"Did she take the test alone?" Kelly wondered aloud, more to herself than to Ben. "Was she sitting there by herself when it was confirmed? Was she scared? Confused? Heck, did she have to drive out of town to even buy a pregnancy test?"
The thought of Lori facing that moment without support made Kelly's chest ache with a fresh wave of grief. If Lori had been pregnant, she wouldn’t have needed to face it all by herself.
"It changes everything," Kelly said quietly, although her voice sounded loud in the silence. "If she were pregnant, it would completely change our understanding of what happened to her. We have to look at Cal again.”
"It gives us a new angle to consider," Ben agreed. "A new motive."
"Cal claims he didn't know, but we only have his word for that. If she told him and he didn't want the responsibility..."
She trailed off, unable to finish the thought aloud. The idea that Cal might have killed Lori to avoid fatherhood was almost too horrible to articulate.
"He seemed genuinely surprised by the changes in her behavior," Ben pointed out. "And he's a family man now. Would he have embraced fatherhood so completely if he'd once killed to avoid it?"
"People change," Kelly countered, though without much conviction. "But you're right. It doesn't feel like Cal. Not the way he talked about her. He could be the greatest actor ever, though."
"Still, we need to talk to him again," Ben said. "Carefully. If he really didn't know she might have been pregnant, this news could be devastating."
Kelly's thoughts turned to the photographs she'd seen in Cal's office.
"He has kids now," she said. "Finding out Lori was carrying his child when she died. I can't even imagine what that would do to him."
"We'll be tactful," Ben promised. "But we need to know if he had any suspicion at all. Even if he didn't connect the dots then, looking back now, he might remember something that helps us."
"Tomorrow. Or I guess later today, technically." She glanced at the cable box display, which showed it was now after midnight.
They sat in comfortable silence for a moment, the muted TV casting shifting patterns of light across the room. Kelly was struck by how easily Ben had slipped into this investigation with her, how naturally he seemed to understand not just the case but her feelings about it.
"Thank you," she said suddenly.
"For what?"
"For not telling me I'm overreacting. For taking this seriously. For the hot chocolate. Take your pick."
"All valid reasons for gratitude," he replied, returning her smile. "Though the hot chocolate is clearly the most significant contribution."
His gentle teasing broke some of the tension, allowing Kelly to relax slightly for the first time since she'd awakened from her troubled sleep.
"Do you think we'll find him?" she asked. "Whitfield?"
"My dad has connections. If Whitfield can be found, they'll find him."
"And if he confirms Lori was pregnant?"
"Then we follow that thread wherever it leads. Someone in Bergen knows more than they've been saying. Someone has been carrying this secret for over a decade."
"And I won't stop until I find out who," Kelly said, the determination in her voice surprising even herself.
"I know you won't. And I'll be right here with you as long as you need me," Ben replied, his voice soft.
The simple promise felt weightier than it should have, given how briefly they'd known each other. Yet Kelly believed him completely. In this moment, Ben was the most solid, dependable person in her chaotic world.
"We should try to get some sleep," she said, though she made no move to rise from the couch. "Tomorrow's going to be a long day."
"Probably," Ben agreed, also remaining seated. "But I'm not particularly tired anymore."
"Me neither," Kelly admitted. "Your grandmother's hot chocolate has failed in its sleep-inducing properties."
"That was never the promise," Ben corrected with a small smile. "The promise was that it would help quiet your mind so your soul could work things out. Is your mind quieter?"
