Page 37 of Dead Man's Wish
“I tried to have records pulled from various hospitals for any babies born with that last name in the time frame given, but it was another time suck.” Bishop’s defeat was palpable, and I knew he felt the weight of responsibility for the way this case was shaping up.
“How is this guy the perfect ghost?” Jaiden’s frustration started to get the best of him as well. He tossed his pen down the table and stood, knocking his chair back. “He doesn’t exist on paper anywhere, yet he can materialize whenever to torture us.”
“I’ve been a detective for a long time now, and this is the hardest case I’ve had to solve. When BJ was given as a clue, I, at least, had a hundred or so names I could sort and organize. Nicky no last name and a family that’s disappeared from existence . . . I’d rather have not known this since it feels like we’ve been chasing empty leads.” Bishop pushed out of his chair and walked toward the coffee pot. He’d been brewing it on and off since our arrival, and I wondered if the man ever slept.
“Well, what about familial DNA?” Jaiden asked, joining Bishop and pouring his third coffee. “You had plenty of samples for Brent, and if his father’s side of the family is as shifty as we’ve been led to believe then you can match it in your database, right?” I watched Bishop’s face fall for a fraction of a second and knew the answer was another no lead trail of bullshit.
“Tried the easiest route first. No results had enough quantifiable DNA to claim a relation.” Bishop watched the empty bullpen. He was a last-one-out type of guy and he really needed to set personal boundaries for his own health. “You guys should head home. Weather gets unpredictable this time of year.”
What should have been a statement of concern was really laced with defeat. He knew we’d get nowhere tonight, like every other night. It was late enough that I didn’t fight it or try to draw out the truth. I took our flashing neon sign of a cue and gathered our stuff.
“Which boxes can I take home?” We still had several to comb through, and if he didn’t want to stay up here then I’d easily manage it at the house. He grabbed the clipboard with an itemized spreadsheet and scanned the rows.
“We’ve actually knocked a lot out the past couple of days. How many do you want?”
“Three to five shouldn’t be too hard of a task for both of us over the weekend.” I looked at Jaiden for confirmation and he gave me the timeless nod.
“Sounds good to me. Take boxes thirty-three through thirty-seven.”
Seventeen
August 17, 2025
Bexley Wells
Hardwood floors were about ascomfortable as a sidewalk. My back ached even as I lay on the fluffy white rug covering the center of my office space. Granted, I’d been here for the past hour talking to Mari on the phone.
“Do you want me to come over and sort through it all with you?” Something crinkled in the background, and I heard a smack of skin.
“Did Kel try to steal your chips?”
“Yes! I even told him I was going to the store and if he wanted any snacks for his game room to let me know. Did he? No, of course not. So when I got home and settled, he thought he’d just sneak a few. I told him to count his days.” Kel’s laughter came through afterward and I smiled to myself. After some shuffling, Kel’s voice came next.
“Is Jai still wanting to ride tonight?”
“As far as I know, yes. He went to get ready a bit ago. I’ll tell him to message you beforehand.”
“Thanks, girl,” he said before handing the phone back to Mari.
“Get your own best friend!” she yelled at him.
“He has one.” I laughed. “And he’s about to steal your aggravation away. Your chips are safe.” Groaning, I pushed myself off the floor. “Let me let you go. Get the last forty-five minutes or so in with him and I’ll keep you updated on what I find out.”
“You sure it’s not too much?”
“No, I’ll be fine to handle it myself. Jaiden helped me tremendously yesterday with cataloging, and I think all that’s left is a box of pictures. Actually, I was just saying earlier that I needed to call Bishop and have him get a few more boxes ready for me. Pretty sure there were still unread journals, so we’ll see how that goes.” I pulled the last box to me and took the lid off, absentmindedly moving the items around.
“If you say so. Once you get an idea going in that pretty head, there’s no stopping it.”
“Do you recall any family members Brent possibly mentioned? There wasn’t anything written in the journals about this Nicky person in great detail.” I tossed one of the bags back into the box, debating if I even cared to continue tonight. A bubble bath called to me, and pampering cured everything.
“No one extended. I was under the impression it was just him and his mom.”
“How did I miss the fact that his dad was out of the picture?”
She laughed like it was obvious. “Did you spend a lot of time talking to him growing up?”
“No, I pretty much avoided him like the plague.” A shiver worked down my spine at the memory of our childhood interactions. I sighed. “Okay, I see your point. Seriously this time, go hang out with Kel before Jai swings by. I’ll call you guys tomorrow. Maybe we can cook out this week if you guys are free.”
