Uncertain Truths

Ch 8 - Plans

Kae lifted her face as she stepped out of Petra's and back out into the sunshine. She wanted to stop thinking about Gerald. She was sick of it. Worrying about how he died, why, and all the other questions grated on her, but she had to think of Diane. Until they solved this, there would be no peace for Diane.

Aiden crossed her mind. Smiling, she almost laughed at herself. This was classic coping tactic. She liked thinking about him more than liked him if she was honest. He was self-confident, kind of reserved now and then, but once in a while, he got chatty. Then he talked her into trying new things. He gave her a sense of stability but he was fun. Too bad he just thought of her as a friend, she sighed. Now and then she'd look at him and her heart would skip a beat.

Whatever. She and Aiden were firmly in the Best Friends category. Eight years now, was it? She sighed. It would hurt when he found the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Especially if that woman didn't believe men could have platonic female friends. She worried more and more about that lately. She didn't want to lose him, but she wanted him happy. That mattered more.

She met up with Diane in the parking lot and they headed home. Kae went to her room with barely a wave to Candice and Becca. She had to plan. She'd seen murder boards her dad put together when he worked in his den. She would make one, too. She picked up a black marker and drew a 5 foot high by 8 foot long rectangle on the same wall as the door so it wouldn't be seen by anyone leaning in to chat. She could paint over it later.

Mira Caldecker would have a past. Friends. She picked up a pad of sticky notes and starting with Gerald, mapped out who knew who, noting how they met on each. A few minutes later, she stood back. Not good. Apparently, she didn't know as much about Gerald's connections as she thought.

Kae picked up her phone and dialed Ted's number.

"Detective Lasenger," he answered in what must be his most official tone.

"Hi, this is Kae Barrows. Did you find the name of our mystery woman yet?"

"I can't comment on that."

"I think I may have the name of your third passenger. Try Mira Caldecker."

"Did you know the passengers after all?"

"No... it's a long story." She thought about how to explain. It was pretty outrageous. "Diane's been made the legal guardian of Mira's daughter, Becca. Mira left a note with Becca's sitter saying Gerald was her father, and that Becca needed to stay with him for a while. It strikes me as too much of a coincidence that she's missing at the exact same time as Gerald's... accident. If you need more details, Diane's lawyer is Petra Remstock."

Maybe it was giving away too much, but she could trust Petra to stay within the law and still protect her interests. He agreed, and the sound of his pencil scribbling stopped.

There was a moment of silence on the other end. "Is there any other information you have for me?"

"No, so far, that's it."

"One quick question. Do you and your sister get along?"

"Sure, why?"

"Well, people don't normally phone in a motive on people they like."

"Motive? No, no. This isn't a motive. She didn't know about the girl. This is a complete shock to her. She would have told me."

"Well, either way, thanks."

Not good. That was not what she told him! She ran back to her murder board.

"Work backwards from the time Diane got the call. It's all about connections," she said to herself, tapping the end of the marker on one cheek. How far back did this go – when had Gerald first met Mira? Was it before or after he was dating Diane?

Something from the back of her mind wove forward, causing knots in her stomach. There was no way to believe Gerald's death was a run of the mill accident. Even Ted thought that now. There was a real killer out there. Someone with means and motive. Opportunity.

She dropped onto the side of her bed a moment. She'd need to give her mother and Diane fair warning. They trusted her, right? They saw her walk the tightrope between reality and fantasy so often, they accused her of getting them mixed up. But this was real. And she could solve it.

Upstairs, she found Candice and Becca working on a Popsicle stick house.

"Mom, can we talk a minute?"

"Sure, Kae. Keep going, Becky. I'll be back in a minute."

As they stepped into the hallway, Candice turned to her. "I have a question for you, as well. More of a request, really."

"You first." Kae was relieved. She wasn't sure she wanted to tell her mother there was a killer on the loose. Especially with only her gut to go on.

"I want to take you and your sister, and, of course, little Becca here, on a short holiday, if only back to my place. In fact, I've already hired someone to move the horses. I think it'll be easier on you all, while Diane grieves. I don't want her making any rash decisions and she will if she's here."

Kae stood breathless a minute. That was the perfect solution. Almost. Except for the part where she went, too. "Katie can't go. She's too close to foaling. But the others, that's a great idea. Have you talked with Diane about it yet?"

"Well, no." She sighed. "I wanted to run it past you first. I don't think she'll go along with it unless you come, too."

Oh, right. "I see," Kae said. "I'll talk about it with her. She'll see it's what she needs. What we all need. Besides, she has a lot of time on her hands. She's going to be so bored here. But... well, why not?" She held back. She wasn't going. Not that she'd tell them yet. Diane said she wanted to help, but that was before the DNA. This shift in her reality had to be her priority.

"Exactly." Her mom smiled.

"Where is she now?"

"What if Gerald's parents decide DNA matters more than Diane's rights as the widow and being named in the letter? Will they try to take the girl?"

"They might, but the letter stops them from doing more than exercising grandparents' right to visitation. Diane's out - she needed cantaloupe and something for dinner."

"Okay, so we'll talk over dinner?" Kae asked.

Candice nodded. "No, let's talk now."

"Getting Diane and Becca away for a change of scene. Something less rural."

"And you." Candice looked directly at her.

"Katie can't travel. If she has the foal soon, then sure."

Candice frowned lightly, as she always did when refused to accept an answer. "We'll talk at supper."

Kae waved as she turned to head back downstairs. That went better than she could have hoped! She froze in place half way down the stairs, her stomach knotting. That meant Mom had something planned, something that required the house be empty.

It's not like her mother would put the house up for sale while they were gone... or would she? She'd done things "out of love" before, things that had nearly crushed Kae's heart, things for her own good she'd called it. She shook her head. This had to be paranoia. But whatever. She wasn't leaving.

She had Mira's address now andliked the idea of a spontaneous road trip. She'd need a sidekick.