Page 26 of Fire Harbor

“Cucumbers are easy to grow as long as you keep the slugs away from them. I pickle almost every batch— which is different than canning—by storing them in the fridge in this briny mixture of kosher salt, white vinegar, along with a little sugar and water. But I throw in some coriander and mustard seeds for contrasting spice, toss in some peppercorn and a bay leaf.” She put a hand to her mouth. “Sorry. I rattle on sometimes. It’s another bad habit of mine.”

“I like hearing you talk.” He made a left turn onto Ocean Street and headed northward. He could tell the storm had already downed a few trees in the area, leaving a path of branches and debris strewn across the roadway. Linus navigated around the mess and drove up the hill, pulling into the parking lot about the time the National Weather Service broke into regular programming to announce that the storm had started to intensify along the coast. The broadcast came with a flood advisory. “Does your house have a history of losing power during storms?”

She began to unpack her tote bag with the sandwiches and Thermos, handing off two stainless steel cups and filling each one with tea. “Sometimes. Why?”

“We should go back to your house and throw together an emergency kit for you in case it happens tonight,” he said, turning the pickup around.

She laid a hand on his arm. “No need. I’m already prepared in the event I lose power—a first aid kit, flashlights, candles, extra water, and even a backup generator.”

“Does it run on natural gas or propane? Does it kick on automatically during an outage? Does it deliver enough wattage for your essential appliances, like the refrigerator or heater?”

She grinned at him. “Listen to you. Dad installed a solar-powered one in the basement that runs off two solar panels on the side of the house. It stores up energy for emergencies. But it doesn’t kick in automatically. It needs to be switched on manually. I’m telling you, I’m as earthquake-prepared as any home around here. That includes being prepared for severe weather. I’ve seen my share of nasty Pacific storms that pack a punch. Central California has been overdue for an atmospheric river for several years now. Even what’s known as a ‘Pineapple Express’ could trigger flooding along the coast in low-lying areas. Because of that, I’ve seen to it that the library has a fully stocked basement filled with all kinds of emergency supplies for the kids if they should get stranded at school.”

He grinned and took his first bite of egg salad. “This is good. I guess I should’ve known you’d be prepared for anything.”

Lake looked out the truck’s window. As far as the eye could see was nothing but black clouds approaching inland, drifting toward them. “Full disclosure. Not everything. Not this time. I didn’t realize until that weather alert just now that the forecast called for an intensifying storm and flash flooding. I spent last night thinking about missing women and serial killers, not weather-related problems.”

She twisted in her seat. “Now what is it you found at the bridge? Show me.”

He placed his sandwich on the console so he could dig in his pocket and pulled out the gold chain, still in the bank envelope but now visible through a plastic baggie. “I found this about seventy-five yards from where I discovered the skull. It was underneath the bridge almost to that thick wall of tangled vines. You know the one I mean?”

“No, not really. I’ve never ventured underneath the bridge, never wanted to go check out the wetlands or its tangled vines. But lots of people visit that preserve, birdwatchers go down there all the time. Kelly Ecklund tried to reforest that area with kelp. It didn’t work like it did here in town. She found that the ecosystem was too fragile due to pollution and a heavy accumulation of sediment. How far back did you say you went?”

“About seventy-five yards from the sandbanks. I had to stop because I didn’t have anything to use to chop my way through the rest of the undergrowth. And get this, Brent asked Birk and Beckett to bring their search dogs and sweep that area later this afternoon.”

“In this storm? I bet not. Brent will probably hold off on that until the storm goes by us. I can’t believe you decided to get a jump on all of them and go out there by yourself.” She stared at the medallion before reaching to take the baggie so she could inspect the necklace closer. “That’s a zodiac sign—Virgo—symbolized by the long-haired virgin or the maiden. The flower is a cute addition to the design but isn’t an integral part of the Virgo symbol. It’s solid gold, though, not an inexpensive trinket.”

“I think it might’ve belonged to Gabby Moreland.”

“Interesting. But I think I read somewhere that Gabby’s birthday was in June, the 18th, which would make her a Gemini, not a Virgo. Virgo runs from August 23rd to September 22nd.”

Linus puffed out a frustrated breath and ran a hand through his hair. “In that case, it might belong to one of the other missing women.”

“We need to check the names and birthdates of our missing women. I’ll see if I can run down that information tonight. I won’t do personal stuff at work, though, no matter what.” She shrugged. “It’s simply a rule I have. The laptops we have in the computer area are for public use. I don’t look over anyone’s shoulder while they’re researching something. But I use my desktop computer only for work-related business.”

“And you discovered something weird you said?”

“Oh, yeah. I did. Jolene told me that our true crime section is completely void of books on serial killers. So I looked up all the books listed in that category. Our records show all those books about serial killers have gone missing. Every. Single. One. The last book that was actually checked out by anyone was last summer—July 1st—when Sheena Howser checked out the Zodiac Killer.”

“The nurse Sheena Howser from the hospital?”

“One and the same. The book is still outstanding.”

“What do you mean outstanding? Do you mean overdue? So Sheena’s accruing fines at ten cents a day since last July?”

Lake frowned. “If we charged for overdue books, yes. First of all, ever since taking this job, we’ve been a fine-free library. Studies show that charging overdue fees goes against our mission to provide free and equal access to information. Poorer communities suffer. My own research shows that in Pelican Pointe, ninety-nine-point-nine percent of our borrowers return their books on time. And our library is connected to our schools. Punishing children from checking out books because they failed to pay a fine would be unfair and archaic.”

“But someone just ripped off your entire true crime section,” Linus pointed out. “How much will that cost in the long run?”

“I’ll need to run the numbers and replace those books eventually.”

“Did you ever stop to think that maybe the person responsible for our missing women is the one who stole the books?”

“It’s certainly not Sheena.”

“When I see her again, I’ll ask her about the book she checked out in July and find out why she hasn’t brought it back,” Linus said, polishing off his sandwich. “Let’s try that pickle.”

Lake fished out the plastic container, popped the lid, and offered the largest one to him. “One less book I’ll need to replace if she could bring it back.”

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