Page 65 of The Lost Girls of Willowbrook

Detective Nolan sat opposite Dr. Baldwin’s desk, and Sergeant Clark stood in front of the window, blocking the light. Seated behind his desk, Dr. Baldwin was writing something down. When he finished, he looked up, his face pale, his forehead lined with something that looked like dread.

“I’ll have Leonard return her to Ward D when we’re finished here,” he said to Marla.

“Yes, Doctor,” Marla said, then left, closing the door behind her.

Sage stood in the center of the room, nearly hyperventilating. If he was going to send her back to the ward when they were finished, she wasn’t being released. “Did you find my sister?” she managed.

Detective Nolan stood and offered her the chair.

She shook her head. “I’m fine. Please, just tell me what’s going on.”

“Have a seat, Miss Winters,” Dr. Baldwin said, his voice firm. Then he sat up straight and took a sip from the cup of coffee on his desk, like he was getting ready to make a speech or an announcement.

The last thing she wanted to do was sit, but there was no point in arguing. The sooner she did as she was told, the sooner they’d tell her why she was there. She perched on the edge of the chair. Nolan leaned against the wall and lit a cigarette. He took a long drag, then blew out the smoke and studied her with pity-filled eyes, running his thumbnail along his lower lip.

“I’ve summoned you here at Detective Nolan’s request,” Dr. Baldwin said. “I’m not sure why he wanted to speak to you, but I won’t be accused of impeding a police investigation.” He picked up a pen and held it in his fist, his thumb repeatedly pushing the top up and down.Click. Click. Click.

“An investigation?” she said.

“Yes,” the detective said, straightening. “Two days ago, Dr. Baldwin’s secretary, Evie Carter, was reported missing by her husband. He found her car parked behind the main building with the door open and the keys in the ignition. Her purse was on the ground, and there were signs of a struggle.”

Sage nodded to show she was listening, but a storm raged inside her. What about her sister? Why weren’t they looking for her? Had the detective called Alan yet, or did he believe everything Dr. Baldwin said? At the same time, she was curious: Who would hurt Evie, and why? Could it have been the same person who killed Rosemary?

“After no trace of Mrs. Carter was found in any of the buildings or surrounding lawns,” Nolan continued, “a search party was sent out to look for her.”

Sage took a deep breath and held it, fighting the urge to point out that no search party had been sent out for Rosemary.

“To make a long story short, we found her body in the woods near a clearing at the far end of the Willowbrook campus.”

Sage exhaled long and hard, then looked at Dr. Baldwin and tried to choose her next words carefully. “That’s horrible,” she said. “And I’m truly sorry. I’m sure you’ll miss her.” She turned back to Nolan. “How was she killed? Maybe it was the same person who killed Rosemary.”

“How do you know she was killed?” Dr. Baldwin said, his thumb still clicking the pen. “Maybe she became ill and wandered off.”Click. Click. Click.

Sage frowned and glanced at Nolan. “Oh. I just assumed—”

“You assumed correctly,” he said. “That’s why I wanted to talk to you. Evie Carter’s injuries and some other findings are similar to the ones you described the last time I was here.”

Baldwin threw down the pen and stood. “This is preposterous,” he said. “Are you going to tell me you’re asking a mentally disturbed individual to help with your investigation? Whatever she thought she saw was her overworked imagination, nothing more.”

“I understand your concern,” Nolan said. “But I’m not asking her to help, exactly. I just need to understand how she knew about the similar injuries.” He regarded Sage again. “I’d like you to describe them to me again, if you can.” While the detective had studied her with pity before, now something in his eyes had changed. Her skin turned clammy. He didn’t want her help—he thought she killed Evie.

“I . . . I’ll help however I can,” she managed.

“Tell me about the body you saw in the tunnel. Include everything you can remember.”

Dr. Baldwin sat down hard in his chair, shaking his head in disgust.

She swallowed. “It was my sister, Rosemary. Her hair had been chopped off, like it was done with a knife or dull scissors. And her lips were painted red. Not normal, but more like a clown face, with the lipstick going up her cheeks, like this.” She touched the corners of her mouth and traced lines toward her ears.

“And her injuries?”

“Her wrists and throat had been slit, and blood was running down her legs and chest.”

Nolan glanced knowingly at Sergeant Clark, then looked back at Sage. “Do you have any idea who might have killed your sister?” he said.

Baldwin slammed a hand on his desk. “That’s enough, Detective,” he said. “I can’t allow this type of questioning. It’s just feeding into her delusions.”

Nolan ignored him. “Miss Winters? Who do you think killed Rosemary?”

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