“No, it couldn’t be her. Probably her parents, though.” His large hands touched the stone crevices, feeling where they met so perfectly.

Genuinely curious, I asked, “Why couldn’t it be? Did she get married and move away?”

“No. She went missing—sometime in the 1850s, I believe.” I felt liked someone kicked me in the gut, but Ashland didn’t seem to notice. He continued, “It was a serious scandal for the time. They looked for her for years, even made some accusations, but no one was ever arrested. Lots of people have tried to discover her whereabouts; even my mother was obsessed with finding her. It consumed her life her last few years. I’m sure she often thought of her when she came out here.”

I heard the sadness in his voice; this obviously touched him deeply. “It is a riveting story,” I said. “Young heiress goes missing. She must have been something of a celebrity in her time.”

He nodded. “I expect she was. And Miss Cottonwood wasn’t just wealthy; she was extremely wealthy, the heir of two fortunes, the daughter of two established families.”

Although standing in the woods with Ashland was many a girl’s dream come true, all I could think of was getting back to the apartment to pore over the first journal, Calpurnia’s journal. I had to know what happened to her. We stood looking at the mausoleum and the crosses. Except for the buzzing of mosquitos, all was quiet. “Thank you for sharing this with me, Ashland. This is an amazing find. I’ll have to come back with a decent camera.”

He wiped the sweat off his forehead with his hand. “You’re welcome. We’d better get back. As hot as it is, it will probably rain soon.”

As we trekked back to the house, my mind raced through the possibilities. I now had two missions: find both Muncie and Calpurnia. Where could she be? My mind naturally went to the most likely suspect, her father. I knew his brutality firsthand.

“Did you hear me?” Ashland asked.

“I’m sorry. No, I didn’t. What did you say?”

He sighed a little. “I asked you to dinner.”

I shrugged. “Sure, but I’m not much of a cook if it’s potluck.”

He laughed out loud. “What? Why would I ask you to dinner and ask you to cook?”

My eyes widened. “Oh, dinner…so, not for everyone…just me and you? I thought you…um…”

Ashland chuckled. “Wow, I feel like I’m in high school here. Listen, Carrie Jo, don’t feel compelled to say yes because you work for me. And contrary to what you might think, I’m not usually this forward.”

I felt my brow furrow. “I don’t think anything at all. You just caught me off guard a little—I guess I was daydreaming. I would like that, but I have to do something first. Can I get back to you?” I smiled at him.

“Okay…are you seeing someone?” Ashland looked anxious, but I didn’t want to explain that I needed to “break up” with William. Even though William and I had kissed just once, I felt like I owed him some honesty, if nothing else. Carrie Jo Jardine was not the kind of girl to two-time.