Page 42 of Little Stolen Memories

“Earlier, at Millie’s cabin, I discovered someone had left a message on the wall,” I said. “The same message was on a note found on Cora’s car.”

My mother turned toward me. “Yes, yes, I heard. When you say a message, what do you mean, a threat?”

“Yes.”

“Well, don’t keep us in suspense. What did it say?”

I told her.

“As soon as I read the message, I tried to get in touch with Cora, and then I learned she was missing,” I said.

“Missing for how long?”

“I don’t know. Whitlock tried speaking to Ginger about what Cora’s been up to today. She wasn’t in the mood to talk.”

My mother slid her handbag off her shoulder, handed it to Harvey, and rolled up her sleeves. “Where is she? Give me five minutes with the woman. I’ll have her singing like a lark.”

I shook my head. “You can’t. She’s in her bedroom with Aunt Laura right now, and she’s not doing well. The last thing she needs is to be questioned. I’m not saying she won’t be. I’m saying she isn’t ready yet, and we need to respect that. The more we show her some respect, the better chance we have of her telling us what she knows.”

“Time is wasting, Georgiana. You know that better than anyone.”

“I do. I also know Aunt Laura, and she’s aware of what we want to know. Let’s give her a chance to see if she can get Ginger to open up.”

My mother crossed her arms and said, “How long do you expect us to wait? Doesn’t Ginger understand we have questions because we’re trying to help?”

Harvey cut in, no doubt attempting to alleviate my mother’s concerns. “Let’s give Laura a chance at least.”

His attempt to calm my mother down did not go as expected.

“If we’re of no use here, then why are we here?” my mother stated. “I don’t see the point.”

Giovanni, who had a talent of getting through to my mother in a way no one else could, took his turn at calming her.

“Darlene, I was thinking of going for a drive. There’s nothing to do here. Not right now. If you care to join me, I’ll tell you all about our visit to the cabin today. I think you’ll find it fascinating.”

In truth, fascinating wasn’t anywhere near the right word to describe what we’d seen. But I hoped his suggestion worked.

My mother shot me a look, then Harvey, back to Giovanni. “I would love to join you. Thank you, Giovanni, for making me feel like a part of it all. No one else seems to care.”

I let the passive-aggressive comment slide and said nothing.

She took back her purse from Harvey and turned, leaving the room without saying another word. Giovanni planted a kiss on my forehead, and I wrapped my arms around him, whispering, “Thank you.”

Once they were outside, Harvey took a seat on the couch, leaning back like he wanted to melt into it.

“I need your advice, Georgiana,” he said.

“Of course. How can I help?”

“I don’t know what to do. Your mother … she’s becoming too involved. Makes me want to step back, let you and Whitlock finish the investigation. If we keep going like this, I’m not sure I can handle it.”

“Do you want to take a step back?”

“I don’t. It’s just … ever since she offered her ‘help,’ my blood pressure has gone way up.”

“Is she aware?”

He scoffed. “Not a bit. She thinks being involved in the case will somehow help me. It’s not. It’s making things worse.”

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