friends with Trudy, just knew her to say ‘hello’ to.” The woman pointed to a home across the street. “The woman who lives there was friendly with Trudy, I think. Her name is Laura Devine. She might know something about Sunshine’s whereabouts. But she works on Saturdays. I usually see her car in the driveway around 6.”
Tommy thanked her and moved on. His years of investigation work taught him that it was often painstaking. He knocked at each of the homes along Aspen Road. The street was in the process of turning over from families who had lived there for decades to new families seeking their first home in the suburbs. Where someone answered his knock, the newcomers knew little about the family at 4 Aspen Road. Older residents weren’t able to tell him much more than he’d already learned. He made a note to come back that evening to speak to Laura. Nothing more could be done until then.
At exactly seven o’clock, Tommy knocked on Laura Devine’s front door.
“Hi.”
“Ms. Devine, my name is Tommy Noorland.”
“You’re the investigator, right?”
Tommy nodded.
“My neighbor told me about you. I figured you’d come back to find me. I’m really the only one of Trudy’s friends left. There were a whole bunch of us from the block who were close when our children were young, but you know how it is. The kids grow up, the parents move on. Winters are so hard here that a lot of folks head to warmer areas when they retire. I’ve still got a few years to go, but you can be sure I’ll be heading to Phoenix when I’m done. Come on in. I’ve got a pot of coffee just made. Can I get you a cup?”
“Thanks. I’d appreciate that.”
Laura led Tommy into her kitchen, which clearly had never been remodeled. Tommy guessed the homes on Aspen Road had been built in the early ’70s, when ornate dark-wood cabinets were in vogue, along with avocado-green appliances and linoleum tile floors. He took a seat at the table. Laura brought over two mugs of coffee, along with cream and sugar, and sat across from him.
“So, what’s this about?”
“It involves an inheritance.”
Laura reached behind her to the formica counter and grabbed a pack of cigarettes. “Mind if I smoke?”
“Go right ahead.”
She walked to the stove and lighted a cigarette with a gas burner. After two long, deep puffs, she put out the cigarette and turned back to Tommy. “Sorry, every now and then I just need a few drags. I’m trying to quit. I figure if I don’t finish them, eventually I’ll be able to give it up entirely. I started with six puffs and now I’m down to two. Pretty good, don’t you think?”
“Sure.”
“Okay. Let’s talk now about what you’re really here for. I doubt it’s about an inheritance. Neither Trudy or Ed had any siblings, and their parents are long gone.”
“It’s nothing that anyone’s in trouble for.”
“You’ve got to give me more than that.”
Tommy sized up the woman. His years in the field taught him to do that—make snap decisions about whom he could and couldn’t trust. He didn’t see a downside to being honest with her. He’d reached a dead end anyway, so he told her about George, about his upcoming execution, and about his claim that he’d left Angelina at the Mayo Clinic. As he spoke, Laura didn’t say a word, just listened intently. “So, yesterday, I met with a nurse over at the Mayo Clinic, and she says Trudy suddenly showed up one day with a four-year-old, claimed it was her niece whose parents had just been killed in a car crash. And she says the little girl was injured or sick or something. Now, here I am, trying to find out if Sunshine Harrington is really Angelina Calhoun.”
Laura took another cigarette out of her pack. “I need another drag to process what you’ve just said. I almost found it more believable that you were here about an inheritance except you couldn’t have made up a story like that.”
“You now know everything I know.”
“Well, I may be able to help a little, but that’s all. I moved here when Sunny was about 8. I remember because she’s a year younger than my daughter. She seemed perfectly healthy all the time I knew her. She got married a few years ago, to a medical student. They moved away from here when he finished school, I guess for his internship or residency. I don’t remember which. Trudy