“Fantastic,” Devin assured her.
“You’d never know a thing happened to her,” Theo said, coming over.
Beth smiled at Rocky. “You know, I never thanked you two. I could have lain there forever!”
“Actually, you would have come to eventually—though with a hell of a headache,” Rocky said. “Just don’t overdo it today, okay?”
Gayle emerged from the back, smiling. “She’s amazing, our Beth. A real trouper.”
“Since you’re here...” Rocky said, smiling as he leaned on the counter and looked over at Gayle. “When am I getting my pentagram necklace?”
“Rocky! You sound like a broken record,” Beth said. “I told you. As soon as—”
“I wasn’t asking you, Beth. I’m sorry—I was asking Gayle,” he said.
“What?” Gayle said.
“You are the artist, right?”
“No, no, I—” She broke off and stared at Rocky. “Okay, I’m the artist. How did you know?”
“The way you looked at Beth that day when I asked,” Rocky said pleasantly. “And you do know a lot about them. Make one for me, will you—please?”
Gayle flushed. “Yes, yes, of course. You know you can buy them all over Salem.”
“Not like yours.”
Rocky really was very good, Devin thought. If she hadn’t already known he was playing Gayle, she never would have noticed.
“That’s very sweet of you,” she said.
“Nope—just true,” he said. “You’re a terrific artist. You should stop hiding your identity. Let people know who you are. That would mean—”
“That I’d be swamped,” Gayle told him. “Please, keep it a secret.”
“All right, I promise,” Rocky said solemnly. He chatted with her for a few more minutes and then said, “Well, we’re off. We’re visiting a cemetery.”
“Historic?” Gayle asked.
“Anything from the past is historic, isn’t it?” Rocky asked lightly. “Melissa Wilson was a friend of mine. She was the first victim of the killer. We’re going to visit her.”
“I remember,” Beth said. “I was only thirteen or fourteen, but I remember.”
“I’m really sorry you lost a friend,” Theo said to Rocky.
“She was a good kid,” Rocky said. “But enough about sad things. What are you all up to now that Beth’s been sprung?”
“Hoping for a busy day here at the store, and tonight, after we close, some cleaning,” Beth said. “I promise I’m going to sit in my chair and supervise.”
“Cleaning? Really? That’s the best you can come up with for your first night out of the hospital?” Rocky asked.
“Why? Do you have something more exciting to offer for the evening?” Theo asked.
“No, not really. I think Devin wants to do some housecleaning, too.”
“What about your fellow agents?” Beth teased. “Don’t they want to party?”
“They’re pretty exhausted, to tell you the truth. Working this case has been stressful. I expect they’ll be heading back to the hotel to get some sleep,” Rocky said.
“I talked to your friend this morning—Jack Grail,” Beth said. “They still don’t have anything on what happened to me. I know the attack on me might not be related to the murders, but if it is...” She trailed off and shivered. “I was very lucky.”
“You definitely were,” Rocky agreed. “But now we really have to go. We’ll see you soon.”
Devin and Beth hugged goodbye, and then he put his hand on Devin’s shoulder and guided her out of the store.
“Cemetery?” she asked.
“In a little while,” he told her. “I just want to check in on one more person.”
“So we’re saying hi to Brent again?”
“Yep.”
Brent smiled when they walked in and chatted comfortably. He definitely didn’t seem to be expecting to be invited down to the station again.
They didn’t stay long, and their next stop was the florist a few doors down, where Rocky bought flowers.
They had lunch at a place just off the pedestrian mall, and then drove out to the cemetery. Melissa Wilson had been buried in Peabody, alongside various members of her family.
There were already flowers in a metal vase by Melissa’s headstone, though they were beginning to wilt. Rocky knelt down and replaced them with the fresh ones, then remained down on one knee for a minute.
When he stood, he looked at Devin. She realized he was waiting.
“Anything?” he asked her.
She shook her head and looked around the old cemetery. A huge oak dipped long branches toward the ground. The scene was both beautiful and forlorn. She knew he was hoping she could see Melissa—that perhaps, though he obviously couldn’t, she could somehow communicate with his long-gone friend.
But the cemetery was empty.
“I think you should be glad,” Devin said softly. “She’s gone on. Wherever she is, she’s at peace. Maybe she’s even praying for us here.”
He nodded. If he was disappointed, he didn’t show it.
After a moment he took her hand and they left the cemetery.
“One more stop,” he said when they were back in the car.
“Oh?”
“Vince,” he told her.