Page 92 of Our Daughter's Bones

“Few months.”

“Do you like it?”

She shrugged. “It’s life.”

Mackenzie’s chest tightened. “Do you know Hannah?”

“Yeah.” She kept looking behind them at her manager. “I’m not sure if it’ll look good that I’m talking to you guys. Joe is very paranoid about the police.”

“Really? Why?”

“He manages a strip club. Has his hands in all kinds of things.”

“Like what?” Nick asked.

She blew out a breath. “I don’t know exactly, but it makes some of the staff uncomfortable.”

“Like who?”

“Well, there was Miranda Baker. She was a dancer here. Nice girl. About a month ago, she just left without giving any notice. Haven’t heard from her since.”

Joe interrupted them. “Gina, go serve that table another round of shots.”

Gina flushed deep. She mouthed sorry to Mackenzie and Nick and carried a tray over to the table of raucous bankers. They whistled and leered at her, making her cringe.

“Enjoy the drink and then get out of here,” Joe said. “You’ll scare away my customers.”

They stepped outside and once again were ambushed by a brewing storm. Gusts of wind swept the streets of Lakemore clean.

“We have to find Miranda,” Mackenzie said as they jogged back to the car.

“I’ll run a license check. Think she’ll know something?”

“Joe is not cooperating. And we have physical evidence tying the cocktail napkin to this place. I think he knows something about this 916 business. Maybe Miranda heard or saw something and quit.”

As Nick pulled out of the parking lot, the reflection of Remington’s shrunk in the side mirror. Mackenzie wondered how removed this slimy pervert world was from Erica and Abby’s innocent lives.

“We need to talk to Hannah too,” Nick said.

“Not yet. We need more evidence.”

“Why?”

“Because I think Hannah is involved. And I think that’s how Abby found out about 916.”

Tears pooled in the corners of her eyes. It wouldn’t be the first time a mother dragged a daughter down with her.

Fifty

September 23

I found out something about Erica’s phone. Meet me ASAP at Anthony’s office tomorrow morning.

The text had come in late Saturday night, to both Mackenzie and Nick. He’d offered to give her a ride to Seattle. She’d agreed, out of habit.

Mackenzie frowned as she climbed into Nick’s SUV. “So, Daniel’s back from Chicago already?”

“Yeah, yesterday. He’s been allowed to stay on, but one more mistake and he’s out,” Nick said.