Jenna chose her words carefully.“Dr.White said we should expect some unusual behavior.Piper’s mind is still processing her return, trying to reconcile her life as Emma with her memories as Piper.It’s bound to create some...dissonance.”
Her mother nodded, but her expression remained troubled.She reached for the remote and turned off the television with a decisive click.
“I watched the town meeting earlier on TV,” she said, her tone shifting.
Jenna stiffened slightly.
“Someone asked an odd question,” her mother continued, her voice tightening.“Something about red yarn.”
The statement sounded more like a challenge rather than a question.Jenna remained silent, weighing her response.
“Were you planning to tell me?”Her mother’s voice had taken on an edge that Jenna hadn’t heard in months, not since she’d begun her recovery from alcoholism.“That just after Piper said ‘red is for rage’ you learned that Derek Sullivan was found wrapped in red yarn?”
Jenna exhaled slowly.“I was going to tell you, yes.But I wanted to understand more first.To be certain there was actually a connection before worrying you.And I’m still not sure of that, myself.”
“Worrying me?”Her mother’s laugh held no humor.“Jenna Marie, I’ve spent twenty years worrying.Finding out my missing daughter might have some supernatural connection to a murder is hardly going to tip the scales.”
“I know, Mom.I’m sorry.”Jenna leaned forward, elbows on her knees.“I’ve been trying to protect both of you.Piper’s still so fragile, and you’re just getting your feet back under you.The last thing I wanted was to bring more chaos into this house.”
Her mother’s expression softened slightly.“I appreciate the concern, but I’m not made of glass, Jenna.I didn’t fall apart when I discovered you could...communicate with those who’ve passed.That you actually use the advice of the dead to help solve crimes.Finding out Piper might have her own unusual gifts wouldn’t exactly shock me.”She leaned forward, her voice dropping.“In fact, I’d almost expect it, given you’re twins.What I can’t handle is being kept in the dark.If something’s happening with her, I deserve to know so I can face it head-on.”
Jenna nodded, acknowledging the truth in her mother’s words.“You’re right.I should have alerted you about the possible connection immediately.”
“So tell me now,” her mother said, setting her teacup down with a decisive clink.“Everything about this case.And don’t leave anything out.”
Jenna sat back, gathering her thoughts.“Derek Sullivan was found early this morning in the old mill district.He’d been strangled, and his body was wrapped in red yarn—wound around his arms, legs, torso in intricate patterns.”
Her mother winced at the description but nodded for Jenna to continue.
“We know he was at the Centaur’s Den last night until closing.Aaron Hopper threw him out for starting a fight and breaking some glasses.Derek was heavily intoxicated.”Jenna remembered the security footage they’d reviewed.“After that, he apparently decided to walk home through the mill district.It’s a shortcut, but it can be a dangerous one, especially at night.”
“And that’s where he was killed?”her mother asked.
"Yes.The medical examiner puts the time of death between 1:30 and 3:30 a.m.The body wasn't discovered until an early morning jogger spotted it."
“And there were no witnesses?”
“None that have come forward.”Jenna hesitated, then added, “We’re looking into all of Derek’s interactions at the bar before he was thrown out.”
Her mother was quiet for a moment, absorbing the information.“And the red yarn?That seems...deliberate.A message of some kind.”
“That’s what we think,” Jenna agreed.“But we don’t know what it means yet.We’ve sent samples to the state lab for analysis, but the preliminary findings suggest it’s ordinary craft yarn, easily available at lots of stores.”
“And no other murders in Trentville have involved red yarn?”her mother pressed.
“No.Nothing like this.”Jenna’s mind flicked briefly to other cases—the string of murders that had plagued their county over the past year had all been different, with no apparent connection.
Her mother was silent for a long moment, tapping against the arm of her chair.“And you don’t think it’s a coincidence that Piper said those words—’red is for rage’—just before you got the call about Derek?”
“I don’t know,” Jenna admitted.“It seems unlikely to be random chance, but...”
“But what?”
Jenna hesitated.“But if it’s not a coincidence, that means Piper somehow knew about a murder before I did.And it opens up a whole set of questions I’m not sure either of us is ready to face.”
Her mother’s eyes were steady on hers.“You mean, whether she’s psychic.Or exactly how?”
Jenna nodded slowly.Those words seemed stark and unavoidable.“Yes.And if she is, how does it happen?Not when she’s sleeping, dreaming, like my own insights.And what does all of this mean for her?For us?For this investigation?”
