Page 86 of The Women of Oak Ridge
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN:MAE
I’D NEVER HAD A HANGOVER,but the way I felt when I arrived for the morning shift at K-25 must surely be close. My head throbbed. My stomach rebelled at the thought of food. My eyes were bleary and bloodshot. But unlike the girls in the dorm who sometimes suffered the malady from too much strong drink, my condition was brought on by something far worse.
I’d awakened to a pitch-black room sometime after midnight. My body was stiff from lying on the hard wood, and I’d been confused as to why I was on the floor. The bulb on the lamp had burned out, but the moment I flicked the switch to the overhead light and saw Sissy’s Christmas gifts from her family, fresh agony flooded my entire being.
Clive killed Sissy.
Those awful words rolled through my brain, over and over, like a record album with a deep scar. There was no other explanation for Sissy’s sudden disappearance. While I had assumed she was home with her family, they thought she was safe in Oak Ridge.Her mother’s letter, however, revealed the truth. Clive had lied. About everything.
I’d stayed awake the rest of the night, vacillating between grief and despair, fear and revulsion. I’d cried until I had no more tears left. After that, I became angry. I railed at God for letting this happen, demanding answers. Sissy believed in him, so why didn’t he protect her? Why allow Clive to get away with the evil things he’d done?
After I readied for work and caught a bus to K-25, different questions poured into my mind.
What should I do now? Who could I tell? Would anyone believe me?
The evidence pointed to Clive’s guilt, but his position at Clinton Engineer Works afforded him a level of respect someone like me didn’t possess. Although I could hand over the documents hidden behind the headboard to the authorities, they would only prove that he was a spy. It would be much more difficult to convince anyone he was involved in murder. Other than finding Sissy’s badge in his trailer, I had no tangible proof of his guilt. No proof that Sissy was even dead.
A grisly thought nearly brought me to my knees as I clocked in for the day.
Only the discovery of Sissy’s body would lead to Clive’s arrest.
The very idea brought on nausea, making me grimace when I walked into the maintenance shop. Mr. Colby stood just inside the entry, talking to one of the workers, but when he glanced my way, his expression told me I must look a fright.
After he finished with the employee, he said, “Willett, my office. Now.”
Once the door was closed and we’d each taken a seat, he asked, “What’s going on, Mae? You look awful.”
The fact that he’d used my first name caused tears to spring tomy eyes. How I wished I could tell him the truth, but I’d sound like a raving lunatic. Until I had more evidence, I had to pretend everything was fine.
“I didn’t sleep much last night. I don’t feel well.”
“You don’t look well.” He hesitated. “Is there something else you want to tell me?”
My head shot up. Had Clive gotten to my boss? Told him more lies? “About what, sir?”
His gaze narrowed on me. “Ever since that MP showed up, you’ve been different. I have a mind to call Morrison in here and get to the bottom of things.”
My eyes widened. “Please don’t do that, sir.”
He studied me for a long moment before he leaned back in his chair. “Did you know I have a daughter?” At the shake of my head, he continued. “Belle is ten years old, and as precocious as they come. I’d do everything in my power to keep that girl safe. I’d do the same for you, too, Willett. So, if there is anything—anything—you want to tell me, now is your chance.”
My heart hammered.
How I longed to blurt out the entire, horrific story, right here in the privacy of Mr. Colby’s office. But the only thing I could prove with any certainty was Clive’s traitorous behavior. If he was arrested for spying, would the military police look into Sissy’s disappearance? Doubtful, since people left Oak Ridge every week with little to no notice. It wasn’t unusual for someone to simply not show up for work or disappear from the dormitory. The authorities would be more concerned about Clive’s espionage than a missing girl. As much as I loved my country and despised what Clive was doing, proving he was responsible for Sissy vanishing was far more important to me than the secret documents he snuck out of K-25 and gave to the Russians.
I shook my head. “There’s nothing to tell, sir.”Not yet,I addedsilently. But I would keep searching, keep watching Clive, until I knew what happened to Sissy. Then I would take Mr. Colby up on his offer and make sure Clive Morrison paid for what he’d done.
My boss didn’t look happy with my answer but didn’t press the subject. “Go home, Willett. You can’t do your job if you’re sick, and I don’t want you spreading something around to the other employees. If you need tomorrow off too, take it.”
I thanked him and left the office. I knew I wasn’t contagious, but I welcomed the time off. To think. To process. To plan.
The same guard who’d checked my ID badge when I’d entered the plant a short time ago checked it again as I exited. I thought he might question me, but he simply returned the badge and moved on to the person behind me.
Because it wasn’t time for a shift change, there were no lines when I arrived at the transportation terminal. I walked toward a bus going to town, but a glance to the west brought my feet to a halt. I stared at the tree line beyond K-25 to where a dirt path disappeared into dense foliage. It was the same road Clive had taken the evening he told me about Oak Ridge’s secret. The same road he took when he and Sissy drove out to the river, including the day she vanished.
I shivered, but it had nothing to do with the crisp December air.
If Clive killed Sissy, as I was now convinced, he would’ve had to bury her body somewhere. By his own admission, they’d driven to their favorite spot just past S-50 to talk. While I couldn’t bear to think about what happened to my friend that day, if a fresh grave existed, it would be easy to detect. Finding it was the only thing that would convince the authorities to arrest Clive for murder as well as espionage.
