and married fine, upstanding girls, producing fine, upstanding
families. He supposed he was the black sheep, although going into law enforcement like his uncle probably wasn’t the best
rebellion he could have come up with.
And now here was another one. How was her faith going to get her through this?
“Ms. Peizer—”
“My name is Tanya.”
At least the tears had stopped trickling down her cheeks.
“I’d like to ask you some questions about Randi,” he said gently, grateful for small mercies. “If you feel up to it.”
“I took those pills Patty gave me, but they just made me sick. Reality is hard to face right now, but it’s better than turning
into a zombie.” She touched her scalp. “I hurt my head.”
Too bad he couldn’t arrest this Patty person for loaning out her pharmaceuticals. “Let me look.”
She leaned away from his attempt to part her hair. “I’m okay. It was yesterday. Janice looked at it.”
To cover the unwanted gesture, which had been as automatic as picking up Tim after a tumble from his bike, Nick pulled out
his notebook.
“We’re interested in Randi’s movements during the last week of—last week,” he amended. “But especially Wednesday.”
“Why? Nothing is going to change.” Her eyes were bleak. “God gave her to me and he must not have thought I was doing a very
good job, because he took her back.”
No way was he going to get into that kind of theological quagmire. “We’re not sure it was an accident,” he said. “Are you
sure you’re up for this?”
With the sleeve of her shirt, she wiped her face. “I don’t have much choice, do I?”
“Yes, you do. You can tell me to go away. But the sooner we act, the sooner we can find out the truth.”
“I wish you
would
go away.”
He closed the notebook and shifted his weight to his feet. He should send Gil to do this. Gil had a better bedside manner.
“I wish it would all go away,” Tanya went on as if he hadn’t moved, “but it won’t, so I have to get on with it. Please tell
me why you don’t think it was an accident.”
He sank back onto the couch, and a spring gouged him in the hip. He moved over a little.
“The clerk at the convenience store said there were a bunch of kids on the bridge, and it looked like something was going
on. Then Randi turned up on the sandbar the next day. The one event may have nothing to do with the other, but in case they
do, I need to have a picture of her movements leading up to Wednesday night. Maybe something will tell me what could have
happened.”
Tanya shrugged. “She did what she always does. She went to school. She went to the mall. She hung out with her friends.”
According to Anna Hale, nobody much liked her. Who were these friends? “Do you know their names?”
“Kate’s one of them. And Kelci—with an
i
.” She glanced at his notebook, as if to check he had the spelling right. “And let’s not forget the man of the hour, Brendan
O’Day. I wanted to meet him.”
“Why?”
Another sideways glance, wryly. “Not the parent of a teenage girl, huh?”
“Not a parent. Not married.” Not even close, and happy to keep it that way, thanks.
“I think he was her boyfriend. I wanted to do the mom thing, you know? Meet him, get to know him. But it never seemed to happen.
She always had somewhere else to be, and I always had to work.”
Brendan O’Day was the captain of the junior varsity basketball team and was pegged for some Ivy League school in the future,
according to his proud father, who hung out with one of Nick’s brothers. Nick had his doubts that he was going out with Randi
Peizer, who was new in town, lived in subsidized housing, and wasn’t well-liked. But, he supposed, stranger things had happened.
“Why don’t you walk me through the events of Wednesday?” he suggested. “Start with when the two of you woke up.”
“We had scrambled eggs for breakfast, and I dropped her off at school on my way
families. He supposed he was the black sheep, although going into law enforcement like his uncle probably wasn’t the best
rebellion he could have come up with.
And now here was another one. How was her faith going to get her through this?
“Ms. Peizer—”
“My name is Tanya.”
At least the tears had stopped trickling down her cheeks.
“I’d like to ask you some questions about Randi,” he said gently, grateful for small mercies. “If you feel up to it.”
“I took those pills Patty gave me, but they just made me sick. Reality is hard to face right now, but it’s better than turning
into a zombie.” She touched her scalp. “I hurt my head.”
Too bad he couldn’t arrest this Patty person for loaning out her pharmaceuticals. “Let me look.”
She leaned away from his attempt to part her hair. “I’m okay. It was yesterday. Janice looked at it.”
To cover the unwanted gesture, which had been as automatic as picking up Tim after a tumble from his bike, Nick pulled out
his notebook.
“We’re interested in Randi’s movements during the last week of—last week,” he amended. “But especially Wednesday.”
“Why? Nothing is going to change.” Her eyes were bleak. “God gave her to me and he must not have thought I was doing a very
good job, because he took her back.”
No way was he going to get into that kind of theological quagmire. “We’re not sure it was an accident,” he said. “Are you
sure you’re up for this?”
With the sleeve of her shirt, she wiped her face. “I don’t have much choice, do I?”
“Yes, you do. You can tell me to go away. But the sooner we act, the sooner we can find out the truth.”
“I wish you
would
go away.”
He closed the notebook and shifted his weight to his feet. He should send Gil to do this. Gil had a better bedside manner.
“I wish it would all go away,” Tanya went on as if he hadn’t moved, “but it won’t, so I have to get on with it. Please tell
me why you don’t think it was an accident.”
He sank back onto the couch, and a spring gouged him in the hip. He moved over a little.
“The clerk at the convenience store said there were a bunch of kids on the bridge, and it looked like something was going
on. Then Randi turned up on the sandbar the next day. The one event may have nothing to do with the other, but in case they
do, I need to have a picture of her movements leading up to Wednesday night. Maybe something will tell me what could have
happened.”
Tanya shrugged. “She did what she always does. She went to school. She went to the mall. She hung out with her friends.”
According to Anna Hale, nobody much liked her. Who were these friends? “Do you know their names?”
“Kate’s one of them. And Kelci—with an
i
.” She glanced at his notebook, as if to check he had the spelling right. “And let’s not forget the man of the hour, Brendan
O’Day. I wanted to meet him.”
“Why?”
Another sideways glance, wryly. “Not the parent of a teenage girl, huh?”
“Not a parent. Not married.” Not even close, and happy to keep it that way, thanks.
“I think he was her boyfriend. I wanted to do the mom thing, you know? Meet him, get to know him. But it never seemed to happen.
She always had somewhere else to be, and I always had to work.”
Brendan O’Day was the captain of the junior varsity basketball team and was pegged for some Ivy League school in the future,
according to his proud father, who hung out with one of Nick’s brothers. Nick had his doubts that he was going out with Randi
Peizer, who was new in town, lived in subsidized housing, and wasn’t well-liked. But, he supposed, stranger things had happened.
“Why don’t you walk me through the events of Wednesday?” he suggested. “Start with when the two of you woke up.”
“We had scrambled eggs for breakfast, and I dropped her off at school on my way
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