28
Max floored the accelerator, glad the country road was empty.
“What was Emma thinking?” Noelle asked for the tenth time as they drove toward Emma’s old house. “Why didn’t she tell us about her fears?”
He knew Noelle really meant, “Why didn’t she tell me about her fears?”
Besides the shock of learning that remains had been found on the property, Noelle was crushed that Emma hadn’t confided in her.
“How long do you think she’d wondered if her mother was buried there?” asked Noelle.
“We don’t know it’s her mother.”
“I guarantee you that Emma believes it’s her mother,” said Noelle. “And there’s a very good chance she’s right.”
Max had always said Emma was strong. But the more he learned about the young woman’s past, the more he didn’t understand how she functioned in the present.
She’d been told her father had been murdered, but what other kids wonder if their father killed their mother?
He knew she’d wondered about that for a while, but now she’d wondered if her mother was buried near their home.
Yet she went to work and smiled at customers and cuddled with her cat and spent time talking to her horse.
All while wondering what atrocities had happened to her parents.
How horrible.
Rowan had called Evan at the sheriff’s department after Thor alerted, and Max had been sitting with him, sorting through the new leads from NCMEC, when the call came through.
When Evan turned to him with the phone at his ear and horror in his gaze, Max knew it was bad.
He’d known he needed to continue working on the tips about Belle, but Evan made him leave, saying he’d work with Mercy on them.
“How common is it to discover a body buried on your property?” Noelle asked, looking out the window. “Maybe I should have Thor wander through mine. Who knows what might turn up?”
Max knew she didn’t expect him to answer; stress was making her talk. Her knuckles were white as she gripped her phone on her lap. She’d tried to contact Emma several times, but that old property was a cellular dead zone.
He turned off the two-lane highway, and Noelle went silent, her focus on the road. Minutes later they parked behind several law enforcement SUVs. “Truman’s here,” he said, spotting the Eagle’s Nest vehicle. “And a couple of deputies.”
“Forensics is at least an hour out,” said Noelle. “We won’t know anything for hours. I don’t want Emma waiting here for all that time.”
“That’ll be her decision,” said Max.
“Well, you can guess which way I’ll try to influence that decision,” said Noelle. “Fucking Gage Chambers. If he wasn’t already dead, I’d murder him myself for putting Emma through this.” She shoved open her door.
Max reached out and took her other hand. “Hey.”
She turned toward him, impatience in her eyes.
“You’re wound up,” he said quietly. “This isn’t what Emma needs to see at the moment. She looks up to you. She needs you tough and steady today.”
Noelle’s dark-blue gaze held his, and she took a deep breath. “Dammit! I’m sorry. You’re right. Don’t know what got into me.”
“You’re worried about her,” he said simply.
Noelle sat quietly for a long moment, visibly calming down. If he hadn’t said anything, she would have charged the scene and made Emma’s anxiety skyrocket. “It’s got to be Crystal,” she murmured.
“Then Emma will finally have some answers.”
“Just not the ones she wanted.” She gave his hand a squeeze. “I’m good. Let’s go.”
Together they walked up the gravel road, and Noelle gasped as they came around a bend and the destroyed home came into sight. “What the hell?” she squeaked.
“Jesus.” Max halted, staring. Emma’s former home was no more. “I take it you didn’t know about this.”
“No!” She walked faster. “Poor Emma! I’m positive she didn’t know either. What went through her mind when she saw it?”
Not far from the pile of home debris, a deputy waited to allow only law enforcement on the property. “Everyone is that way, Detective,” he said, pointing north. “Couple hundred yards. There’s sort of a path if you look hard for it.”
“Is Emma there?” asked Noelle.
“The girl?” asked the deputy. “Yeah, she’s still here. The dog lady tried to get her to go home, but she wasn’t having it.”
“Sounds like she’s holding up,” said Max.
“She doesn’t know how to do anything else,” whispered Noelle.
True.
“Fucking press has already been out here too,” said the deputy. “One guy tried to ask me a bunch of questions. Told him ten times to contact the public relations office, and he got pissed.” The deputy shrugged. “What did he expect? Although I assume PR doesn’t have a statement yet.”
“No,” said Noelle. “No one knows anything. We haven’t even confirmed that remains have been found.”
“Might be nothing,” said the deputy.
Noelle nodded in agreement, but Max knew she had a lot of faith in Thor’s abilities.
They set out in the direction the deputy had indicated.
If Max hadn’t known they were on the way to a crime scene, he would have enjoyed the quiet, rural setting. He started to sweat a bit in the warm sun and removed his suit jacket. Noelle did the same with her dark-purple jacket, exposing her white sleeveless blouse and the badge and gun on her belt.
“There they are,” said Noelle.
Ahead, Truman was speaking with Emma. They’d found a shady spot to sit under a tree. No one else was there.
“He pulled her away,” he said quietly to Noelle.
“Good.”
Emma spotted them and jumped to her feet. For a moment Max thought she was going to run to Noelle, but she stayed in place, her arms stiff at her sides, clearly fighting the urge to do just that. Noelle strode confidently to the young woman and pulled her in for a long hug.
“I’m so sorry, honey.”
“It’s okay,” said Emma, her voice muffled against Noelle’s blouse.
Max nodded at Truman. The police chief held his gaze for a moment and gave a small shake of his head.
Emma’s struggling.
Noelle stepped back and looked her in the eyes. “How long have you been thinking about this?”
“Just today. That movie I saw with Ollie today put the thought in my head.”
“I thought you were seeing a rom-com,” said Max.
“We did.” Emma’s brow wrinkled, and she hesitantly asked, “Noelle, did you know the house was going to be torn down?”
“Lord no, honey! Max and I were shocked when we saw it.”
Max nodded in agreement, noting Emma seemed a bit relieved by Noelle’s answer.
Emma will eventually trust us completely. She’s made a lot of progress in two months.
“Where’re Rowan and Thor?” asked Noelle.
“They’re with a couple of deputies who are taping off the scene,” said Truman. He paused. “She and Thor are also still walking the property.”
“They haven’t found anything else,” said Emma.
“Then let’s go home,” Noelle told her. “Forensics won’t get here for quite a while, and they’ll work slowly once they do arrive.”
Emma looked stricken, her eyes wide with uncertainty.
“I know you need answers,” said Noelle. “But you’ll get information just as fast if you’re at home. They know to call me immediately with their findings.”
Max had to agree that Emma shouldn’t be there to watch the unearthing of remains that might be her mother. That’d be a sight she’d never forget.
Truman’s radio crackled. “Chief? Got a young man here who says he’s your son.”
“Copy that. I’ll be right there.”
“Ollie’s here?” Emma asked hesitantly, indecision on her face. “Who told him?”
“Not me,” said Truman. “But you know how fast word travels in small towns.”
“Why don’t you go talk to him, Emma?” asked Max. He wondered if Ollie had told her that he’d learned where his birth mother’s grave was last year.
She and Ollie have a lot in common. Most of it rather shitty.
“I’ll take you,” said Truman. He set a hand on Emma’s shoulder, exchanged a look with Noelle, and then deftly guided her away as he asked a question about the movie she’d seen.
“We’ll be there in a bit,” Noelle called after her. She watched until they were out of sight and then turned to Max. “Ready to take a look?”
“Lead the way.”