“No problem with using the computer,” Cord said. “I have another question for you.” He told Eddie about his mother, Julie Hollister—at least that had been her name thirty-some years ago. He gave a brief summary of what had happened—his father’s death in the military, his mother’s negligence, which had led to the intervention of Child Services, and finally how he’d ended up here, raised by his grandparents. “Could you see what you can find out about Julie and where she is now? If she’s still alive… I’ll pay whatever it takes.”

“Sure.” Eddie turned to Shallie. “Are you okay with that? If we work on both cases at the same time?”

“Of course!”

Cord said, “I’ve never considered looking for her before. I always thought of her as the woman who basically abandoned me at a very young age. But Shallie’s search for her own mother has inspired me. Maybe it’s a need for—and I hate this word—closure. And maybe I need to learn if there were any extenuating circumstances. Find out who she is, who she was and why she did it.”

“Yeah,” Eli murmured, “I think you should try to find out.”

After Eddie had sent the emails, he and Eli left. Shallie said a hasty good-night, then rushed into the house, followed by Bandit.

Cord figured her reaction, her need to be alone, had to be connected to what she’d just learned about her father. That seemed obvious enough. He felt distraught for Shallie, but thought he should give her a chance to deal with it privately; he’d talk to her when she seemed ready, offer what advice and comfort he could. Which probably wouldn’t be much, but he’d do his best.

To suddenly find out that your father was a criminal and possibly a killer…

SHALLIE ESCAPED TO her room. She was horrified by what she’d discovered about her father. No, it wasn’t a complete surprise—but worse than she’d expected. And she couldn’t stop wondering if he’d murdered Christine. Maybe her body had never been found or identified.

Thinking about everything she’d just learned, she was almost terrified to learn more. She realized she should look at the material Eddie had sent, but decided she couldn’t cope with it now.

As she got into her nightclothes, Bandit lay beside the bed. “You keeping me company, boy?” He wagged his tail as if he understood. It didn’t take her long to fall asleep.

When she and the dog went downstairs the next morning, she remembered they were supposed to have Carly’s meeting on Monday. Except…no. According to a text she’d sent at 6 a.m., Carly had put it off. Wednesday, she said now.