Harriet adjusted the mirrors of her aunt’s small car for the umpteenth time while Lauren put on her seatbelt.
“I don’t know how she sees anything in this little death trap.”
Lauren chuckled.
“That’s because you drive a tank. Smaller cars have smaller windshields and smaller mirrors. Besides, your aunt has a rear camera on order. They made them standard this year, but her car just missed it.”
“How do you know that when I don’t?”
“She asked me about it at coffee when you were busy working. She didn’t want to bother you. You’ll be happy to know this car has a five-star crash rating, too. And before you ask, I looked that up for her before she bought the car.”
“Good, I guess.”
Harriet backed out of the Tabors’ driveway and headed back toward the coffee shop.
“I’m going to swing by the police department and see if Morse is in. Do you want to come with?”
“Let’s get my car first, since it’s on the way. I’ll meet you there.”
“Would either of you like coffee or anything?” Morse asked when they were seated in a small interview room at the Foggy Point Police Department.
Harriet couldn’t help but notice that the walls were heavily insulated with black soundproofing that had large chunks missing. The industrial Formica-topped table was scarred, and included a heavy metal loop she assumed was for attaching the manacles of feistier interviewees. The table was also bolted to the floor.
Lauren looked around at their surroundings but kept her mouth shut.
“I don’t know about Lauren, but none for me. We just drank a bunch of lemonade with Leo and Janet Tabor.”
Detective Morse leaned back in her chair, took a deep breath, and blew it slowly out.
“I’m afraid to ask what you were doing there.”
Lauren sat back in her chair and looked to Harriet.
“It was your idea, you can explain it.”
“Aunt Beth and I were talking this morning,” Harriet began. “She told me that Avanell Jalbert had told her Leo was falsely accused and in the process mentioned that Amber Price wandered the neighborhood a lot, including making it all the way to Stephens Street. Leo even took her here once in the hopes the police would call children’s services or something.
“Anyway, we wondered if the police at the time considered the possibility that the girls were hit by a car, with Amber being killed and Molly knocked unconscious. Maybe the driver panicked and buried Amber then left Molly where she’d be found.”
Morse furrowed her brow and pressed her lips together.
“I don’t remember seeing that in the file. I’ll look again. Short of an eyewitness, I’m not sure how you’d prove it. Traffic cameras weren’t generally in use back then, and I’m guessing Foggy Point wasn’t on the forefront of that political hot potato in any case. I guess we could check and see if there was a car lot or any other business that might have had security cameras.
“Even so, the chance of them having tape—and it would be tape that long ago—is almost nil. The only hope would be if they saw something, didn’t want to be involved, but saved it for reasons unknown. I wouldn’t hold my breath on this one.” She flipped a page in her small spiral notebook and wrote something. “I will check it out, though. We haven’t got anything else at this point.”
“Molly keeps asking Lauren and me to help her. We were hoping there might be a simple explanation. Not that someone killing and burying Amber is simple, but an accident would be better than…I don’t know, I guess it’s all awful.”
“Molly’s been down here several times, too. Unless we come up with a previously unknown witness or find Amber’s body, I’m afraid she’s going to be disappointed.”
Harriet stood up.
“Thanks for listening to us. I know you’re doing everything you can.”
Morse and Lauren got up as well.
“Listen, if you have any other ideas, feel free to share,” Morse told them. “Like I said, we’re getting nowhere. I’m working with a retired detective who was on the force back then, but he said after they cleared Leo Tabor, they didn’t come up with anything. If there’d been forensic evidence, we could apply new tests that have been developed since then, but we’ve got nothing.”
“If Amber’s mother didn’t watch her closely, I suppose anything could have happened,” Harriet mused.
“Unfortunately, being an overworked single mother who didn’t watch her child as well as her neighbors would have liked is not a crime in this town. Apart from Leo bringing Amber to the station and calling a few times, Sandra Price was never investigated for child neglect. She had her hands full, and people were pretty sympathetic.”
“We better be on our way,” Lauren said. “We have quilts to make, and presumably, you have criminals to catch.”
Morse chuckled.
“Let me know when you’re ready to start binding the quilts. I’m pretty fast.” She looked at Lauren. “And before you say something snarky, I’m good and fast.”
Lauren held her hands up.
“Hey, I didn’t say anything. As long as you’re the one with the gun, I’m not saying anything about your binding skill.”
Harriet laughed at that.
“Come on, I need to finish my chores so I can give my aunt her car back.”
Harriet went home to check on Scooter and then to Pins and Needles for quilting thread for her machine. She chose a pastel variegated thread that had lavender, green, yellow and cream segments. In case the Threads didn’t like her choice, she picked up more off-white, pale lavender and pale-green thread, too. She could always use the solid colors for her customer quilts if they weren’t needed.
She stopped by the grocery store and was just putting her purchases away at home when James drove up in his white restaurant van. She opened the door before he reached the small porch to her studio.
“This is an unexpected pleasure. Is that chocolate I smell coming from the box in your hand?”
“You’re getting to be like Pavlov’s dog. Yes, this is a chocolate box, but they are individually wrapped inside, so don’t tell me you can really smell them.”
“You’re right, my mouth is watering in expectation of your chocolates. You are ruining me for anyone else’s truffles.”
“I should hope so,” he said and laughed. “This is a test box of new flavors. If you’re willing, I’d like you to try them. Not all at once, I hope. Eat one, write down what flavor you think it is, and then look at the paper under its spot in the box. I want to see if the flavors are easily recognizable.”
He followed her into the kitchen and put the candy on the shelf in her refrigerator.
“Those aren’t actually why I’m here. The restaurant is closed today because it’s Monday. I was going to go visit my mom with a little dinner snack and thought I’d see if you want to come with me. I figured it would give you a chance to ask her about her old friend and the gossip on the street.”
“That would be great,” Harriet said. Then her shoulders sagged. “I have one little problem. I have to get my car at the dealer’s and leave Aunt Beth’s at her house. She got a ride home from her volunteer work, so I was going to pick her up to go get my car.”
“What if I follow you to her house, and then take you to get your car. You can follow me to my mom’s from there.”
“That will work. I’m sure Aunt Beth is tired from sorting clothes all day.”
“It’s a plan, then,” James said. “Let me call my mom real quick and give her an estimated time of arrival.”