Page 47 of Our Daughter's Bones

“We better. Otherwise we might never find her.” He tapped his foot to a random rhythm.

“So how long have you been in Chicago?”

“Around four years. Moved around a lot.”

“Violent Crimes division?” Nick asked.

“Now,” he rubbed the back of his neck. “I was in counterintelligence in Texas.”

“What made you switch?” Mackenzie folded her arms. “Violent Crimes can be disturbing.”

“I don’t mind disturbing. It keeps me on my toes. I started with Violent Crimes at first,” Daniel’s eyes grew distant. “Nothing makes you understand human nature better than murder.”

“Is that why you took a case in Lakemore? It’s a small town for someone who’s been all over the place.”

Mackenzie was fishing. The spark in Daniel’s eyes told her that he’d caught on to her. “Place doesn’t matter. I just want to help.”

Nick cleared his throat and filled Daniel in on his discussion with Mackenzie about the jacket. Daniel nodded, a knot forming between his brows. “We find out what happened to one girl, we’ll know what happened to the other one.”

“I’ve been going over Abby’s private journal.” Mackenzie picked up the diary and inspected its frayed state. It was very unlike Abby and everything else in her room. “Some pages are missing. I assumed that there wasn’t a reason, but since seeing that cryptic entry about Erica, I’ve been wondering. What if they contained sensitive information?”

“It’s possible.” Nick flicked the end of his unlit cigarette. “She got rid of the pages to keep them out of the wrong hands? We know her house wasn’t safe because her pills were switched out. Maybe she suspected something.”

“Or someone took them,” Daniel said. “Something in those pages incriminates him.”

Twenty-Six

2013

Mackenzie examined her reflection in the mirror. No amount of makeup could conceal the distress in her eyes. They were puffy and red, like the tip of her nose. She smoothed her black dress over her petite body. She had lost several pounds over the last month planning the funeral. Her eyes caught a glimpse of her grandmother’s picture on the wall behind her.

She took a jerky breath. Her grandmother was an exact replica of Melody—only older, wiser, and more caring. If she closed her eyes, Mackenzie could hear her stern voice chastising her for stealing cookies from the jar after bedtime or not finishing her homework. Her grandmother was her shield. She never thought anyone else could protect her. Now, Mackenzie again felt like the twelve-year-old who was left at her grandmother’s doorstep.

Alone and defenseless.

Strong arms wrapped around her waist. Sterling rested his head on her shoulder. “Are you ready?”

“No.” Her voice broke.

He tightened his hold on her. “I’m sorry, baby.”

“I know,” she touched the side of his face. “I feel like I’m saying goodbye to my mom again.”

“Your grandmother lived a long and happy life.”

“Yeah, I feel like a kid again. She always took care of me.” She tried blinking away her tears.

“You took care of her too,” he gently reminded her. She’d moved her grandmother to a retirement home in Lakemore two years ago so that she could look after her. Saturday nights were spent with her.

“I’m alone now.”

“I’ll take care of you, Mack.” He spun her around and pressed his forehead against hers. “You’ll never be alone.”

“God, I hate funerals.”

September 18, 2018

“We are gathered here today to celebrate the life of a vibrant young lady, Erica Perez. A beautiful and kind soul who was taken from us too soon.”