“Why would you say that?”

“They really don’t have anything of substance. Can you think of any reason why the chief of police would jump on an arrest this fast?”

“You mean some personal issue?”

“Right.”

“Not off the top of my head, but I haven’t lived around here in a long time. All I know is what I remember from before, and what the police are telling me now. I do know that the boy Jason was with that last night said he dropped him off around three and saw him go into the house. No one-except his mother-admits to having seen him after that.”

“Maybe the other boy didn’t drop him off at home. Maybe he took him someplace else. Maybe he killed him.”

Lorna stared at him. Had anyone considered that?

“The point is, there’s only the boy’s word that he’d taken Jason home, just as there’s only Mrs. Eagan’s word that she didn’t kill him.” He sipped his tea. “Why would the boy’s word be more credible than the mother’s?”

“One, because the mother was an alcoholic and an admitted child abuser. Two, because her daughter had disappeared a few weeks before Jason and she had been one of the first to be suspected, and I think they might have still harbored some suspicion there. Chief Walker was a patrolman at the time, and was involved in that investigation. Maybe he has some issues with having let her go back then, I don’t know. And three, because the boy who dropped Jason off was the son of a woman who, at the time, worked for the county.”

“So they might have taken his story as gospel?”

She shrugged. “I have no way of knowing if they had corroboration for that or not. I was only nine at the time, and my best friend was missing. I had no real understanding of what was going on, as far as the investigation was concerned, and I didn’t care. I just wanted my friend to come home. I knew the police suspected Mrs. Eagan-and, to be honest, I sort of did myself. I knew she’d been rough with Melinda, and I knew that Mellie was afraid of her. To my nine-year-old’s mind, that was enough to make her a bad person.”

“What changed your mind?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re willing to put up bail, willing to take on the expense of a private investigator to prove her innocent. Why?”

“I guess because there’s no one else to help her. I think everyone is going to assume the worst about her. She was an alcoholic. She did hurt her kids. Easy enough to believe she killed at least one of them.”

“But you don’t?”

Lorna hesitated.

“No, I don’t. And I believe that if my mother were still alive, she’d take Billie’s side. If for no other reason than to make sure the truth came out. My mother’s no longer with us.” She could have said more, but her throat tightened right about then, so she let it go. How important was it that he understand that she felt honor-bound to her mother, as well as to Mellie, to help find the truth?

“Your mother and Mrs. Eagan were close friends?”

“She says they were.”

“Who says they were? Mrs. Eagan?”

Lorna nodded.

“You mean, you only have her word that she and your mother were friends?”

Lorna nodded again, slowly. “Does that make me appear as stupid as I’m starting to feel?”

“Not stupid, no.”

“You’re searching for another word-perhaps, oh, gullible?”

“Gullible could work.” He smiled. “Can you think of any reason Billie Eagan would lie about being your mother’s friend?”

“Not offhand. The truth is, I don’t have any more reason to believe her than to not believe her. I just don’t know.”

“But you jumped in with an offer to help, all the same.”

“An emotional reaction, I’m afraid. One I’m not certain I’m not beginning to regret.”

“Hey, so far, this has cost you nothing but a little bit of your time. Like I said before, there’s no fee for talking to me about it. You can take all the time you need to think it over. And if you decide to go forward with an investigation, you can call it off whenever you want. Two hours or two days, it’s up to you. I work for you.”

She did like the sound of that.

“I would like to think it over before I sign anything with you.”

“I won’t hold it against you, either way.”

“You’re awfully accommodating. How do you stay in business with that take-it-or-leave-it attitude?”

He laughed. “Well, actually, we just sold the business, my partner and I. He got married and moved to Ocean City, Maryland, and it got to be too much for him to be driving back and forth to Baltimore. There’s too much work for one person, and after these past three years working only with my partner-who’s also my cousin-I’m not inclined to hire another PI. There was someone interested in buying us out, so we sold the business, the building, the whole works. So, basically, I’m more or less unemployed right now.”

“Oh.” Lorna frowned. “Maybe it isn’t a good time for you to take this on.”

“I still have my license, and I’m coming off a month at the beach. I’m ready to get back to work. And I have all the time in the world.”

“Are you sure?”

“I would have referred Mitch to someone else if I weren’t. This doesn’t sound like a very complicated case. If you’re still undecided, I can always get copies of the police reports and look them over with you, see if there’s anything there that’s worth pursuing.”

“I don’t know what I want.” She stopped rocking. “I think I’d just really like to know what happened to Melinda and Jason. I want to know the truth.”

“And if the truth leads back to Billie Eagan and proves she killed one or both of her kids?”

“Then I hope she’s convicted and rots in prison.”

He nodded. “Fair enough.”

“So, where do we go from here?”

“You tell me.”

“Where would you start if I hired you?”

“Like I said, I’m going to want copies of the old police reports. Then I’d track down the kids Jason was with that last night, talk to them. Talk to Billie. And I’d like to take a look at the place where his body was found.”

“That’s easy enough. It’s across the back field.”

“Maybe we could take a look while I’m here.”

“Sure. I’ll get my keys and drive us over,” she said, rising from the rocker.

He stood as well, asking, “How far is it?”

“Not far. But it’s already so hot and humid, I figured you’d be more comfortable driving.”

“Won’t bother me if it won’t bother you.”

“Then we’ll walk.” She smiled in spite of the fact that the very thought of walking in the hot sun across acres of dry, dusty field made her want to whine unpleasantly in protest. “Ready?”

“Sure.”

They started toward the porch steps, then Lorna paused and said, “Be right back,” before grabbing the near-empty glasses of iced tea and disappearing into the house. She returned in less than a minute, carrying two bottles of water, one of which she handed to T.J. “Just in case.”

“Good idea.”

He moved closer to the steps, then stopped while she locked the house behind her.

“We didn’t used to have to do that,” she explained, “but since I’m here by myself, I try to remember to keep the door locked. It annoys me that I have to do it, but you never know.”

“I noticed you have an alarm system, though.”

“After my younger brother and sister left home, Mom lived here with my grandmother until Gran died, about six years ago. Mom had the alarm installed then.”

“You don’t use it?”

“I know the code to disarm it, but not the one to set it.”

“Isn’t it the same code?”

“Oh. Maybe.” She frowned. “I guess I could call the alarm company. I just figured with the locks on the doors, I should be all right.”

“Still, if you’re paying for the service, you should look into it.”

“I don’t know if it will be worth it, frankly, since I’m not sure how long I’ll be here.”

They walked past the barn, and a few of the feral cats poked out tentatively to watch. Lorna noted the water bowl she’d left for them was empty, as was the bowl of dry food.