Page 28 of Canyon Killer
“No, but I’d like to know more about them.”
“Yeah. I would, too. All right, I’ll see you tomorrow.” He bent and kissed her lightly, aware that her brothers were probably watching. But he had spent a lot of years not caring what other people thought of him. No need to change now.
* * *
Bethany had nevervisited the Eagle Mountain Historical Society—or any historical society, for that matter. The Victorian-era cottage two blocks off Main Street housed a museum focused on local history as well as an archive of documents, books and photographs related to the area’s past.
“This is so cute,” she said as she and Ian stopped just inside the doorway to admire a wall display of household items from two centuries before, carefully labeled for modern visitors—a button hook, butter churn, collar stays, bed warmer and ink well.
“Hey, Bethany.”
She turned and was surprised to see fellow search and rescue volunteer Caleb Garrison. “Caleb! How nice to see you. Do you know Ian Seabrook?”
“I’ve heard of you.” He offered his hand to Ian, and they shook. “Caleb Garrison.”
Bethany noticed the name tag pinned to his shirt. “Do you work here?”
“I’m a volunteer. My day job is teaching history, but it’s my hobby, too. Have you visited the museum before?”
“No,” she said. “And I’d love to tour it some time, but today we’re here to do some research in the archives.”
“Sure.” He led the way across the hall. “The archives room was added a few years ago. Much better than the basement where everything was stored previously. What can I help you with?”
“We’re looking for anything we can find about Gerald and Abby Boston, who lived in Eagle Mountain fifty years ago.”
“Can you tell me anything else about them?” he asked. “Do you know what jobs they held or if they had any children?”
“I don’t think there were any children,” she said. “All I really know is that they were newlyweds who disappeared not too long after their wedding.”
“Let’s start with the census records. That will give us more information about their families.” He moved to a table in the center of the room and opened a laptop. “We used to keep census records on microfiche, but now they’re digitized online. You can search by name and location and should find a match pretty quickly. When did they live here?”
She glanced at Ian. “We’re not sure,” she said. “They died fifty years ago. Approximately.”
“No problem. Let’s start with 1970 census and work forward from there.” Caleb typed rapidly, then turned the screen toward them. “I think this is the man you’re looking for. Gerald Boston, born 1949, death date unknown.”
Bethany met Ian’s gaze. She turned back to studying the computer screen and gasped. “This says he was married to a woman named Katherine Berringer.” She leaned closer. “Born 1950, died 1985. Only thirty-five years old. But that would have been after Gerald died.”
“Maybe Katherine’s middle name was Abigail?” Ian suggested.
Bethany shook her head. “This shows her middle name as Elizabeth.”
“Maybe it’s a different Gerald Boston,” Ian suggested.
“This is the only one on record living in Eagle Mountain in 1970,” Caleb said. “Let’s try the 1980 census.” He typed again, then shook his head. “No Gerald Boston here.”
“Try Katherine Boston or Katherine Berringer,” Bethany suggested.
More typing. Caleb nodded. “Katherine Boston was living here then. The same address as before.”
“Maybe she was a first wife,” Ian said. “Can we find out if Gerald was divorced?”
“You can request that information in writing from the state archives,” Caleb said. “Though without a specific date, that might take longer to find.”
“What about marriages? Can we find out if there’s any record of Gerald marrying Abby?”
“Marriage records after 1960 are private,” Caleb said. “Though if there was an announcement in the paper, you might find it there.”
“How do we do that?” Ian asked.
