Page 136 of Everything She Feared

Katie nodded, then looked at the necklace Anna had given her. Sara let her be and cleared the table.

“What day do I see Dr. Mehta again, Mom?”

“I don’t know,” Sara said. “I don’t think you need to see her anymore.”

“But I like her office. I like watching her fish.”

“We’ll see.”

Sara’s sleep was troubled that night.

She got up around two thirty and went into Katie’s room, finding her curled under her sheets. Watching her, Sara’s stomach tremored.

Did you tell me everything, honey? Are you lying to me?

Why do the detectives want her fingerprints? What about Dr. Mehta? Was I wrong to confide in her?Sara flicked a glance to the ceiling, where everything about Magda had been locked away until now. Why hadn’t her mom and dad told her that she’d written to them? What had Magda wanted?

What if they try to take Katie away from me?

Sara leaned down and softly kissed Katie’s cheek.

I won’t let that happen. We are not like them.

Sara returned to her bed.

As she slept, her own unspeakable memories crawled from the dark mists of her mind...the screams...the thudding...the digging...

The next day, Sara got off a little early from her shift at the diner to get Katie at school. For an appointment, she told Mel.

At three, the doorbell rang and Rose Aranda arrived. She was in her forties. She wore a blazer and pants, and carried a briefcase. Sara invited her inside to meet Katie and have a quick chat.

“I’d like to talk to your mom,” Aranda said. “Then you and I can talk alone. If that’s okay?”

“Sweetie, go up to your room and watch a movie, then I’ll send Ms. Aranda—”

“Rose. Call me Rose.”

“Then I’ll send Rose up to see you.”

Sara made tea and talked with Rose in the kitchen. Sara’s voice quivered as she related Katie’s case. It wasn’t easy telling a stranger, even one who was going to help. Sara told Rose that Anna had been Katie’s sitter, about the Sunny Days trip and how Anna fell taking a selfie. She touched on every key point, about the trauma, Dr. Mehta. She showed Rose Katie’s sketch. But Sara withheld any mention of Magda or the little boy in Canada.

Rose asked questions and took notes.

“First,” Rose started, “under state law, it’s presumed that children under twelve years of age are incapable of committing a crime.”

“But why are police coming to fingerprint Katie?”

“Well, it’s possible that children aged eight to twelve can be prosecuted for murder if the prosecution can establish that the child fully knew the act was wrong. It’s a difficult and complex burden to prove.”

“Katie told them Anna fell. Why’re they still investigating her?”

“Any number of reasons. They’re not required to reveal to you details of their investigation. They could have a witness, or new evidence. They might be establishingelimination prints, meaning that they have something and want to rule Katie out. They can collect prints without a charge or arrest. The best thing is for you and Katie to cooperate with me present.”

Rose then went upstairs and talked alone with Katie.

A few minutes after four the doorbell rang. Sara led Pierce and Benton to the kitchen table, where Katie joined them.

Rose Aranda introduced herself.

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