Page 25 of In Her Prayers

The air seemed to thicken with tension, enough to suffocate the truth that had eluded them all these years.Frank’s eyes darted between Jenna and Zach, a silent spectator to the exchange, his feelings of guilt manifesting in the slump of his shoulders and the creases deepening around his mouth.Jenna could almost hear the cogs turning in his mind, the memories of the case resurfacing with each revelation.

The former Sheriff’s lips parted, ready to defend actions long past, yet Jenna cut him off with nothing more than a steady look.She understood Frank’s remorse, his burden, but now was not the time for excuses or justifications.She needed to keep Zach Freelander talking.This man’s answers could lead them to truths that had long been buried among Trentville’s storehouse of secrets.

Focusing her attention on Zach, she drew from the details stored in her mind, conjured from Dr.Stark’s autopsy findings.“Mr.Freelander, did Caroline have any distinguishing marks?A tattoo, perhaps?”It was a calculated probe, a necessary step nearer to closure.

Suspicion clouded Zach’s eyes as they narrowed, a stark contrast to the open fields visible through the grimy windows.“Yeah, she had a tattoo.A butterfly on her left shoulder.”His admission hung between them, pensive and heavy.

Jenna and Jake exchanged a knowing glance.They’d seen that very same tattoo on one of the corpses just this morning.

“Why did you want to know about that?”Zach growled.

The corners of Jenna’s mouth drew tight as she steeled herself for the task at hand.“Mr.Freelander,” she began, her voice low and even, “I’m sorry to tell you this, but we’ve found Caroline’s body.It was concealed in St.Michael’s Church.”

She watched as Zach’s rough exterior, hardened by years of labor and loss, seemed to crumble before them.Color bled from the farmer’s face, leaving behind a ghostly pallor that spoke volumes of the shock and heartache that gripped him.For a moment, time appeared to stand still, the faded wallpaper and family photographs becoming a backdrop to his silent agony.

In his corner of the room, Frank shifted, his discomfort rippling through the air.Jenna caught his eye, reading the layers of guilt that shrouded him like a second skin.The former Sheriff’s involvement in the original investigation—or lack thereof—was a burden he still carried, its weight palpable in the way he avoided Zach’s accusatory stare.

The stillness in that old living room shattered like glass when rage took hold, contorting Zach’s features into something fierce and raw.He surged to his feet with an energy that belied his age, the wooden floorboards creaking under the sudden shift.

“You!”he spat, pointing directly at Frank.“You knew all along, didn’t you?You and Pulliam, you knew what had happened, knew she was dead.You covered it up!”

The farmer’s accusations kept flying like daggers.“That’s why you didn’t investigate—because you already knew.And you didn’t want to look into the why or where of it.”

It seemed as though the whole room held its breath.Frank looked stunned.

“How could I have known …?”Frank began.

“Because of what the carillon played that night,” Zach shouted, getting to his feet, pointing at Frank.“Because of what those bells said.”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

“The bells …?”

Frank’s words asked a question that Jenna was asking herself too.What could Zach mean by his accusation—that the then-sheriff and his deputy had heard the bells ring out a message about Caroline Weber’s death, and that they had ignored it?

Zach’s next words came slowly, each syllable laden with his long-time anger.“The church bells.They played the Angelus in the middle of the night.Never did that any other time.”

Jenna leaned forward, her elbows pressing into her knees, a gesture that anchored her to the present moment.“The carillon malfunctioned?”she asked, trying to understand.

Zach’s nod was vigorous, his eyes alight with an unwavering certainty.“That’s what they said.But it wasn’t just a malfunction.Because that wasn’t all —” he glared at Frank.“You know what else those bells played!Before it played the Angelus … that other song.”

Frank’s voice, when he spoke, sounded exhausted.“Zach, we went over this long ago.They just sounded like random notes to everybody except you, and—”

“They weren’t random!”The roar that erupted from Zach sent a jolt through the room, his fist connecting with the arm of his chair with a thud that seemed to reverberate through the floorboards.“I knew that song better than anyone.Caroline sang it every night.That’s what the bells played, I’m telling you!”

“You’re saying that the carillon played a song that Caroline used to sing?”Jenna asked.Her gaze didn’t waver from Zach’s face, her mind cataloging every flinch, every flash of emotion that crossed his features.There was something unsettling about the ferocity of his conviction, and she felt the weight of questions piling up, each demanding attention.

Zach nodded his head vigorously.“That’s what I’ve been telling you.Before the Angelus.it sputtered out a few notes from ‘Crossroad Blues’ - Caroline’s favorite song.I told them, but they didn’t want to pay attention.And now you’re telling me her body’s been found in that same church.”

Jenna was jolted by the name of the song she had heard in her dream.She observed Frank’s reaction closely, searching for any sign of truth in the allegations being hurled across the room.

“Zach, I promise you,” Frank said weakly.“Duke and I weren’t covering anything up.We didn’t know.We really didn’t.”

Zach let out a wordless growl of disbelief.

“Mr.Freelander, please,” Jenna said.“We’re here now to find out what happened to Caroline, and we need your help.”

Zach’s energy seemed to evaporate as suddenly as it had flared.His frame sank back into the armchair, shoulders hunched, the lines on his face deepening with defeat.

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