Page 5 of Ten Years Later
Mia: Oh, wow. I didn’t know you were trying.
Dana: One night stand oopsy.
Mia: Yikes. But…you sound happy.
Dana: I am so very happy! I always wanted to be a mother.
Mia: Does the father know?
Dana: Honestly I don’t remember his name.
Sure she could look him up on the dating site, but Dana chose to keep this all to herself.
Mia: Happens to the best of us.
Dana loved that response.
Mia: Keep me posted!
Dana: Will do.
Without looking at the father’s identity, Dana deleted her dating profile. She also messaged Mia, asking for her number, then deleted her Facebook account. Maybe she was being paranoid, but Dana didn’t want to risk the father finding out.
This baby belonged to her.
Dana focused on a healthy pregnancy. She ate all the correct things. She babyproofed her apartment. She spent what little savings she had accumulated on newborn stuff.
At thirty-nine weeks, she gave birth to a healthy baby girl.
She named her Emily.
3 /CURRENT DAY
Keaton leftCora’s place and drove to the police station. On the way, his phone rang. Zane’s name popped up. Keaton sent it to voicemail.
Icy air hit him when he walked into the precinct. The young receptionist wore a thick white cardigan. She grinned brightly. He asked for Detective Sparks.
Many minutes later, the tall and curvy woman strolled through the secure door that led to the back. She wore dark wash jeans and a tucked in polo—what she always wore, at least when Keaton saw her.
She greeted him with forced patience. “Keaton, how are you?”
There was no time for pleasantries. “I saw her,” he said. “I promise I did. I’ve already talked to Cora. I know where Vivian is. You have to go get her.”
Detective Sparks motioned him over to a corner of the lobby. They sat beside each other on a bench. Ten years ago when Vivian disappeared, Detective Sparks searched endlessly to find her. Keaton wished she maintained that level of dedication now, but she only took his calls and visits out of pity.
Her big bust raised on a deep breath. A hint of gray roots stretched tight with her snug blond French braid. Her lips puffed out, filling the air with cinnamon.
She said, “You know how invested I was. I worked tirelessly. The kind of grief that comes with the loss of a child is deep. I get that. It’s been ten years, but for you it’s still raw and new. You’re not moving on. Did you contact that grief counselor I told you about?”
“I don’t need a grief counselor. I need you to go to her school and get her.”
“That’s not happening. She is gone. She died in the ocean and was swept out to sea. We found her floaties down the beach. People saw her go into the water.”
“No, they didn’t. People remembered where I left her in the tide pool. No one witnessed her go in the water. Theythoughtthey saw a little girl go in the water. What about that silver SUV? A ton of people reported that it drove off the beach.”
“Because the silver SUV was going home. Whoever was in it didn’t realize something happened. A lot of people didn’t realize. The place was packed.”
“Her birthmark is the same.” Keaton touched the spot just below his ear. “Pale brown.”
