The Killing Game(105)

“Saw it on the news. Very, very creepy. I didn’t know those people. Leland didn’t like them.”

“Some of the bones are from an eighteen-year-old male who would be about thirty-two now,” Gretchen added. “We’re trying to identify them. A working theory is that they might be the Patten’s son, Lance.”

She shook her head. “I don’t know him.”

“Is Leland at work?” September asked.

“He used to be a plumber a long, long time ago. Now he’s a bum, if you want the truth. If you need him, he’s probably at Tiny Tim’s.”

“Can you tell us about Wendy?” September asked.

Her sad eyes gazed at September for a long moment. September wasn’t sure she was going to answer, but then she said, “Wendy was a good girl. She didn’t deserve what happened to her.”

“No,” September agreed. Gretchen moved restlessly, but September gave her a hard look.

“I always thought it was those kids that did it. You know, those spoiled brats with lots of money.”

Gretchen asked, “What kids?”

“The ones at the summer camp. Parents sent ’em there to get ’em out of their hair, that’s what Leland said. Otherwise they’d just be hanging around, getting into trouble. Well, they got into plenty at that camp, too. Even the counselors.”

“Wendy hung out with people from the camp?” September asked.

“Oh yeah. Thought they were so la-di-da. Think she was sweet on one of ’em, but she wouldn’t tell me about him. Leland woulda had a fit. I told the cops about ’em back when they found her. Oh, they looked around. Knocked on some doors. But they thought it was a serial killer, y’know. There was another girl killed around the same time, but she was in Portland. I don’t know. I think it was one of them campers.”

September tried to quiz her more about Aurora Lane, but she had nothing to add. She had no recollection of Davinia or Nathan Singleton, which was entirely possible because if Lance was involved, the suspected affair would have occurred after the Kirkendalls left Aurora Lane.

“You can’t remember any name from the campers?” September questioned again, just before they left, but she just shook her head.

“You think one of ’em did it, too?”

“That’s what I’m trying to find out.”

They left Mrs. Kirkendall on her porch, watching them with her sad eyes. In the Jeep, September said, “It all comes back to Schultz Lake.”

“You’re thinking Wendy’s death is tied to Mr. Bones’s,” Gretchen said.

“Wendy and Lance both lived on Aurora Lane, and they both mingled with the Schultz Lake crowd. If Lance is Mr. Bones, then it’s a pretty big coincidence that two teenagers died in a narrow space of time on one short street.”

“I think you’re right.” Gretchen started up the vehicle. “I know the summer camp she meant. It’s closed down and either Wren Development or the Carrera brothers are planning to build on the site.”

September thought that over. Lots of threads of cases were floating around that could tie together. She just couldn’t see it yet. “Must be time to talk to somebody who worked at that camp.”

“Let’s get a list.”

*

Andi lay beside Luke, her head resting against his chest. His cell phone buzzed from inside his pants pocket and he had to fumble around to retrieve it. “It’s Peg Bellows,” he said in surprise. “I called her so many times, I know the number.”

At that moment Andi’s phone rang, its tone muffled from within her purse, which she’d set on the bedroom dresser. “They’ve found us,” she said, climbing out of bed to retrieve it. She would have left it, but Luke was already on his phone, so what the hell?

“Hi, Peg,” Luke greeted as Andi pulled out her own phone. Seeing it was Carter calling, she made a face and thought about not taking the call. She wanted to cocoon herself inside the cabin with Luke and let all the bad stuff stay outside.

But he would probably just call back.

“Hi, Carter,” she answered. Luke had stepped away from her, standing naked, his muscled back to her, listening hard to whatever Peg was saying.

“Andi!” Carter said, his voice tight. “God. Emma fell down a flight of stairs!”

“What? Oh no. Is she all right? Where’d it happen?” She almost asked, Which bar?

“At the office. It was this morning. She and Ben came in separate cars and he waited for her at home, but she never showed. He finally found her in the office stairwell. She’s in the hospital.”

“Oh my God!”

“I thought she might be drunk when I first heard, but she was sober.”

“Is she all right? Where is she now?”

“Laurelton General.”

“Oh, Carter. Oh no.” Andi could scarcely think.

“Jesus. I mean . . . f*ck . . .” He sounded totally undone. “Andi, she’s unconscious. They don’t know if she’s going to make it.”





Chapter Twenty-Four



Laurelton General had been designed on a steep hill with its west side at the bottom of the slope. Entering on the west side brought you to floor one, but the main entry was on the south side and at the top of the hill, which was why above the door a sign announced in big block letters: FLOOR THREE.