The Guests on South Battery (Tradd Street #5)(44)

“We got an A if I remember correctly,” I said with a smile, as if that might make up for a semester of being dismissive and aloof.

“We did. And well-deserved. You were so committed to getting good grades and it really got me involved. I remember you were very organized, and that was a good influence for me. I think that semester was my highest GPA of my entire college career.” Her smile faltered. “My sister visited me while we were working on it. She was staying in my dorm room, trying to decide between USC and the College of Charleston. You met her.”

It seemed important to Veronica that I remember. I frowned, trying to sort through my memories like sifting flour and seeing what got stuck. But nothing did. “I’m sorry, I don’t remember. Although I do recall that you were close—talking on the phone a lot. Are you still close?”

A shadow fell over her face and I could hear her swallow. I became aware of the scent of a perfume that seemed oddly familiar. The only thing I was sure of was that neither one of my companions was wearing it or I’d have noticed it earlier. I watched as a halo of light appeared and surrounded Veronica, the scent of the odd perfume even more pronounced as the light undulated behind her. My eyes moved to the gilded mirror above a sideboard across the room, revealing the reflection of a young woman in her late teens or early twenties, her hand on Veronica’s shoulder, her black-eyed gaze staring directly back at me. I felt relief first—relief that I could still see spirits. And then surprise that whoever this was had been waiting for me.

“She died,” Veronica said flatly, as if she was used to keeping the emotion out of her voice when speaking about her sister. “She was murdered her freshman year at the College of Charleston. They never found out who did it.”

The light behind her brightened to a clear white, then vanished along with the scent of perfume.

“That’s why Veronica came to see me this morning,” my mother said gently. “Detective Riley gave her my name and phone number with my permission, hoping that I might be able to help.”

I stood to leave. “Since you’re obviously not done, I think I’ll go walking by myself this morning.”

My mother put her bare hand on my arm. “Stay, Mellie. I wouldn’t normally ask you to get involved with one of my clients, but because you already have a connection with Veronica, and have met her sister, Adrienne, I think you can help.”

I gave my mother a look that I hoped she interpreted as “wait until I get you alone” and resumed my seat. “I’m not sure how I can help. . . .” I got a whiff of the perfume again, recognizing it as the one I wore in college. Vanilla Musk by Coty. It was very popular in the late nineties when Adrienne would have been a freshman.

My mother turned back to Veronica. “You said you had something to show me, something that had belonged to your sister.”

Veronica nodded once, then reached into the pocket of her skirt and pulled out a long gold chain with some sort of pendant dangling from it. I bent closer and saw that it had been broken in the middle, the clasp still closed. It was then that I remembered my conversation with Thomas when he’d asked me if I could help him with a cold case. Something about a broken chain found in the dead sister’s trunk, discovered in the parents’ attic and opened for the first time since the girl had been killed.

I held out my hand and watched as the gold links coiled into my palm like a snake, the broken pendant lying on top. One Greek letter sat at the apex, the second two letters dangling directly beneath lying horizontally, a manufactured jagged tear showing where a matching charm might attach. “I wasn’t in a sorority, so I’m afraid this is Greek to me.” I hadn’t meant it as a joke, but my mother kicked me under the table anyway.

“It’s the intersection of Adrienne’s sorority, Omega Chi, and another Greek organization with the letter Omega. Could be a sorority or fraternity—without the rest of the charm, we can’t be sure. I have no idea where the other half might be.”

“Did her boyfriend’s fraternity have an Omega in it?” I asked.

“No. She was dating a Kappa Sig, but he had an ironclad alibi and was never considered a suspect.” Veronica cleared her throat. “This is newly discovered evidence. Sadly, it was all twenty years ago, so people have moved on, gotten married, forgotten about Adrienne. Even with this pendant pointing to something completely new, Detective Riley doesn’t hold out any hope of solving the case. He’s been attempting to find and interview sorority and fraternity members from organizations with Omegas in the names from 1996, but nobody remembers Adrienne.”

I turned to my mother. “Thomas told me about this case, and I explained that I wasn’t ready to do this.”

I dropped the necklace onto the surface of the table with a solid and final thunk. The girl was still there. I couldn’t see her in the mirror, but I felt her presence. Smelled her perfume. I shoved the necklace away from me, not wanting her to follow me home. “I’m sorry, Veronica. I truly am. I’d like to help you, I would. But I’ve got two babies at home, a career I’m trying to resurrect, a hole in my backyard, rotting windows, and a host of other issues I’m having to deal with right now. I’m afraid I just can’t get involved—”

My mother reached out with her bare hand and grabbed the necklace, her elegant fingers folding around it as her head jerked back and her eyes closed. We were completely still for a long moment, and then her head began to shake back and forth as if to say no. And then, as if pulled from the ether, a man’s voice came from my mother’s throat, thrust from the depths along with the stench of mold.