Page 40 of What She Saw

“Sure thing.”

Bailey’s smile wasn’t as bright as it had been this morning.

“The story explains why you wanted the Taggart property,” she said.

“I was hoping for inspiration.”

Callie set the soda in front of me, and I sipped, grateful for the cool liquid.

“Did you see Patty with Laurie Carr at the festival? The two worked the hamburger tent together.”

She set her fork down. “I don’t want to talk about that day.”

“Why not?”

“It wasn’t a positive experience for me. I made stupid mistakes.”

“You were, what, seventeen or eighteen? Kids that age make mistakes.”

She picked her fork back up and stabbed a plump cherry nestled between the crust. “Yeah. But most kids aren’t related to the town mayor.”

“I read Taggart’s notes. He escorted you to the first aid station. When he came back later, you were gone.”

“That’s right.”

“Where did you go?”

“I left the festival.”

“When?”

“I don’t know. About ten.”

“In your testimony you stated you didn’t get home until four a.m.”

“I left through the woods because the main entrance was blocked,” she said. “It took hours to get out.”

“You walked off the mountain?”

“That’s right.”

“It’s twenty miles to town.”

“I was younger, fitter in those days, and at the bottom of the mountain, I hitched a ride back to town.”

I stabbed my straw in the crushed ice floating in the soda. “Who gave you the ride?”

Bailey giggled like a child. “You sound like a cop.”

“I’m not a cop. I’m a writer, and I’m trying to find the bodies of four missing, likely dead women.”

“Likely? There’s nolikelyabout it. They can’t be alive after all this time.”

“Their stories need to be told.”

She leaned closer and whispered, “No one cares. That festival is ancient history.”

Her slight discomfort was amusing. “You knew Rafe Colton, right? He worked with your father to plan the festival.”