them in her suitcase, and now, less than a half-hour later, Robby was driving her to the airport. Hannah took a sip from the bottle of water that Robby had placed in the cup holder in front of her seat, and then she dialed Michelle’s number.
Michelle answered immediately. “Are you coming, Hannah?”
“Yes, I’m on my way to the airport right now.”
“Is Mother coming?”
“No, Lynne’s travel agent explained that it was a family emergency. There was only one seat left and I got it. Mother’s coming tomorrow afternoon. Are you okay, Michelle?”
“Yes, now that you’re coming home. Lonnie’s been a real basket case. Of course I don’t blame him, but I’m finding it hard to be upbeat. Lonnie was so happy the night he went out to meet Brian and Cassie. They split up after their baby died, and both of them were miserable.”
“Their baby died?”
“Yes, it was SIDS, sudden infant death syndrome.” Michelle sighed deeply. “And to make things even worse, Cassie’d had two miscarriages before that. But little Meredith seemed to be strong and healthy. Lonnie went to the hospital to see the baby and told me that he’d never seen Cassie and Brian so happy.”
“That’s awful! How old was the baby when she died?”
“She was almost five weeks. Cassie told me she woke up one morning and Meredith was still sleeping so she got up and made the coffee. Then she came back to get the baby and . . . and Meredith was dead! It just about killed both of them, Hannah. They saw a family grief counselor for a month or so and it seemed to help Brian, but Cassie just couldn’t get over the loss. She ended up leaving Brian and going to a new counselor, who seemed to help. Cassie made it through somehow, and she got back together with Brian. And now there’s a new tragedy. And to make things even worse, their friend, Lonnie, could be charged with Darcy’s murder!”
“Take it easy, Michelle. Mike’s a good detective and so is Lonnie’s brother, Rick. I’m sure they’ll clear Lonnie and find Darcy’s killer.”
“But . . . you don’t understand, Hannah! I didn’t get a chance to tell you the whole story on the phone earlier, but there’s a big problem with the sheriff’s department.”
“What’s that?”
“There aren’t any detectives left who can work on the case. And that’s why we need you.”
“I don’t understand. How about Mike? Isn’t he handling the investigation?”
“He can’t. Bill had to pull him from the case because Lonnie’s his partner and the department has a rule about that. Bill says it’s because partners have too much at stake and they’re too emotionally involved to be objective.”
Hannah thought about that for a moment. “I guess that makes sense. How about Rick? He’s on the case, isn’t he?”
“No, there’s a rule about that, too. If someone in your immediate family is a murder suspect, no one in the family can be involved in the investigation.”
“So . . . who’s left?”
“A deputy that just made detective and Bill. That’s it, Hannah. And that’s another reason why I needed you to come back home.”
“I understand, Michelle, and I’ll be there tonight. We’ll talk about it when I get there.”
“Is there anything else you need to know right now?” Michelle asked her.
“Only one thing. Can somebody arrange for my transportation back to Lake Eden? My plane is supposed to land at six-ten tonight.”
“We’ve already taken care of that. Norman’s going to pick you up at the airport and bring you right back here to the condo. There’s just one thing . . .” Michelle paused for a moment, and then she went on. “I’m not sure how to put this, but . . . do you think you’ll be all right if you stay here at the condo? Your bedroom’s not done yet, but you can have my room and I’ll sleep on the couch.”
Hannah drew a deep breath. She knew she really didn’t want to go back to the condo, even though she wouldn’t have to go into her bedroom.... “I’m not sure. Let’s talk about that when I get there.”
“Okay. I’ve got to go, Hannah. I have to do some shopping at the Red Owl.”
“Will you call Norman and ask him to bring Moishe with him when he comes to pick me up?” Hannah asked her. “I really miss him.”
“I would, but Norman’s already left for the airport.”
“So early? Unless there’s a problem with traffic, he’s going to have to wait for