Gina’s brain clicked back into the present.
The man’s sobs died out like water gurgling down a drain.
He sniffed once, with finality.
He was up, moving around, then his knees dug into either side of her hips and he was on top of her.
He was going to rape her. He was going to rape her.
Gina felt his fingers dig into her cheeks. He was forcing open her mouth. She wanted to resist, but her muscles would not respond. She waited for his penis to be shoved down her throat. She braced herself. She prayed for strength, for a momentary surge of power that forced her jaw to clamp closed when he started to rape her.
Plastic clashed against her teeth.
He was holding a bottle to her lips.
She coughed, then choked, then swallowed the liquid that filled her mouth. It tasted—what did it taste like?
Sugar. Cotton candy. Urine.
Her mouth was closed.
The man moved off her. Her head was lifted up. He scooted around in the leaves. He let her head rest against his crotch. The back of her head, not the front. His semi-erect cock fingered against her neck. His legs rested along either side of her body. He had pulled her into his lap like they were old lovers watching fireworks together on the fourth.
Gina felt her scalp being tugged. Pressure against her head. A gentle, familiar scratching.
The man was brushing her hair.
24
Sara felt jittery as she walked into GBI headquarters. Lack of sleep was catching up with her. The hour and a half drive back from Grant County had stretched into three hours because of an accident and rush hour traffic. The monotony had lulled her into a state of semi-consciousness. Her clothes reeked of formaldehyde from Brock’s warehouse and damp from the musty U-Store. She wanted desperately to get a coffee but she was already running late. Sara wrenched open the door to the stairs. Her brain felt as if it was pounding inside of her skull as she made her way up.
“Dr. Linton.” Amanda was waiting for her on the first-floor landing. She looked up from her phone. “Caroline put the Van Dornes in the conference room. Will and Faith are downtown interviewing a possible victim.”
Sara instantly thought of Tommi Humphrey. “What victim?”
“Callie Zanger. Tax lawyer. We’ll get the details as they come.” Amanda started up the stairs. “I called the funeral home that handled Shay Van Dorne’s body. They confirmed that she was buried in a composite vault. Air-sealed, as you mentioned. The parents are Aimee and Larry. They divorced soon after Shay’s death. Caroline told them that we were considering re-opening the case, but she didn’t specify why.”
“You didn’t talk to them yourself?” Sara stopped. “You let Caroline handle it?”
“Yes, Dr. Linton. It’s easier to say you don’t know the details when you actually don’t know the details.” Amanda kept climbing. “Caroline says there’s definitely some tension between them. You and I can work them together.”
Sara didn’t express her distaste over the word work. The Van Dornes were grieving parents. Their child had unexpectedly died three years ago. Their marriage had broken apart shortly after. Sara wasn’t here to manipulate them. She was here to give them a choice.
She told Amanda, “I’d like to speak to them alone.”
“Because?”
Sara was bone-tired of confrontations. “Because I want to.”
“Your call, Dr. Linton.” Amanda already had her head buried in her phone as she took the next flight of stairs.
Sara rubbed her eyes. She could feel her mascara clumping. On the way to the conference room, she dashed into the bathroom to make sure she looked presentable. The mirror told her that she barely passed the mark, but at least her mascara hadn’t turned her into a raccoon. Sara splashed water onto her face. There was nothing she could do about the smell in her clothes. There was nothing she could do about any of this but knuckle through. She tried to brace herself as she headed toward the conference room.
The Van Dornes both stood when Sara opened the door.
They had taken opposite sides of the long, wide conference table. Shay’s parents did not look the way Sara had expected. She had for some reason conjured the image of an older woman in a June Cleaver shirt dress and a suited man with a buzz cut.
Aimee Van Dorne was wearing a black silk blouse and black pencil skirt with heels. Her blonde-tipped hair was stylishly textured with a sweeping bang. Larry was in baggy jeans and a flannel work shirt. His hair was the color of dryer lint, longer than Sara’s, braided down the back. The divorced couple were the embodiment of city vs. country folk.
She said, “I’m Dr. Linton. I apologize for making you wait.”
They all shook hands, made introductions, and studiously ignored the nervous tension in the room. Sara had to sit at the head of the table so that she could address both of them at once. She reminded herself that the only thing she could do to make this slightly less painful was to get straight to the point.
She said, “I’m a medical examiner for the state. I know Caroline told you that we are considering re-opening your daughter’s case. The reason for that is, in the course of reviewing the coroner’s report regarding Shay’s accident, I found some inconsistencies that—”
“I knew it, Larry!” Aimee pointed her finger at her ex-husband. “I told you something wasn’t right about that accident. I told you!”
Larry had startled at the sound of Aimee’s voice.
Sara gave him a moment to recover before asking the woman, “Is there a reason you don’t agree with the coroner’s finding?”
“Several.” Aimee dove straight in. “Shay never went into the woods. Ever. And she was dressed for school. Why would she be out hiking when she had a class to teach? And why were her purse and phone locked in the trunk of her car? And then there was that creepy feeling she had. I know she dismissed it, but a mother knows
