“You feel really good,” she whispered, knowing she’d regret that in the morning. But then, she’d regret all of this.
“You feel pretty good too, Sunshine.”
“What if it’s my fault?” The words slid out, completely unplanned.
Joel paused. “What’s your fault?”
“Jenna.”
His reaction was subtle. A small tightening of his arm around her. A slight tensing of his chest beneath her cheek. “Why would Jenna’s death be your fault?”
“She heard me telling Maggie about the phone. About the missing women and the drugs and the photos.”
“What phone?”
“Eileen Baker’s phone.” She only knew the last name because Ward had told her. Now it was burned into her brain.
Another tensing of his muscles. “You found a phone that belonged to Eileen Baker?”
Did he know her? Orofher? He said her name like it was familiar to him. “It was under a floorboard at Bloom. Jenna heard me telling Maggie about it. Jenna was so pale. She couldn’t get out of there fast enough, then she was killed. What if she went somewhere, did something with that information that got her shot? That meansIgot her killed.”
Polly had founda phone that belonged to Eileen Baker.
Eileen Baker, who was on their list of missing women from a decade ago.
“Polly, where’s the phone?”
“I lost it. Or it went missing. I’m not sure. I put it in a drawer at work, and now it’s not there. My employees say they didn’t touch it, so…I don’t know. I was even thinking maybe…”
“Maybe what?”
“Maybe someone locked us in the cellar that night so they could take it.”
If he’d thought his muscles were tense before, that wasnothingcompared to now. “Who knew about it?”
“Um…Maureen.” She yawned. “Anyone who overheard my conversation with her. But I don’t know who was in the shop at the time.”
Fuck. “What exactly was on the phone?”
Polly snuggled deeper into his chest, and her next words came out in a slur, like she was too tired to separate her words. “I can’t remember. Photos of random places, like the river and forest. A text message thread, where Eileen tells someone she knows they drugged and killed women and she was going to prove it. Then a response to Eileen, saying she was going to pay.”
Dread was a kick in his gut.
Eileen had known there was a killer in Deep River. She’d figured out who was taking women and making them disappear. Then she’d become a victim too.
Was Jenna gone because she’d overheard that conversation? But what was her connection to all this? Why had she been shot that day?
“But don’t worry,” Polly murmured. “I’m going to yoga tomorrow morning at the community center and I’m figuring this out.”
“What?”
“Mm-hmm. I’m gonna get my Nancy Drew on.”
“No. You leave this alone.”
“Can’t do that. I need to know what happened between Jenna leaving Bloom and getting shot.” Another yawn.
“Polly—”
