The decision to sell could relate to their marital issues. Kelly might have suspected that Doug was cheating—or had even discovered it—and had decided they should split. Shannon’s disappearance and death would have surely put that plan on hold.
I had better things to think about at the moment, though. It was time to see if I could track down Ben Hatfield.
My heart was pounding before I even reached Alice’s road and by the time I made the turn, I could hear it in my ears. God, it was so damn sad to be there. I imagined herbumping along the road in her MINI every morning, itching to tackle her next assignment, and then returning late in the day, eager for a glass of wine and the sight of a moonrise over the lake. No more.
I caught a brief glimpse of a movement through the trees. Was it Ben? Reporters inspecting the scene? Once I pulled closer, though, I saw that it was simply a piece of yellow crime scene tape that had broken off and was flapping like a kite tail in the wind.
Interestingly, Alice’s car was missing from the driveway, which suggested Ben had already arrived and was currently using it. More than likely, the crime scene unit had declared the premises cleared by now, and Ben had been given access.
I didn’t want to occupy the driveway in case Ben returned while I was there, so I parked along the side of the road against a cluster of fir trees. As I reached for the door handle, my phone rang.Killian.
“You doing okay?” he asked.
“Yes, thanks.” I wondered what he’d think if he knew I was currently outside of Alice’s house. “Anything new?”
“Unfortunately, and I’m speaking totally off the record here, we have nothing pointing to the assailant’s identity. We won’t have DNA results for days, of course.”
Expected but still totally frustrating.
“What about the autopsy?”
“Scheduled for tomorrow. But as I mentioned to you, we have good reason to believe her death wasn’t accidental. The bottom line, Bailey, is that I want you to remain extremely careful.”
“Yes, of course. By the way, I talked to Cody Blaine today. He mentioned Alice’s call and the information she wanted him to confirm.”
Killian might be annoyed at Blaine for revealing the call to me but that wasn’t my problem.
“That Shannon stayed at the Sunset Bay center years ago? That actually doesn’t appear to be true. The parish had only a handful of retreats at that location, and didn’t save records, but the diocese did. There’s no evidence Shannon was ever there.”
So I’d staked out Kelly’s house for nothing.
“How do you think Alice ended up with that idea?”
“Don’t know, but it was clearly bad information. I’m sure you’ve had your share of false leads and tips.”
“Oh yeah. That happens even to us fancy pants.”
He chuckled. “I need to sign off, but let’s stay in touch.”
So I was still in his good graces. Which meant he might continue to share developments with me, and frankly, it was nice to know he had my safety in mind.
“Just one last thing,” I said, my memory jogged. “Did you have any luck finding that woman at the motel?”
“One of my deputies is looking into that. I’m waiting to hear from him.”
As I’d been speaking with Killian, I’d felt Alice’s house exerting a force field–like pull on me. With the call concluded, I climbed out of the Jeep and strode in that direction, my stomach knotting. The curtains on both floors had been pulled shut, so it was impossible to tell if Ben was inside, but I thought not. The place seemed utterly empty and forlorn.
After stepping over a strewn length of crime tape in the yard, I walked up to the kitchen door and knocked a few times, not expecting an answer and not receiving one, either. Ben might not even be planning to stay at the house, I realized, given how creepy it would surely feel. After fishing in my purse for a slip of paper and pen, I scrawled a note for him—introducing myself as a friend of Alice’s and asking him to call me—and wedged it into the crack between the kitchen door and the frame. Even if he didn’t intend to sleep here during his trip, he’d hopefully come by the house again at some point.
Before leaving, I made my way around to the other side of the building and stepped onto the patio. Whatever crime scene tape had been around the patio had been removed. I let my gaze run down the steps to the dock and rest on the spot below where Alice had lain. My eyes welled with tears but I quickly brushed them away.
I still had one more task to tackle. In case Ben didn’t see the note, I needed to wrangle his cell number. I spent the next twenty minutes knocking on doors of the other houses along the road, in the hope of finding the neighbor—or any neighbor for that matter—who had Ben’s contact info. Not one person was home.
My frustration mounted. Maybe I could at least convince Killian to give Ben a message from me.
I trudged back to the Jeep. It was nearly six o’clock by now, and the daylight had begun to fade. My cell phone rang the second I closed the door. With a jolt I saw “blocked number” on the screen.
“Yes?” I asked, keeping my voice steady. Was it the killer again?
