Page 90 of Snow Creek

I smile. He’s probably eating his third muffin of the day.

“A lawyer from Bellevue,” I repeat. “Sounds pricey.”

“Rolex-type guy.”

“Aunt Laurna?”

He takes a big bite. “Yeah.”

I shake my head and put down the muffin. “Her niece killed her sister and brother-in-law.”

“The aunt refuses to believe it.”

“She’ll be in for a rude awakening when we unlock the phone.”

“Could be. Remember, it’s not our case. It’s Clallam’s.”

Of course, I know that.

“Right. We’re opening the phone for our case, and if we stumble onto something that’ll help Clallam, we’re good with that, right?”

He eats the rest of his muffin.

I dial Laurna right away. She answers after several rings. I don’t even bother with a hello.

“Laurna, what’s going on? You know what Ellie did.”

“Look, Detective, I saw it was you and I wasn’t going to pick up. I am told by Ellie’s lawyer that I shouldn’t talk to any police. It could hurt her case.”

I’m exasperated, and my tone shows it. “What case? You know what she did, Laurna.”

She breathes into the phone.

She’s thinking. Deciding. Maybe preparing a lie.

“Yes, I do. I know. She said she was abused. I believe her. I have a way of connecting with her that allows me to see through the veil of any lies she might be telling.”

My heart sinks lower and lower. I don’t even know what to say. I hold my tongue and let her finish.

“She’s my sister’s child. I don’t have any of my own. Surely you can understand that every young person’s life is worth fighting for.”

I want to tell her she’s right, the kind of PC remark that fills Twitter when people are outraged.

I don’t.

“Take care, Laurna,” I say, hanging up.

Good luck with that, I think.

Forty-Two

At 11 p.m. my phone pings on my nightstand.

I think I was asleep, but I’m not sure. I’m in that state somewhere between thinking about the events of that day and revisiting old wounds by facing things that I thought better forgotten.

It’s Marley Yang from the crime lab.

“Detective Carpenter, my techs got the Burbank girl’s phone opened. Tons there. Sending what I have now. Want to go over it in person. More work to do. Need direction. I’ll be at your office at 7:30.”

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