A car pulled up behind me and the driver gave a quick, polite beep of his horn.

I said, "I'll catch you later at the motel."

"Give me fifteen minutes."

We ate supper in Dolan's room, which Stacey had by now adopted as his own. Both of us sat on the king-size bed, sharing a bucket of franchised fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, and watery com on the cob. Once we finished, I gathered the chicken bones, empty cartons, and used plasticware and tossed everything in the trash. Stacey wanted me to stay and watch a movie, but I was ready for a break. I'm not accustomed to spending so much time in the company of others. "If you need me, I'll be in my room. Otherwise, I'll see you in the morning."

"Great. I'll knock on your door at eight. That'll give you time to shower and get dressed."

"Oh shoot. I just remembered. The only thing I have with me are blue jeans."

"No problem. We don't have to go in. We can wait in the parking lot and follow them home."

"Why not go straight to the house?"

"What if they change their minds and decide to go out for Sunday lunch? This may be the only chance we have to talk to them together."

"You think she'd give up the chance to cook her big Easter dinner?"

"Probably not, but I want to see the congregation all dressed up," he said. "We used to do that as kids."

"You're not going to let me get out of this, are you?" He smiled benignly. "Enjoy your evening."

Chapter 23

Chapter 23

The phone was ringing as I unlocked my door. I dropped my bag and plucked the handset from the cradle on what must have been the fourth or fifth ring. A woman said, "Is this Kinsey?"

"Sure, who's this?"

"Iona. My mom said you called looking for me."

"Where are you, in Creosote?"

"Peaches. I just got in. What do you want?"

"Did you talk to Pudgie Clifton Thursday night?"

"I might have called him," she said, cautiously. "Why do you ask?"

"Did you make arrangements to see him?"

"Why would I do that? He's a low-life punk."

"His sister said you were pissed at him. What was that about?"

"None of your business. That's between him and me."

"All right. Let's try this one. Your mother tells me you spent time in Lompoc as a kid. I'm wondering if you told Pudgie about the quarry up there."

Dead silence.

"You remember telling him about that? I'm talking about the one where the girl's body was found."

"How would I know where the body was found?"

"Oh come on, Iona. Don't play games with me. I don't care if you told him. I just want the information."

"I might have."

"You might have, or you did?"