Page 40 of Little Empty Promises

“I found a book in Cordelia’s library,” I said.

“I heard she owned hundreds of them.”

“She did, and I’ve just been through them all.”

“Why would you go through every single one of her books?”

I sat in a chair, crossing one leg over the other.“Seems crazy, right?You might want to sit down for what I’m about to say next.”

She shrugged.“I’m good where I’m at.”

Where she wasatwas across the room, leaning against the wall, holding the doggo in her arms.

“Before I tell you what I found, I’m going to share something Cordelia’s sister told me when we met yesterday to discuss her case,” I said.

Another shrug.“Okay.”

“Cordelia was a people watcher.”

“What do you mean?”

“When they were younger, Claudette said her sister used to take notes about things she saw and heard around town.”

Rosalyn’s eyes dropped to the floor.She chewed on her lower lip and then pet her dog.Without looking up, she asked, “Why would she do that?”

“I don’t know.I guess she was a curious person.Since this was something Cordelia did many years ago, Claudette wasn’t sure whether her sister had continued doing it throughout her life.They hadn’t spoken in a long time.”

“I’m guessing this has to do with the reason you’re here?”

“It does.Inside one of Cordelia’s books, I found a few pages of notebook paper.She’d written some detailed notes.Based on those notes, it looks like she hadn’t given up on her habit of people watching and documenting what she witnessed.”

“How do you know the notes aren’t old, like from before, when she was younger?If they were tucked away in a book, anything she wrote could have been written a long time ago.”

“The notes had dates.”

She peered up at me.“Dates?From when?”

“They’re from this year,” I said.“The first entry on the page was written in June, and the last entry was a few weeks ago.I’d like to read a few of them to you, if you don’t mind.”

“Can you just give them to me?I can read them for myself.”

“I’d rather not,” I said.

I proceeded to go over the highlights of Cordelia’s notes.At the end, I drove it home with the final words, where Cordelia thought she’d been caught spying.And that she wondered if she could help the woman … help her get away.

When I finished, I folded the notebook pages, tucking them into my bag.Then I glanced at Rosalyn to gauge her reaction.Her eyes were watery, like she was fighting off the urge to cry, but she didn’t.

She walked over to where I was sitting, sinking into the chair across from me.

“Whoever Cordelia was spying on, she felt bad for what she’d seen,” I said.“She also felt the urge to help the woman, which makes me wonder if she ever got the chance.”

“The woman she was talking about could be anyone.”

“I’d be inclined to believe you if Cordelia had gotten out of the house more often, but based on the entry dates, the notes were taken after her husband died.And from what I’ve heard, Cordelia was so distraught over his death, she didn’t leave the house often.It was only when my mother pushed her to take the volunteer position at the library that she started getting out more.”

“So, she did get out.Maybe she overheard or saw something that concerned her at the library.”

It made sense why she’d suggest such a thing.When I’d read the notes to her, I skipped around and hadn’t shared much more than the highlights.

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