“Is he aware Pete was helping you?”

“Probably. He heard Pete was asking questions about him up in Burning Oaks. You can imagine how popular that notion was. Once Pete got killed, it was like Ned went underground. I think he was trying to figure out if his precious stuff was still out there somewhere. In the meantime, I can’t say he’s nice to me, but at least he doesn’t threaten me so much.”

I stared at her. “Do you know how crazy you sound?”

“I was crazy all the years I put up with his abuse. Now I’ve got him right there.” The gesture she made would have been appropriate for pinching a bug between her thumb and index finger.

“What happens if he realizes you’re as clueless as he is?”

“I hope to be gone by then. If not, I’ll shoot him with the same gun he used to kill his dog and plead temporary insanity. Given what he’s told everyone about my mental state, who could believe otherwise?”

“I don’t understand what you’re waiting for. Why not get in the car and go while you can?”

She shook her head. “For the moment, he’s convinced everything’s fine, which means he’ll go away as planned. If he suspects anything’s amiss, he’ll cancel his trip. If I can just get him out of here, I’ll have a three-day head start.”

I was shaking my head in despair, but I didn’t know what else to do. I couldn’t see an alternative. She knew him better than I did. I wanted to put her in the car and hightail it out of there, but I couldn’t talk her into it. “I guess you know what you’re doing,” I said.

“Oh, right. Something I forgot about. Along with the ticket stubs and stuff like that, he had this junky bunch of costume jewelry; mostly earrings. They were in with the rest of his souvenirs.”

I felt my heart catch. “Souvenirs?”

“Well, not souvenirs exactly, but mementos; reminders of where he’s been.”

I pressed a business card into her hand. “I want you to call me as soon as you’re somewhere safe. I mean this. If you need me to drive down and pick you up, just say the word.”

“I will.”

“Do you swear?”

She raised her right hand and I took that as an oath.

36

When I got home, I shuffled through my index cards until I’d found Christian Satterfield’s home phone number. The last time I’d called, Pauline had made short work of me. I was still operating on the assumption she was Christian’s grandmother. This time when I dialed, I had a better handle on the situation.

After two rings, she picked up with the same gruff “Hello.”

I said, “Hi, Pauline. This is Kinsey. You remember me? Christian’s friend. We met when you and Geraldine were living over on Dave Levine Street.”

There was a pause while she tried to place me. “I don’t believe I do, but that was some years ago.”