Kerney brushed off her question and continued, 'If you keep the baby, how will you support it?'
Addie's expression tightened.
'It's none of your business what I do with my baby.'
'The adoption agency will want to know about the baby's father.'
She gave Kerney a fretful look that quickly disappeared.
'They can't make me do that if I don't know' 'Were you raped?' Kerney asked.
Addie didn't flinch at the question.
'I'm going back to class now,' she said, moving away.
Kerney touched her lightly on the shoulder to hold her back.
'Addie.'
'What is it?'
'Talk to me. Tell me what happened. Let me help you.'
She grimaced, her eyes empty of emotion.
'It's too late for that.'
'Were you in Mountainair the night Paul Gillespie was murdered?'
'No. I've been living in Socorro since March and I haven't been back there since I left. I don't care if I never go back.'
'Do you know Robert Cordova?'
'Sure. Everybody in Mountainair knows him. Why?'
'He told me you made him promise to keep a secret.'
Addie shook her head.
'Not me. I don't think I've ever said anything to him in my entire life. He's too weird. What secret?'
'I was hoping you could tell me.'
She shook her head emphatically.
'Sorry. Can I go back to class now?'
'Sure. Thanks for talking to me.'
Kerney watched Addie return to her class. In spite of her unhappy predicament, the girl had spunk. He had reviewed every felony case handled by the Mountainair Police Department during the six months preceding Gillespie's death and no rapes had been reported. Had the girl been sexually assaulted by a stranger? Was it a date rape that didn't get reported? Perhaps she hadn't been raped at all but was simply covering up to protect the unborn child's father.
Kerney didn't have a dear picture, but one thing was certain: Addie was holding something back.
The bell announcing the end of the period rang and he waded through a tide of noisy teenagers who burst out of the classrooms and filled the hallway. He went back to the administration office to find out where Addie lived. She was staying with Verdie Mae McNutt, her great-aunt.
He dedded to pay Verdie Mae a visit. therb was no answer to Kerney's knock at Verdie Mae's door, but a four-door older Plymouth, without a dent or ding, sat under the carport. A thick band of fast moving clouds covered the sun, and the cold afternoon air cut through Kerney's windbreaker. He zipped it up and walked to the backyard. The back porch had been converted into a greenhouse, and inside an elderly woman dressed in faded coveralls dug with a trowel in a raised planting bed.
Kerney knocked on a window and the woman glanced up with a startled look, got to her feet, stepped to the door, and opened it cautiously.
She was thin, with slightly stooped shoulders and a heavily lined face that showed the wear of a good eight decades.
'Yes?' she asked.
'Are you Mrs. McNutt?' Kerney asked, showing his badge.
'I am.'
Kerney introduced himself.
'I'd like a few minutes of your time.'
Verdie Mae let Kerney in and closed the door quickly behind him. She gestured at two Srickley oak chairs in the center of the greenhouse, positioned to look out at a birdbath, some feeders hanging in the trees, and birdhouses on posts that stood in the middle of me backyard.
'Have a seat,' Verdie Mae said.
'I was just about to stop puttering. Is there some problem in the neighborhood?'
'I came to ask you about Addie,' Kerney replied as he sat down. The greenhouse was uncomfortably warm. Verdie Mae didn't seem to mind it at all. He unzipped his jacket and looked around. The planting beds and pots on the brick floor were filled with herbs, flowers, and vegetables. Verdie Mae was a serious gardener.
Verdie Mae put the trowel in a basket, removed her gloves, and joined him.
'Is something wrong with Addie?' she asked.
'She's fine. I just spoke with her. I'd like to know a little more about her.'
'For what purpose?' Verdie Mae asked, with the look of a woman not easily intimidated.
Kerney decided to see if he could get a reaction out of Verdie Mae.
'Was Addie raped?'
Verdie Mae responded with an exasperated sigh.
'That's why you're here. I don't know. She refuses to discuss it.'
'What do you think?'
'I've known Addie all her life. She's a brainy girl with a lot of gumption and ambition. I don't think she would willingly put herself in this predicament.'
'Does Addie stay in contact with her family and friends in Mountainair?'
'Not really. Her parents aren't coping very well with the situation, and Addie won't talk to them about it.'
'Is she writing to anyone?'
'No.'
'Has she had any visitors from back home?'
Verdie Mae hesitated.
'Just one. Nita Lassiter came to visit.'
'When was that?'
'Two months ago.'
'Tell me about Nita Lassiter.'
Verdie Mac's expression turned guarded.
'What are you trying to discover?'
'The name of the man who raped Addie.'
Verdie Mae nodded her head in agreement.
'I'd try to shake the name out of that girl if I thought it would do any good. Nita might know, if anyone does.'
'Why do you say that?'
'During her visit, Nita stayed with Addie in her room for several hours. When she came out, she seemed upset. I asked if everything was all right. All she said was she had to leave right away.'
'What did you make of it?'
'Something Addie said troubled Nita.'
'Have you spoken to Nita since then?'
'No. Nor has Addie, as far as I know. I just pray she hasn't cut herself off from Addie. They've been as close as sisters.'
'Is Ms. Lassiter a family relative?'
'She's not related by blood at all. She went to school with Addie's parents. Addie's mother was Nita's best friend.'
'How does Ms. Lassiter make her living?' Kerney asked.
'She's a veterinarian. Her office is in Estancia.'
'Is she married?'
