Meg was wondering again how much sense it made for her and Matt to go off on what could be a total waste of time when there were leads to run down. As soon as Matt gave his report about his meeting with Harvey Legend at the Big Fish, however, she understood that while they might be looking at a far-fetched idea—that of a conspiracy—certain circumstances might prove to be more than coincidental.
“The Big Fish caters to the Washington elite,” he told their group. “Our first victim, Cathy Crighton, worked there. Both Congressman Hubbard and Congressman Walker were known to dine there with their retinues. Yes, many restaurants in the area cater to members of government. And the murders of Cathy Crighton and our Jane Doe might have absolutely nothing to do with what’s been accepted as the natural death of Congressman Hubbard. But since Lara Mayhew is missing after leaving a strange call, I do think it’s highly important that we find her—whether any of these incidents are related or not.”
“Your plan is Richmond tonight and moving on tomorrow?” Jackson asked.
Matt turned to her.
Meg nodded. “We’ll speak with Lara’s aunt and try some local places she loves and figure out if she’s been seen or not.”
“And then Harpers Ferry?”
“If she left me a message, it’s there,” Meg said. She hesitated. “There was also a small cabin we used to rent up near the Gettysburg Battlefield. It’s unlikely, but the owner is a friend and there wouldn’t be a phone trace or internet tracking of any kind if she did go there.”
She noted that Matt had gone quiet. He was watching her.
“There’s been no movement on her bank account or credit cards,” he said.
She swallowed painfully. That might well mean that the apparition she’d seen in the mirror meant what she’d been afraid it did—that Lara was dead and she’d died in DC.
“If she’s hiding out somewhere, she’d be smart enough to know she could be traced through cards and numbers,” Kat pointed out softly.
Meg didn’t hear a phone buzz but Jackson Crow excused himself and left the room. He walked back in almost immediately.
“There’s been another death,” he said. “And you’re heading in the right direction. This girl was found close to Richmond.”
*
Just where was the line between life and death?
Lara realized she could hardly move. Her limbs were heavy and felt stiff. She’d been over every inch of her prison.
She’d sworn that she’d live, that she’d survive. And if she did, there’d be no hesitation. She wouldn’t allow anyone to get away with this or anything else. Slander, unemployment, even jail, whatever the repercussions...
They were all better than death.
She was tired, exhausted, hungry. She drifted in and out of sleep. She suffered moments when she was sure she was dead. Those were followed by moments when she vowed that she’d live.
She’d learned to monitor the water, but how long could she go without food?
She huddled against the wall.
They would find her. Someone would find her. Aunt Nancy would raise the alarm; Meg would never accept that she had just disappeared.
Every hour she wondered if and when the killer was coming back for her.
Would she die by a knife, through strangulation, a bullet?
Or would she just starve here in the pitch-black darkness...
Fade away until...she was among the dead?
6
“It isn’t Lara,” Matt said, glancing over at her. “At least we know it isn’t your friend.”
He was doing the driving. He’d made that clear from the start. They were in a company car but it wasn’t a sedan. It was actually a nice little compact SUV.
The color was still black.
Meg nodded. Dreadful as the situation was, she couldn’t help feeling some relief that the body wasn’t Lara Mayhew’s. The young woman had been quickly identified. A neighbor had called about a howling dog; when police had gone in, the dog had been ravenous and near death from dehydration. Seeing the picture of a blonde woman with two people who appeared to be her parents on the mantel, the Richmond police—aware of the body recently discovered on the banks of the Potomac—had immediately forwarded the image to DC. Subsequent investigation had revealed that she was Genie Gonzales of New Iberia, Louisiana. She’d only recently moved to Richmond and taken a job at a coffee shop. That much Meg and Matt had known before they left the Krewe offices.
They were about ninety miles from Richmond. They’d arrived late, but the detective who’d been called to the site where the body was found would meet them at the morgue, along with the ME on the case.