Page 83 of Everything She Feared

“My guy is John James Smith, forty-one, a registered sex offender. He resides in Seattle, ten blocks from the Sunny Days Youth Center.”

“What the—?” Pierce said.

“My words exactly.”

36

Seattle, Washington

“Can we get pizza, Mom?”

Tired from cleaning the house and masking her alarm from what she’d discovered earlier under Katie’s bed, Sara forced a smile.

“Sure, honey. We’ll get the usual, okay?”

“With dipping sauce, please.”

Katie had gotten home around 5:30 p.m. Tamika was going to her father’s place for the night, so there was no chance for a sleepover. When their pizza came, Sara asked Katie about her visit while they ate.

“Tamika’s got this mosaic kit and that’s what we did.”

“You made mosaics?”

“Uh-huh, a panda, a butterfly and a tiger. They’re pretty. It was fun.”

“Cool, what did you guys talk about?”

“You know, songs we like, our friends, movies and stuff.”

Chewing her last bite of pizza, Sara looked at Katie.

“Wasn’t Tamika curious about what happened at the park with Anna?”

Studying the crust of her piece, Katie shrugged. “Not really.”

“Seriously, she didn’t ask about it?”

“I didn’t want to talk about it. Can we have some ice cream?”

After they finished eating, Sara began clearing things, putting plates and cutlery in the sink. She sent Katie upstairs to wash her face and hands. Then with the pizza box in the recycling, dishes done, Sara went to a drawer. She sat on the sofa in the living room, struggling to remain calm.

Katie bounced down the stairs to the living room, her eyes going to the spiral-bound drawing book Sara had on her lap. “What are you doing with that?”

Following her gaze to the book, Sara said: “I found it when I was picking up your clothes in your room.”

Katie reached to take it, but Sara placed her hand on top.

“Give it to me.”

“No, I think I better hang on to it.”

Katie looked at Sara. “It’s mine.”

“I’m keeping it for a little while, honey.”

“Why?”

Sara patted the sofa beside her.

---