Page 11 of Happily Never After

“You figured out who William Hickory is?”

“We have a lead. Our best people are working on it.”

That was a common refrain. She pulled her phone out of her purse and stared at the handwritten riddle Barney had presented to her father the week before. Apparently he had grown tired of waiting for her to visit him again, because he had abruptly changed tactics to handing riddles over to the feds.

“It’s been almost a week. I can’t believe they don’t have anything yet. ‘Where William Hickory paid the ultimate price.’” She had Googled the phrase a thousand times over the last week, but so far the internet had failed her.

“He assured me it’s another body location.” Jack dipped a spoon into the sauce and grimaced before twisting a salt mill over the bubbling pot.

She pursed her lips. What kind of monster murdered innocent women and then made the feds solve riddles in order to lay them to rest?

Her stomach hitched. She had nearly forgotten about the impending sentencing hearing. If she couldn’t show the judgewhat he had cost her, he could end up with the minimum sentence. He would be knitting underwear blankets and dumping bodies again before the feds ever had time to build a case.

Rosie whined and licked her ankle.

“They’re doing what they can,” Jack added. He turned to look at her, and there was a flicker of worry in his brown eyes.

“Are you sure he’s even telling the truth?” Claire asked. “That he’s not just wasting your time? He’s not exactly known for having a stellar reputation. I’ve Googled this phrase a hundred times and can’t find mention of anyone with that name.”

“He didn’t lie about Kayley’s remains. We’re not sure if this will really lead to Jennifer, but if there’s even a chance that this will lead to closure for another family, we have to figure it out.”

He opened the small pantry door next to the refrigerator and pressed another hidden button. An LED screen flickered to life on the back of the door. Jack tapped the screen repeatedly, and eventually a map with a blinking red dot appeared.

“Oh, good, your sister’s almost here,” he said before snapping the door shut.

“Brianna really doesn’t care that you track her like this?” Claire raised her eyebrows.

“I only do it with her consent. She wears the tracker on a bracelet, and she could take it off at any time. She’s a public figure. She knows how important personal safety is, unlike some of my other children.” He pointed a sauce-covered spoon at her.

“Oh, there are more of us? Good to know, I was hoping I wouldn’t have to wait for my genealogy report to come back to learn about your second secret family.”

“Will you set the table?” The ghost of a smile was back.

“Sure.” She opened a cabinet and drew out a stack of cobalt-colored plates.

Rosie barked and charged the front door.

The door popped open and a moment later, in a cloud of Marc Jacobs perfume, Brianna appeared.

“Claire!”

She gave her half sister a tight hug despite the fact that they had seen each other less than twenty-four hours ago.

“Daddy,” Brianna added, giving him a kiss on the cheek and a hug from behind. “Where’s Mom?” She stooped to pick up Rosie and held her on her hip like a baby, rubbing her behind the ears.

“Naked gardening,” Claire and Jack said together.

Brianna grimaced, revealing a set of sparkling white, perfectly straight teeth. “That time of year already, huh?” She set the dog down and took the plates from Claire. They barely made a sound as she arranged them on the table. This irritating gracefulness must have come from Tanya, as Claire couldn’t even walk through the kitchen without rattling the china cabinet.

“Guess what?” Claire said conspiratorially as they crowded around the small, square table, folding paper napkins and laying cutlery.

“Luke proposed?” Brianna gasped and grabbed her left hand.

Claire laughed. “No, but he did get nominated for an Emmy.”

Her sister let out a shriek. Jack dropped his wooden spoon and, with blinding speed, unstrapped the 9mm handgun he always wore on his ankle.

“Relax, Dad.” Brianna grabbed Claire’s hands and jumped. “This is huge! I’ll send a congratulations gift basket. Is he a scotch or whiskey guy? Whiskey, right? Never mind, we can talk about it later. Tell me everything!”

---