Read Online The Savage Murder of Skylar Neese: The Truth Behind the Headlines by Daleen Berry, Geoffrey C. Fuller - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Daleen Berry, Geoffrey C. Fuller
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mom’s not here. Can I help you?”
It had been almost two weeks since Colebank had spoken with Rachel at church camp. Colebank was eager to talk to her again, but the teen had never showed up at the station as she’d promised. The officer wondered if her first face-to-face with Rachel would make her as uneasy as when she’d met Shelia.
“Yes, Star City Police.” Kim had already pulled out her cell phone and was now talking to someone. “It’s about Skylar, I guess. They wanna talk to Rachel. You need to talk to them or come home. Okay?” Kim nodded, eyeing the officer and the agent.
Then she held the phone out to Spurlock. “Patricia wants to talk to you. She left for Virginia about a half hour ago.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” the FBI agent said, taking the phone.
Colebank listened as he introduced himself and gave Rachel’s mom their agencies. She heard Patricia’s reply, too: “Ask her whatever you want. We’re trying to help here.”
The last two days, Colebank and Spurlock had pulled video from the Circle K convenience store at one end of tiny Star City and from the Sheetz convenience store at the other. The recordings they requested from corporate headquarters wouldn’t arrive for at least a few days, but in the meantime they planned to scout the area for any vehicles resembling the one captured on the landlord’s surveillance video.
Colebank hadn’t conducted many interviews and was eager to pick up a few techniques from Spurlock. He was whip-smart, and Colebank expected that she would learn a great deal from working with an FBI agent. Even though Spurlock looked like he was in his early twenties, she knew he had extensive training in criminology and accounting, so he must be older than that. What she didn’t realize was that Spurlock had only been out in the field a couple of months.
By the time Spurlock returned Kim’s cell phone, she had already grabbed Patricia’s hidden key. Kim unlocked the front door of the Shoaf home and yelled up the stairs. “Hey, Rach! Star City Police are here to see you!”
The house was dimly lit, and Colebank could just make out the figures of two older teens who hung back, watching as Rachel walked over to the officer and the agent. Colebank didn’t recognize Kelly Kerns’s name, but she immediately knew the guy’s name sounded familiar. He was Mikinzy Boggs, Rachel’s boyfriend.
***
Rachel and Mikinzy had recently started dating—again. The two had first gotten together at the end of the previous October, drawn together by a mutual love of the stage. Rachel was a rising star in UHS drama circles. She had already played the lead in a couple of school productions, which was rare for a sophomore. Mikinzy wrote songs, played guitar, and sang lead in a band christened “Call Us Next Tuesday,” a name presumably chosen for its deliberately shocking acronym.
Mikinzy’s band mostly played house parties. Slender, with prominent nose and teeth, Mikinzy gave the impression of a young man not yet grown into his face or body. But he was the front man in a band, and as anyone who’s attended high school in America knows: That. Trumps. Everything.
Their school friends knew Rachel and Mikinzy’s relationship was rocky. They were always on-again, off-again. Some students said it was because Rachel used weed—Mikinzy was said to be an outspoken critic of drugs. Others said it was because he tried to control Rachel. Either way, by the time they were firmly committed to the relationship, Mikinzy’s stance on drugs had softened considerably. Perhaps it was because Rachel enjoyed frequently getting high with Shelia and Skylar.
Now they were newly reunited, and their bond seemed stronger, almost unbreakable. Almost.
***
Several minutes into the interview with Rachel, Colebank felt she was getting nowhere. “So when you dropped her off—I’m sorry, Rachel, I just want to make sure we have this right. Tell me again, where did you drop her off?”
The three of
It had been almost two weeks since Colebank had spoken with Rachel at church camp. Colebank was eager to talk to her again, but the teen had never showed up at the station as she’d promised. The officer wondered if her first face-to-face with Rachel would make her as uneasy as when she’d met Shelia.
“Yes, Star City Police.” Kim had already pulled out her cell phone and was now talking to someone. “It’s about Skylar, I guess. They wanna talk to Rachel. You need to talk to them or come home. Okay?” Kim nodded, eyeing the officer and the agent.
Then she held the phone out to Spurlock. “Patricia wants to talk to you. She left for Virginia about a half hour ago.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” the FBI agent said, taking the phone.
Colebank listened as he introduced himself and gave Rachel’s mom their agencies. She heard Patricia’s reply, too: “Ask her whatever you want. We’re trying to help here.”
The last two days, Colebank and Spurlock had pulled video from the Circle K convenience store at one end of tiny Star City and from the Sheetz convenience store at the other. The recordings they requested from corporate headquarters wouldn’t arrive for at least a few days, but in the meantime they planned to scout the area for any vehicles resembling the one captured on the landlord’s surveillance video.
Colebank hadn’t conducted many interviews and was eager to pick up a few techniques from Spurlock. He was whip-smart, and Colebank expected that she would learn a great deal from working with an FBI agent. Even though Spurlock looked like he was in his early twenties, she knew he had extensive training in criminology and accounting, so he must be older than that. What she didn’t realize was that Spurlock had only been out in the field a couple of months.
By the time Spurlock returned Kim’s cell phone, she had already grabbed Patricia’s hidden key. Kim unlocked the front door of the Shoaf home and yelled up the stairs. “Hey, Rach! Star City Police are here to see you!”
The house was dimly lit, and Colebank could just make out the figures of two older teens who hung back, watching as Rachel walked over to the officer and the agent. Colebank didn’t recognize Kelly Kerns’s name, but she immediately knew the guy’s name sounded familiar. He was Mikinzy Boggs, Rachel’s boyfriend.
***
Rachel and Mikinzy had recently started dating—again. The two had first gotten together at the end of the previous October, drawn together by a mutual love of the stage. Rachel was a rising star in UHS drama circles. She had already played the lead in a couple of school productions, which was rare for a sophomore. Mikinzy wrote songs, played guitar, and sang lead in a band christened “Call Us Next Tuesday,” a name presumably chosen for its deliberately shocking acronym.
Mikinzy’s band mostly played house parties. Slender, with prominent nose and teeth, Mikinzy gave the impression of a young man not yet grown into his face or body. But he was the front man in a band, and as anyone who’s attended high school in America knows: That. Trumps. Everything.
Their school friends knew Rachel and Mikinzy’s relationship was rocky. They were always on-again, off-again. Some students said it was because Rachel used weed—Mikinzy was said to be an outspoken critic of drugs. Others said it was because he tried to control Rachel. Either way, by the time they were firmly committed to the relationship, Mikinzy’s stance on drugs had softened considerably. Perhaps it was because Rachel enjoyed frequently getting high with Shelia and Skylar.
Now they were newly reunited, and their bond seemed stronger, almost unbreakable. Almost.
***
Several minutes into the interview with Rachel, Colebank felt she was getting nowhere. “So when you dropped her off—I’m sorry, Rachel, I just want to make sure we have this right. Tell me again, where did you drop her off?”
The three of
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