank into Della’s bones, sending an icy shiver throughout her body. This was bad. No one else knew about the letters. No one but Vaynes and whoever he’d had delivering them before he escaped.

And now she didn’t even have proof that they existed. That the threat was real.

But it was the missing hairbrush and picture that drove it home.

Vaynes was on the hunt, and she was the prey.

“You’re sure they’re both gone?” Officer Thomas actually looked slightly concerned as he studied her.

She could only nod. She clenched her jaw tight, trying to stop the tremor going through her.

She pointed to the empty spot where the snapshot of her and Lily at the lake had hung. The tacky putty she’d used was still there.

Officer Thomas leaned in, studying the door of the locker. “Okay, the missing photo is concerning. Why the hairbrush? Any significance?”

Della sank to the bench, closed her eyes. She didn’t want to remember.

But she had to. For Lily.

“Vaynes…he, uh, he had a thing for long hair. He would cut locks of Lily’s. I think he kept the hair as trophies, but they never did find where he had them.”

“Mmm. Someone could’ve borrowed it and not put it back. But”—he released a long sigh—“let’s see what security cameras caught.”

So he still didn’t believe her. She shouldn’t be surprised. “There’s no footage from inside the locker room. People change clothes in here.”

“We’ll look at the hallway footage, everyone going in and out. Are you certain the brush and photo were here when you started your shift?”

She looked him in the eye. “Positive.”

“All right. Let’s go view the footage.” He followed her out to reception, where Alice helped them access the video feed from this morning. She then left to give them privacy.

“Here you are, entering at 7:20 a.m. Let’s see who else enters the locker room.” Anthony hit play.

Della hoped it was a sick joke. A prank. She zeroed in on the screen, watching for anyone to go into the room after she’d exited at 7:28. If there was a reasonable explanation, she was all for it. But no one else went in.

Nothing.

“Play it again. Slower. Someone was in there.” She shoved the words out through her clenched teeth.

He went back and played the feed at a slower rate. “Nada. There’s no one that goes into the locker room after you.”

“I’m telling you, someone took the letters. Stole my hairbrush and swiped that picture. And they did it today, because it was all in my locker this morning.”

Anthony leaned back in the office chair, one eyebrow lifted. “How? There’s no proof.”

“Except my missing stuff!”

He nodded toward the screen. “Then tell me why I’m not seeing anyone going in or out of the women’s locker room.”

“I don’t know! That’s what you need to find out. Maybe the footage was tampered with.”

“Or maybe you’re scared. Stressed. Forgetting a few details like where you set your brush down. Either way, the footage doesn’t lie. There are no missing chunks of time. I watched the time stamp.”