Today's Promises (Promises #2)(54)

The one thing that’s been bothering me since Flynn called that weekend is the loose cement slab. Why would a section of the flooring in a new structure come loose so soon after construction?

There’s no good reason, unless it was tampered with.

That’s where I decide to search, so I start walking again and head straight over to the area Flynn told me about.

Finding the right area is easy, seeing as Jaynie never moved the piece of cement back in to place.

Standing there, the hole in the ground that Flynn dug stares back at me, daring me to dig farther, much farther than where he stopped.

I take a deep breath.

And then I start to dig.

I dig and dig, going far beyond where Flynn once hid food. Deeper than where the fake evidence was placed as well.

I continue to dig and dig, until I finally hit something solid.

Interesting…

Dropping to my knees—to hell with my recently dry-cleaned suit—I fish around in the soft earth with my hands. And that’s when I find something.

I lift the item up.

“Damn,” I murmur.

It’s a bone—a human one, from what I can tell.

I continue to dig, uncovering another, then another…





Flynn



On Saturday, Jaynie and I drive up to Morgantown to visit with Mandy and the twins. Josh is working a double, so it’s just the five of us. Like old times.

Inspired by those old times, we take Cody and Callie to a local park so we can play the kids’ games they love so very much. The games they choose are the ones we used to play up in the fields by the Lowry house, games like Tag and Hide and Seek.

“Stay within the limits of the park,” Mandy tells the twins before we begin our first game, Hide and Seek.

“Okay, Mom,” Callie and Cody echo back as they run off in opposite directions.

I’ve been designated ‘it’ for this first game, so after counting to one hundred, I open my eyes and begin to search.

I find Jaynie first, hidden behind a swing set. “Lame,” I tell her.

“Eh.” She shrugs. “Maybe I wanted you to find me first.”

That earns her a peck on the cheek.

Next up, with Jaynie’s help, I locate Mandy. She’s curled up in one of those plastic tube slides.

“These are for kids,” I say to her when she has to crawl out, all awkward-like. “They’re clearly not designed for adults.”

“Pfft,” she snorts. “Admit it, Flynn. It was a pretty good hiding place.”

“Not that good,” I say in a teasing tone. “I found you, right?”

She pushes me away. “Shut up. You only found me with Jaynie’s help.”

“I’ll ignore that comment,” I say as the three of us share a laugh.

Next, on my own, I find Cody.

He’s hidden behind a big tree. It’s not a very good hiding spot, but I tell him otherwise to build his confidence.

“I pick the best-est hiding place ever,” he says, puffing out his chest. “Don’t I, Flynnie?”

“You sure do, kiddo,” I reply.

Cody then promptly gives away his sister.

Running over to a thick growth of shrubs, he pulls back the branches and informs a crouching Callie, “Did you see where I was hiding, Callie? Flynnie tell me I picked a good spot.”

“Cody!” Callie yells as she stands up and brushes off her knees. “You just gave me away, you jerk.”

“Hey, no name-calling,” Mandy chastises.

Since the kids are all wound up, we adults call for a break before the next game begins.

“It’ll give the kids some time to cool down,” Mandy says to me and Jaynie in a low voice as she hands the twins money for a nearby ice cream vendor.

Once they run off, the three of us sit down at a picnic bench, one where we have a good view of them.

“This day is really turning out to be fun,” Mandy remarks, smiling over at us.

“It is,” I agree. “And it’s really good for the twins, a reminder of the old times, but only the good ones.”

Jaynie interjects, “Hey, that reminds me of something. I have something for you, Mandy.”

Mandy appears curious right away. “What is it?” she asks.

Jaynie leans forward and fishes out a folded piece of parchment from the back pocket of her jeans. It’s the card the twins made for Mandy last summer.

“I meant to give this to you a long time ago,” she says, holding out the card. “I originally found it back in the fall, hidden away in the work barn.”

Mandy takes the card and reads it. From the tears gathering in her eyes, it’s clear she’s touched by the sweet sentiments the twins wrote long ago.

“Thank you for saving it for me,” she says softly when she’s done reading.

“I knew you would want it,” Jaynie says. “I’d forgotten about it back in the fall, but, luckily, I came across it last weekend when we were up at the work barn…”

Jaynie trails off, and we all fall silent. No one wants to bring up the subject of our failure to find evidence against Allison. It means there will never be justice for Debbie. Plus, Allison will be out of prison soon, free to do as she chooses.

I’m about to say something to lighten the rapidly growing somber mood, but just then my cell phone rings. We don’t get many calls, so it’s no surprise when Jaynie turns to me and asks, “Who the heck could that be?”