Page 53 of The Graveyard Girls

“What about your son, Hayden?” Ellie cut in.

“That boy was trouble from the time he was fourteen,” the father said in a cold tone. “First vandalizing properties with that group of hoodlums from the wrong side of the tracks, then experimenting with drugs and indulging in fights. He’d been suspended so many times the school didn’t want him. Hell, even the private schools I spent a fortune on refused to take him back.” The ice in the man’s drink clinked as he turned the glass up and tossed it back. “Ungrateful little twit. After my precious Ruth went missing, he didn’t act like he even cared. That’s when I gave him an ultimatum, either face charges or join the military.”

“And he joined the army?” Derrick asked.

“He did. Maybe they made a man out of him.”

“When was the last time you saw or talked to him?” Ellie asked.

“The night he left,” Higgins said matter-of-factly. “Left a note and we haven’t heard from him since.”

“You haven’t attempted to make contact?” Ellie asked. Anything could have happened to him in fifteen years. Or he could have changed. Derrick confirmed he’d joined the military but he’d been discharged. Where was he now?

FIFTY-EIGHT

“My daughter is not dead and my son certainly didn’t kill her,” Mrs. Higgins stated emphatically.

“How do you know that?” Derrick asked.

Gina’s frail-looking hand fluttered to her chest. “I… just refuse to believe it.” She motioned to Ellie. “Let me show you something.”

Ellie and Derrick exchanged a look, then Ellie followed the woman up the winding staircase. Sadly, just because Gina believed her daughter Ruth was alive didn’t mean it was true.

Gina led her past two bedrooms that looked as if they’d been decorated by an interior designer, then to a third bedroom. When she opened the door, Ellie’s pulse clamored.

“This is Ruth’s room. Well, not the one where we lived before. We had to move from that house because of all the press, but I replicated her room here.”

Teenage décor filled the room. A soft white duvet, a teddy bear propped against the pillow, posters of a boy band, a bulletin board covered with pictures of Ruth and various girls from school, Ruth with her cheerleading team, and a photograph of her and Clint Wallace obviously dressed for Homecoming. A desk held old textbooks and a pink covered laptop.

“Did the police search Ruth’s computer?” Ellie asked.

Gina seemed lost in memories as she ran her fingers over the bedding. Ellie’s question jerked her back to reality, and her expression morphed from melancholy to anger.

“I’m sure the sheriff did,” she snapped. “But I asked for it back. I wanted everything the same when Ruth returned.”

Sympathy squeezed at Ellie’s heart although the woman’s attitude was disturbing. For the parents’ sake, she wanted to be wrong about Ruth being dead and find her alive. Some kidnap victims had been held in captivity for years before being found or escaping. If that was the situation, she’d probably be traumatized. Neither scenario was good.

Although her experience, and the fact that a red scarf and missing shoe had been found indicated Ruth wasn’t coming back.

“Mrs. Higgins, how did you think Sheriff Wallace handled the investigation?” Ellie asked.

Her shoulders sagged. “Well, I guess he did what he had to do, talked to all her friends. But he tore our family up with his attention on my husband and son.”

“If she was abducted, who do you think would have taken her? Did Ruth mention anyone she had problems with?”

“Those lowlife Bramble girls. Everyone knew they were trouble and their daddy was an ignorant drunk.”

Ellie forced a neutral expression at the woman’s tone. Gina certainly didn’t hold back her opinions. “What about a boy? I know she was dating Clint Wallace.”

A faraway look settled in her tear-filled eyes. “Clint seemed like a nice enough kid, but he was cocky and possessive.”

“Possessive? Why do you say that?”

She shrugged. “I heard Ruth talking on the phone to one of her friends one night. She said he was jealous when she talked to other boys.”

“Do you think he’d hurt her if he knew she was meeting someone else?”

Another shrug. “I don’t know. According to the sheriff, he had an alibi.”