Page 62 of Our Daughter's Bones

Mackenzie fished out a magnifying glass from her drawer. Erica and Quinn were smiling at the camera, with Quinn kissing her on the cheek.

A reluctant smile tugged at her lips.Young love.

But her smile dissolved into a deep frown. Her lips parted. On the floor, there was a paper napkin, almost hidden under the side table. There was something printed on it. With the magnifying glass, Mackenzie could make out the design. It looked like a custom logo. Below it was a number.

9

1

6

The wheels in her brain whirled at full speed, accessing every file in her brain one by one. She held the magnifying glass in a tight grip.

She had seen the number carved inside Abby’s locker, faintly scratched on the blue metal. She had seen the number scribbled in Abby’s journal. It had looked like random doodling, one perhaps a meaningless copy of the other. But now the number 916 had appeared in three places, and was linked to both girls.

“Nine, one, six,” Mackenzie whispered.

Goosebumps sprang up on her arms. Her heart pounded. From the corner of her eye, she saw her father sitting on the bed next to her. Wearing a red flowery shirt and brown pants, he turned a glass of Scotch in his hand.

“Coincidences don’t exist, Micky.”

Thirty-Two

September 19

“It has been eight days since Abigail Correia, an eighteen-year-old senior at Lakemore High, disappeared without a trace,” the news anchor said. “The police are being tight-lipped about the course of this investigation, but we’re joined by Vincent Hawkins, no doubt a familiar face to many viewers, who has some information.”

The screen shifted to display a middle-aged man. His long brown hair was shaped like a wave breaking over his small head. A thin mustache capped his slim lips. When he spoke, deep lines carved into his cheeks. “Thanks, Debbie. The word is that the police have found a tangible connection between Erica Perez’s homicide and Abigail Correia’s disappearance. As of now, the two investigations have been officially combined. What that piece of evidence is? It’s being strictly kept under wraps with only the family members of the victims being notified.”

The screen divided into sections with the anchor on the left and Hawkins on the right. “Vincent, your article on how the Lakemore PD has been handling the case has garnered a lot of attention.”

“Well, Deb, I speak the truth.” He smirked. “I stand by every single word I wrote. If Lakemore PD had dealt with the case correctly when Erica went missing, maybe Abby would still be with us. There is a lot of politics involved in this case. And a lot of people are not happy.”

The anchor raised an eyebrow and smiled. “Would you care to share who you are talking about?”

Hawkins snorted like a bull. “Are you tricking me, Deb? Well, I’ll only reveal one person, because she’s allowed me to speak on her behalf. I spoke to Hannah Correia, Abby’s mother. She’s fuming at how biased the media has been in their reporting—focusing more on Erica, instead of on Abby, who frankly deserves more attention, because she is missing and could still be alive. But politics!”

The anchor let out a forced chuckle. “Well, I can’t speak for others, but I feel we are fair in our reporting. But what do you mean by ‘politics’?”

Hawkins tilted his head and showed his pearly white teeth in a Cheshire cat smile. “Isn’t your station owned by Nathaniel Jones? Best friend of Samuel Perez, Erica’s father?”

Debbie was stumped. She blinked furiously and appeared to rearrange the papers on her desk. “Thank you for joining us, Vincent.” His face vanished from the screen. “Sports news now, and the Lakemore Sharks will face the Jefferson Frogs of Spokane tonight! Be sure to tune in for an exclusive interview with Sharks Head Coach, Bill ‘the Monster’—”

The television turned off, and Mackenzie jerked. She turned around to find Sully with the remote. “What was that about?”

“He’s dissing us. I don’t want the morale in this office to be down because of his negativity.”

Mackenzie looked around the vacant cubicles surrounding them. It was just the two of them. Sully followed her gaze and pouted. “Talk to Hannah. Explain to her that we’re doing everything we can and not to talk to any reporter. I don’t want this thing spinning out of control.”

“Okay.”

“I told Murphy and Peck that Quinn Jones lied to Bruce and Nick about his last contact with Erica, and that we need to talk to him again. They’re sure it’s a misunderstanding, but Murphy has personally arranged for you both to have an informal few words with Quinn after the game tonight.”

“Do we need to take some kind of thank-you gift?”

“Tread lightly, Mack. Nick has his kid after school and said he’d pick you up after he drops her off at her mom’s. Traffic’s a bitch on game night though, so I said you’d meet them on the way. Save him crisscrossing town. You know his kid, right?”

Mackenzie strained to keep her face neutral. “Yep.”