“Don’t be. You suffered too. Mama understands why you did what you did.”
“I hope so. The regret is just something I have to live with.” Jay seemed to study her. “Turn your head slightly to the left. There. That’s good. Ready? Here goes.”
Abby watched Jay as he dipped his brush in the paint and made the first strokes on the canvas. He was silent for a long time and appeared to be intensely focused. He chewed his lip the way he always did when he was deep in thought.
“What are you thinking about?” she said. “Please don’t tell me we have to move again.”
“Nope. This is the perfect spot.” Jay dabbed his brush in paint and continued working. “Abby, be honest with me. Do you think your mother will be able to find peace if we never discover what Isaiah did with your dad’s body?”
“Truthfully, I’m not sure that discovering what Isaiah did with Daddy’s body will bring any of us peace. We’re probably better off not knowing.”
Virgil scanned the preliminary report regarding the remains of at least eleven bodies found in the mass grave. It was the consensus of the experts that the remains had been buried between three and five years. The skull sizes and shapes suggested Hispanic descent. And several artifacts discovered—a silver necklace, buttons, and a turquoise and silver ring—supported that idea.
Virgil heard a knock at his door and looked up into the eyes of Kevin Mann.
“You reading the prelim?” Kevin said.
Virgil nodded. “Sounds like they’re on to something. But it’s too soon to tell us much.”
“Not necessarily.” Kevin walked in and handed Virgil a fax.
“What’s this?”
“Seems news of our mass grave got back to a Mexican priest in Laredo who’s been trying to track several families who left there illegally four years ago to find work. Each had paid their life savings to be transported across the border and into Eureka Springs to work for some wealthy landowner. Family members in Mexico never got word that they had arrived and feared that the contact in the US was bogus. The Eureka Springs PD has had a missing-person report on file for each of these folks, and we’re getting that information faxed to us shortly. Sure sounds possible that we’ve uncovered their remains.”
Virgil scanned the fax. “Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be the first time a group of undocumented workers have been conned out of their money and then disposed of. As if it wasn’t hard enough just being poor. Make sure the medical examiner’s office has all the pertinent information.”
“I will.” Kevin stared at his hands. “Sir, we also made another discovery. This one could be definitive.”
Just as the sun dipped below the horizon, Kate stood at the front door and waited as Virgil pulled his squad car into the Cummings’ driveway and turned off the motor. He got out of the car and walked up to the front door of their log house and removed his Stetson.
Kate opened the door and let him pass. “When you called and said you were on your way up here, my mind was all over the map. Please tell me there’s not a problem with getting Riley back. Our court date is next Tuesday.”
“No, no. Nothing like that. I’ve got some news I didn’t want to give you over the phone.”
“Let’s sit out in the kitchen.” Kate led the way and flipped the light. “Make yourself comfortable. Can I get you something to drink?”
“No, thanks. I’m good. I can only stay a few minutes.”
Kate got a bottle of water out of the fridge and sat across from Virgil. “What was so important you couldn’t tell me on the phone?”
“I waited to say anything until I was sure.” Virgil spoke softly. “Kate, we found Micah’s remains buried in a wooden box under the root cellar at the Tutts’—several feet under the room where the kids were held hostage and where Isaiah told Abby he had thrown Micah’s body. The dental records match.”
Kate stared at Virgil and let the gravity of his words sink in. “You’re sure?”
“Absolutely. There’s no doubt. We recovered his entire skeleton. And his gold wedding band—his initials and yours were carved on the inside of the band, along with your wedding date, just the way you told us.”
Kate put her fist to her mouth and pushed down the emotion that she desperately wanted to hold in and release privately.
“We immediately confronted Isaiah with this new information,” Virgil said, “and he admitted that he