Chapter 8
Emily let out a gasp and Clay reached for her. He considered calling in the agents. They should hear this. If the woman dropped dead right this moment, they’d have no witnesses. Paige started crying and Clay didn’t know what to do first. Soothe Emily, pick up Paige, or demand answers?
The caretaker opened the door and gave them a pointed look. No way in hell was he leaving Emily alone to hear the rest of this woman’s confession. Or lies. Who knew what her endgame was? He got up, lifted Paige out of her carrier and nestled her against his chest, rocking her back and forth. That seemed to do the trick. The baby nuzzled closer, closed her eyes, and drifted off.
“I think the agents should hear this,” Clay said, and started to open the door.
“Not yet,” Maureen croaked, and took Emily’s arm. Her hands were paper-thin and he could see a trail of blue veins. “Water, please.”
Emily stood stock-still. Clay suspected she was still processing the words.
Duke took her. Duke took Hope.
He maneuvered Paige to one arm and poured the water from a tan plastic pitcher into a glass with a straw and held it for her. Honestly, he wanted to shove it down her throat.
“You okay?” he asked Emily.
“Yes. Please go on,” she told Maureen.
Maureen sipped the water, trying to hold the glass with her own hands. To Clay she looked as if she was at death’s door and he fervently hoped she’d be able to finish. Then they could parse her story, investigate whether it was true.
“I waited for you,” Maureen said. “Had to get this out.”
“I understand.” Emily nodded her head in encouragement. It was a miracle she was keeping it together. Clay touched her back. She still had on her jacket even though the heat was cranked to full blast.
“When that man . . . the one on death row . . . said he killed her and threw her down a well, I wanted to call you.” Maureen coughed hard until her entire body racked from it.
The caretaker, Jenna, came back in. “It’s too much for her. You’ll have to leave.”
Emily made a noise of distress and Clay said, “Not yet. My wife needs to hear this and Maureen needs to say it.”
Maureen nodded and Jenna said, “Just a few more minutes. Anything more than that is too much.” She grabbed a wad of tissues and wiped Maureen’s mouth, put her water glass back on the table and with a remote control adjusted the bed to a near sitting position. “Harper will be here soon.”
A tear rolled down Maureen’s face and she wiped it away with the back of her bony hand.
“Ring if you need me,” Jenna said, and left. Clay noted the hand bell on the table.
“You were saying you wanted to call me about the man in prison, the one who falsely confessed to taking Hope,” Emily reminded her.
“He lied.” Maureen attempted to pull her covers higher. Emily did it for her, tucking it under her chin. “You cried on the news and I wanted to tell you . . .”
“What?” Emily asked, her voice trembling.
He placed Paige back in her carrier so he could hold Emily. Maureen watched him swaddle the baby in her blanket and something in her eyes softened.
“What did you want to tell me?” Emily repeated.
“That Duke did it.”
“Why didn’t you? Why didn’t you call?” Clay tried to keep the anger from his voice but Emily had gone through hell back then. She was going through hell right now. If this woman had known she should’ve come clean a long time ago.
“Afraid.” She coughed again and Emily handed her another wad of tissues.
“You were afraid of Duke?” Emily asked.
She shook her head. “Afraid that Duke would go to prison.”
Damned straight, Clay wanted to say. Dying at the hands of a drunk driver was too good for the bastard. He raised his voice. “So, you protected the man who did this to an innocent child?”
Emily pinched his leg. “Forgive him. He’s upset. Please go on. Tell us everything.”
Good sense told him the agents should be in the room, but he worried that Jenna would call the meeting short and he didn’t know when they’d get another chance to talk to Maureen. Or if she’d even make it through the night.
“Start from the beginning,” Emily said. “Please, this is . . .” She started to weep, then caught herself. “Go on.”
Clay wrapped his arm around her and she leaned into him. She felt so light and fragile that it was all he could do not to carry her out of the room, out of this town, away from this evil woman.
“He saw her playing in your yard.” Maureen reached for the glass of water and sipped through the straw. “He was cleaning out his aunt’s house. Her yard backed up to yours.”
Emily choked on a sob. “Mrs. Murphy? She died a week before Hope went missing.”
Maureen gave a weak nod and Clay didn’t know how much longer she’d hold up for this or whether Jenna would burst through the door, calling a halt to their conversation.
“Maureen?” He tried to modulate his voice, sound patient when he was burning with fury. How could she have she harbored that child-killing son-of-bitch? “Do you know where Hope is? My wife would very much like to bring her home.” And give her a proper burial.
Again, she nodded. She was crying now, tears streaming down her face. “You seem like good people.”
A mewling sound came from Emily and Clay knew she was a hair away from losing it. Her face had lost all its color and her shoulders sagged with sheer devastation. At least they knew now. All those years of searching. Clay wondered if the police were even aware that Mrs. Murphy had a nephew and that he’d been there the day Hope went missing. How could they have they overlooked such an important detail?
He wanted Luckett and Rossi in the room when Maureen told them where Duke had left Hope’s body. Then the woman could rot in hell for all he cared.
“Did she suffer?” Emily asked “Did my baby suffer?”
“Em, honey.” Clay wanted her out of this place. “Let’s have the agents take it from here.” As far as he knew they were still in the living room, waiting. By now maybe the Palo Alto detectives had arrived. They could handle the rest.
Maureen’s gray face turned white as if all the blood had drained out. Her body shook with silent sobs. “I’m sorry,” she said, and closed her eyes.
The door creaked open and a young girl came in. “Mama?” She stood there for a moment, gazing at them with interest.
Emily took one look at her, stumbled and let out a cry. Clay gaped at the girl because she looked exactly like his wife.