Page 55 of Distress Signal
“Between the last time I talked to her and getting the call from Lane about coming out here to identify a body, less than two days had passed.” Unbidden, a few tears splashed free, and I angrily swiped at my face. “I should’ve known though. Ididknow.” I tapped my heart. “I could tell things weren’t right, but I was giving her the benefit of the doubt. Praying I was wrong.”
I’d never forgive myself for that, for not following my intuition.
Especially after that last text.
Goddesses, what the fuck had I been thinking?
Dropping my head, I buried my face in my hands, willing myself to pull my shit together. A gentle touch encircled my wrist, but I didn’t move, not yet, content for the moment to let Aspen’s silent presence soothe me.
Once I’d collected myself, Aspen asked, “So where does that leave the investigation?”
“I have no idea,” I admitted. “After the sheriff threw that accusation at me, I stormed out.”
Aspen nodded sympathetically. “As much as I had to admit it, and as big of an asshole Lane can be, he’s a hell of a cop.”
“I just feel like there have to be more leads they could be running down. Why does it seem like the investigation is stalled out? I handed over Lainey’s laptop a month ago. And what about security footage from the bar? I know this is a small town, but there have to be cameras, right?”
“Oh yeah, I’m sure Trey is all over that.”
“Why would Trey be working on it?”
“He’s kind of a tech savant, and he owns his own security company.” Aspen sighed. “Look, these things take time. I know it’s not what you want to hear, but you have to trust that your sister is still out there somewhere, alive. And we’ll find her.”
“How can you be so sure?”
Aspen grinned, looking a little feral—in a good way.
“Because now you’ve got me.”
I blinked in surprise, not entirely sure I’d heard her correctly.
“Are…what?” I asked dumbly.
“You know who I am,” she said. “And you know what I do. This isliterallymy area of expertise, Reagan. Please, let me help.”
The absolutelastthing I expected when I came to town for my meeting with Lane today was to run into Aspen McKay.
Having her offer to help me investigate my sister’s case was…incredibly generous of her, considering I knew she was busy with her business, burgeoning writing career, and planning a wedding.
But she wouldn’t take no for an answer, despite my refusal and attempt to dissuade her. Honestly, it had been for show anyway. Truthfully, I was excited to have someone looking into things who wasn’t restricted by the same protocols Lane and his department was.
We spent more than two hours in the diner, chatting over our meals, then dessert, then the iced coffee Bonnie brought us without asking when it became obvious we had no plans of moving anytime soon.
First, we went over what I did know in regard to my sister’s disappearance. I passed along what little information I had, told her about Lainey’s stalker, and I shared with her all of the lingering questions I still had.
While I spoke, Aspen didn’t take any notes or record our conversation. She simply let me ramble, listening intently, her attention wholly focused on me.
Her belief in me, her obvious desire tohelpme, had me deciding to place my trust in her.
Which is why I also told her about the copies I’d kept of Lainey’s journals, and the small fact that I hadn’t told that to the police when I handed the originals over.
“Have you read them? Has anything jumped out?”
I shook my head, and the smooth skin between her eyebrows creased, so I rushed to clarify. “I haven’t read them. I-I’m not ready.”
“Understandable,” she said. “For years after Lola died, pretty much up until I graduated and left for college, my parents’ kept her room exactly as it had been. Though she was getting ready to graduate college by then, little about it had changed since she finished high school. Sometimes, I’d walk by the closed door and hear my mother in there crying, but I never could bring myself to enter.”
“Did you ever?”
