Page 50 of Deeper Than the Dead

Everything inside was Sheree’s. Glittering barrettes for her hair. Three kinds of lip gloss. An eye mask for sleeping undisturbed by light. A perfume bottle. Vera frowned. She’d always hated the stout smell of Sheree’s perfume.

She moved on to the dresser. Nothing but the usual in those drawers. Underthings and socks. Scarves. Gloves. Belts. The closet offered nothing exciting either. Some of their father’s clothes. Some of Sheree’s. Way in the back, beyond their father’s stuff, were some of Evelyn’s things. Vera smiled as she dragged her fingers over the one elegant dress her mother had owned. It was silk. A rose color that had looked so beautiful with her blonde hair and blue eyes. Vera had only ever seen her wear it once. To a friend’s wedding. Vera remembered she and Eve had worn floral print dresses with a hint of that same rose scattered through the pattern. Numerous people had mentioned how beautiful they looked.

Vera shook off the bittersweet memories and continued her search of the room. So far there was nothing of interest. Just to be sure, she checked under the bed and the dresser. Beneath the side tables and under the mattress. If there had been anything here related to Sheree and whatever she was doing just before she vanished, Vera couldn’t find it. Nothing about the other victims in the cave. Not that she really thought there would be.

The three- or four-year-old set of remains had kept Vera awake most of the night.

Who was he, and how the hell had he ended up in their cave? It made no sense at all. But the truth was that her father had been fully capable of being out and about until just over two years ago. Was it possible he’d had an encounter with this person and the incident ended in murder? Possibly.

But why? Vera just couldn’t get right with any sort of motive.

She dismissed the idea and moved on in her search. Nothing relevant in the upstairs bathroom. Finally she did a walk-through of her own room. She hadn’t left much when she headed off to college. Clothes from her high school years and a journal from when she was twelve. Her cell vibrated in her hip pocket. She checked the screen. Eve. Vera braced for more trouble.

Vera accepted the call. “Hey.”

“We need to talk. Now. In person.”

Definitely bad news.

“Where are you?” Vera walked out of her room and headed for the stairs.

“Rose Hill. Meet me at Mama’s grave. We’ll have privacy there.”

“Coming now,” Vera promised.

Rose Hill Cemetery

Washington Street, Fayetteville, 11:40 a.m.

Eve had said to come right away ... that she would be waiting. Twelve minutes after Vera arrived, her sister still wasn’t there. Damn it. The funeral home wasn’t that far away. She glanced across the headstones toward Morgan Avenue and then College Street. She and her sister always parked on the Washington side of the cemetery.

Finally Vera spotted her sister walking down the hill. Vera sat down on the bench she’d added—thankfully next to her mother’s grave, since Luna had decided Sheree would be interred on the other side of their father.

“I thought you were coming right over,” Vera said when Eve was in earshot.

She shook her head. “I forgot I didn’t have a car. I had to find someone who could bring me.”

Vera made a face. “When are you getting your car back? We could order you a rental.” No one hated waiting more than Vera. It was a serious pet peeve.

Eve sat down beside her. “I’ll have it on Friday. No big deal.”

“So what’s happened now?” Vera wasn’t looking forward to the news. Wouldn’t be good. Eve’s voice had told her that when she called.

“Bent was at the AA meeting this morning.”

“You said he comes sometimes.” Vera didn’t see the reason for this impromptu meeting in that statement. Sadly, she suspected the shoe just hadn’t dropped yet.

“Yeah, but today he wanted to talk about back when Sheree disappeared and how Daddy acted. He wanted to know what happened with Mr. Garner and with Taylor, the nurse. It’s like he’s pushing the idea of pinning this on Daddy.”

“The spouses are always considered first,” Vera explained. “His scrutiny of Daddy is not unusual. Didn’t we talk about this already? He asked me basically the same questions.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Eve waved off the reminder. “It’s the other part that worries me.”

Dread settled in Vera’s gut. “What other part? If you’re referring to the three sets of remains besides Sheree’s, I’ve been thinking that those might actually help our situation.” She could hope. Jesus, what was she saying? Three other people had been murdered and placed in that cave. Being grateful for the news was ... not right somehow.

Eve hesitated a moment before launching into her explanation. “He said the preliminary examination showed multiple fractures to Sheree’s skull.”

Why hadn’t he told Vera this? Worry tightened its way through her chest. “Based on what happened, I don’t see how that’s possible. I mean, obviously she died of head trauma, which would likely result in a skull fracture. You said her head hit the sink, but how would that have created multiple fractures?”

---