“I’m fine.”
“You’ve already been attacked once,” Phil said bluntly. “Someone grabbed you on a trail and tried to drag you into the woods. You didn’t get a look at their face, right?”
“You know I didn’t.”
“But do you think it was Adam?”
Brooke stared at the note as she thought back to that awful day. “It could’ve been Adam. The height is right.”
“What about the game warden? Could it be him?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I only saw him from a distance.” She closed her eyes and thought back to that day. “He was standing next to Edi...no, I don’t think so. He was shorter than her by several inches. Edi is about the same height as Adam. Same build too. The game warden is shorter.”
“Could it have been Edi?” Joe asked, his voice soft.
“I never would’ve thought it was a woman, but Edi...she’s tall.”
“And big,” Phil added.
“Phil.” Brooke pursed her lips. “Be nice.”
“Hey, I’m telling the truth. Edi’s always been a big girl. Back in elementary school, kids teased her something awful. You remember, Tyler? They’d chant, ‘Edi, Edi two-by-four can’t fit through the schoolhouse door.’”
Tyler shook his head. “I don’t remember doing that.”
“Not you. Not me either, but some of them did. Like...” He glanced out toward the yard, as if trying to remember. “Sheila. I’m pretty sure she was one of them.”
“Sheila used to make fun of Edi?” Joe sat up straight. “What about Monique?”
Phil shook his head. “She didn’t live here when we were young. Not until...”
“Middle school,” Joe said, shuffling through his notes. “I’m pretty sure she moved to Irma sometime around then.”
“Yes,” Brooke said. “You told me before about this. Sixth grade. Then Monique and Sheila were best friends.”
“Thick as thieves.” Phil nodded. “They were always together. Had a few others in their posse, too, but if Sheila was around, you could count on seeing Monique too.”
“And Edi?” Joe asked, making a note on his timeline.
“Nothing really changed for her. She was always on the outside looking in. I don’t think it bothered her much. She wasn’t part of the popular crowd, but she didn’t need to be.”
Joe’s pen stopped moving. “Why is that?”
“You know about Edi’s family?”
“Can’t say I do. She hasn’t been the focus of my research. Something I intend to remedy with this new information.”
Phil detailed how Edi’s family had long ties with the community and plenty of money. “Her mom’s a Goldworth.”
“As in former US Senator Davidson Goldworth?”
“That’s her grandpa. I take it you’ve heard of him.”
Joe snickered. “Everyone’s heard of Davidson Goldworth.”
Brooke knew he was right. Goldworth had been a major political figure, and his failed reelection had been all anyone talked about for weeks. Even Brooke, away at college by then, had heard plenty.
She rarely thought about the connection between Edi and Senator Goldworth, although she knew Edi had grown up wealthy. You’d never guess it now. Edi worked steadily as a deputy, drove an ordinary-looking car during her off-hours, and had told Brooke more than once, usually while stopping in for coffee, about her modest condo and her two cats.
