Page 100 of Our Daughter's Bones

“Exactly.”

“916 or Eddy’s boss?”

“His boss could be one of them.”

While the uniforms began an on-foot search through the woods, Mackenzie and Nick reviewed the papers again.

What had she missed? Still in her running gear, she paced the office. She compared the missing pages to the pages from the rest of the diary.

It was then she noticed the subtle differences. Abby’s handwriting in the missing pages was neat. It wasn’t written with as much force—leaving no imprint on the back. A different pen was used too.Strange.

Monster.

She called him Monster.

It struck her like a bolt of lightning. Her pulse galloped. Abby always spelled Monster with a capital M—every time.Even when she used it in the middle of a sentence.

Like it was a proper noun, not an adjective.

“Nick! She calls him Monster and uses it like anickname.”

“What does that––?” He froze. “Clint, access the property records at the county office and check for properties registered to Bill Grayson.”

Clint’s jaw fell open. “Bill Grayson? The Sharks coach?”

“Do it.”

They stood motionless, still suspended in shock while Clint clicked away on his computer. None of them wanted this to be true. But as Mackenzie looked at the pages, it was the only clue that stood out.

Bill Grayson was revered and powerful and rich—the only man this city could forgive for murder. He coached the Sharks, so he was in close proximity to Abby at Lakemore High. She and Nick gave Clint some space, but simply stood by the water cooler in silence, the air heavy. She didn’t know what to expect, but the former NFL star had never been on their list of suspects.

A few minutes later, Clint came to them with a pale face. “He has a cabin in the area. I got an address.”

Fifty-Five

Bill ‘the Monster’ Grayson had a glorious career in the NFL. He still held his college’s all-time passing touchdowns record. The star athlete was offered shows and movies. At one point, he was a regular feature on the late-night shows. His personal life was always speculated upon.

He was never married.

Mackenzie had seen him. Everyone in Lakemore had. He was often on the news giving interviews, on billboards, and his face would be zoomed in on during every football match aired on television.

He was Lakemore’s treasure and pride. Decades ago, he put Lakemore on the map. He made the city matter in sports. When he decided to retire from the cushy life in Los Angeles and move back to Lakemore, he became the most beloved man in the city.

Selfless Bill. Honorable Bill. Loyal Bill.

He returned to pass on his gift. He coached the Sharks. He also ran a coaching school for children from poor-income households for free. Despite his mounting wealth, he gave and gave and gave. He set up foundations and charities and never spent extravagantly on clothes and cars. He was always dressed in a tracksuit and running shoes and drove a modest, if not exactly cheap, Range Rover. He was never spotted at parties rubbing shoulders with rich businessmen and politicians. He was respected, decorated, and untouchable—as Abby correctly stated.

Mackenzie scoured the internet looking for more information on him. She combed through news articles and blogs. Nothing was interesting.

“We don’t have enough for a warrant against him, do we?”

Nick checked his watch. “Nope. We need a lot more, especially if you want to go afterhim. Do you know that Murphy bought Grayson’s old jersey and framed it?”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she groaned. “Do you want to tell Sully?”

“Do you?”

Troy walked in the office whistling and flashed them a pointed look. “Are you two friends again?”