She slowly nodded. “I have a way older first cousin with that name. I don’t know her. Actually, I’ve never met her. Just saw a picture of her once. My dad said she was into drugs and took off years ago. No one has heard from her at all.”
“So she’s a cousin on your dad’s side then?” Ava asked.
Fran nodded. “We’re not real close to that side of the family. Something happened years ago between my dad and his sister. That would be Holly’s mom. Not sure what happened exactly, but they had a falling out, and we only see them on holidays when everyone gets together. And of course, Holly had left the family long before I was born and no one talks about her.”
The reason was obvious to Micha. Fran’s dad had to have fathered Layne. So an uncle had sex with his niece. Consensual or not, no wonder they’d fallen out. He was surprised they didn’t report him to the police.
“We’d like to talk to your dad,” Micha said before she got over the shock of this, put two and two together, and chose not to cooperate any further. “Can you share his contact information?”
“Yeah. Sure. Norman Nicks. Lives in Medford like me.” She got out her phone and scrolled down, then shared his phone number.
“How about an address?” Dev asked.
She provided the Medford address. “But he’s not home.”
“No?” Micha asked.
“He’s been out of town for work for a few weeks.”
Out of town. Like in Portland, stalking Ava?
Micha took a swig of coffee to calm his racing mind and present a casual vibe for his next question. “What does he do for a living?”
“He’s a conductor.”
Micha sat forward. “Like for a train or music?”
She laughed. “Music. Orchestra. He was a full-time symphony conductor when I was growing up. Now he’s semiretired and only works as a guest conductor. In fact, he’s filling in for the Portland Symphony Orchestra right now.”
Portland.Was he really there conducting or just using it as an excuse? Something Micha would verify the moment they got back to the cabin.
“What does your mother think of all of this?” Ava asked.
“Mom died a few years back.” Fran turned her coffee cup and stared into it. “I hope she never knew anything about Dad fathering another kid.”
Micha hoped the same thing, but could her father have been referring to her mother when she asked why she didn’t give the money to Layne? And what money?
“You have any idea what he was talking about when he mentioned giving his son money?” Micha asked.
She shook her head hard, her hair whipping around. “After hearing from Layne, I was going to call Dad and confront him today.”
“Could we ask you to hold off on that?” Micha smiled to relax her.
“But why?”
“It could put you and your dad in the thick of things and in danger. I would also ask you not to try to find Layne’s contact info and call him for the same reason.”
Her eyes flashed wide. “You really think we would be in danger?”
“I do,” Micha said, though he wasn’t really sure. If her father was the killer and he knew Fran had been in touch with Ava, would he go after his own daughter if he thought Fran possessed information about Ava’s whereabouts and refused to share anything she knew?
Could be, and Micha didn’t want to see one more woman in the path of a killer.
Ava rode in the back seat of the SUV. Dev drove and Micha rode shotgun, leaving him free to protect her, just in case. Rain still pelted the vehicle, and the sun considered setting for the day, the darkness starting to take over. At this rate they would surely have or had already experienced record rainfall. The roads held water, and at times they hydroplaned. Dev had to slow down as he took a circuitous route to the cabin to be sure no one followed them. But she wasn’t driving and didn’t have to pay attention to it, and her mind filled with questions. So many questions. Ones that couldn’t wait until they got back to the cabin.
“Something surprised me.” She leaned forward between the seats. “How could Fran not figure out that her dad fathered Layne with his niece Holly?”
Micha looked back at her. “Seems obvious to us, but her mind wouldn’t be as willing to go to an incestuous relationship involving her dad as ours would. It’ll likely hit her real soon.”
