Page 45 of Three Girls Gone

“How could you have though? Don’t worry, I brewed some here, though it’s probably tar by now.”

“How long have you been here?”

Katherine’s gaze diverted for a moment.

“You were here all night,” Amanda concluded.

“I’m sure I don’t have to explain it to you, Amanda. You’re much the same when something nabs your attention. There was no way I’d sleep, and if I’m just sitting around, I might as well be doing something.”

Amanda could only imagine how her friend was suffering. “You realize that none of this is on you? This creep hurt and killed two little girls because he is sick.”

“I know it here”—Katherine tapped her head, then laid a hand on her chest—“but here isn’t buying it. Maybe if I can finally track this bastard down. Assuming we’re looking for a man.”

Amanda staggered a bit, then leaned against the partition. “Why wouldn’t we be? There was evidence of sexual assault in both cases.”

“Was there sperm or DNA for Hailey?”

“I’d assume so. I’m still waiting on the full autopsy report.” It had to be a man, didn’t it? No woman would…

“Well, there wasn’t with Julie. There are many things that can explain no DNA, like the use of a condom. But it might be telling us something else.”

“Are you suggesting that a woman is the perpetrator?”

“It is possible.”

Amanda looked at Katherine’s laptop, which was still open on the desk. “Do you have someone in mind?”

Katherine closed the lid and rocked her hand. “Kind of, but I need to dig into her more before I name names.”

“Fair enough.” The last thing Amanda needed was to be weighed down with another possibility. “Well, I’ll share a name. Wilson M-Something. That ring any bells for you?”

“M-Something? Interesting surname.” Katherine flashed a smile at her own joke. “No, I can’t say that Wilson does. Do you have a photo?”

“Not this time.”

“I can’t help you then. Oh, look at me. I need to leave. This is your desk.” Katherine scrambled to collect all the paperwork and files she’d laid out.

“You know what? Just stay put. Trent’s not in yet. I’ll just go next door and log on to his computer.”

“Are you sure?”

Amanda dipped her head, smiled, and went to Trent’s cubicle. The partition fabric must have wicked his woodsy cologne because that’s all she could smell.

“Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.” Amanda logged on to his computer using her credentials. It would pull in her profile and settings. While she waited for it to load, she flipped back the tab on the lid of her coffee cup and savored a long sip.

Katherine was clicking on the other side, her fingertips tapping against the keyboard on her laptop. Amanda was curious about what she was doing but didn’t want to subject her friend to an inquisition. If Katherine had something worth sharing, Amanda had faith she would.

Amanda opened her emails and watched two of importanceappear in her inbox. One from Briggs and another from Rideout. She opened Briggs’s message first.

The number associated with Wilson M will require more digging to track down the location where it was sold. I can request warrant authorization to pursue, but do you have enough to support this? Let me know. I can, however, tell you it was serviced by Universal Mobile like the number used to contact Mara Bennett, posing as Jean Tanner.

Amanda took another drink of her coffee and sat back satisfied. That both phones linked back to Universal felt too coincidental. Could it be that both tied back to this Wilson M?

She continued reading the rest of Briggs’s email.

Unfortunately, there is no more I can tell you about the first number that texted Mara Bennett, posing as Jean Tanner. I’m sorry I couldn’t have been of more help. Reach out if you need anything else.