After a shower, I sit down at my laptop and check my emails.
Echo’s text and email ask me if I’ve seen her earlier email from yesterday. As I start to open it, my phone rings. Liam’s name is on the screen. For the next fewhours, he and I have a long discussion about a new visual-effects issue with the episode ofUnder the Surfacethat’s currently filming.
Eating a turkey sandwich for lunch, I think about Keith driving back to Marquette. That thought reminds me of Theo’s challenge, the one to research the cold case in Marquette. I consider asking Keith about it and push that thought away.
Damn, he’s in my thoughts too frequently.
As much as I want to be more hands-on in our quest for answers, like Keith, research is what I do. I spend much of the afternoon analyzing the pictures of Craig and adding more scribbles to my notebook. The exposed intestine is disgusting, yet I can’t help but describe it in my notes for a future show.
My phone stays on the counter, not vibrating with messages from my family. I heard from Liv last night and this morning, but it still bothers me that my mom hasn’t reached out. I know she’s beside herself with Julie. A quick text to her oldest daughter wouldn’t take time away from her youngest.
About four thirty, I drive into town and stop at the Dollar Store. If I only buy one bottle of wine, I can’t overdo the drinking. Besides, spending the day dissecting the pictures of Craig has me unsettled. After the Dollar Store, I swing by the Walleye Tavern.
It’s that time of day when the pool tables are hopping, and the dining room is still sparsely populated.
“Jillian,” Theo says without his usual handsome smile.
“I thought I’d stop by to let you know I’m still okay.”
His smile makes a limited-time appearance. “Good to know. Did you move to your parents’ place?”
“No,” I confess. “I’m still out at the old Iverson place. I kept my doors locked.”
Pressing his lips together, Theo shakes his head. “I heard Keith Gilbert is leaving town tomorrow. It won’t be soon enough as far as I’m concerned.”
I wonder where Theo heard that piece of gossip. Instead of asking, I say, “I think you’re wrong about him. Blue Gillians don’t know what it’s like to be an outsider.”
“It’s more than that.” He lifts his eyebrows. “Did you look into that cold case in Marquette?”
“Not yet. I will.” I started a few times and got sidetracked. “Hey, thanks for worrying about me.”
“Jillian, look up the case. Keith Gilbert is one of the detectives working it.”
“I will, Theo. Thanks again.”
“It’s what friends do. Thanks for stopping by.” He quirked a brow. “Do you want a drink?”
“More than you know.” I lift my hand. “See you later.”
As I unlock the door to cottage two, I realize I should have ordered a cheeseburger to go, remembering that another turkey sandwich is my only option. Before I make my dinner, I walk around the cottage, checking each window and door.
The temperature warmed even more during the day than yesterday. I open the door with only a screen at the front of the cottage. As I’m cleaning up my dinner dishes, my phone pings. My anticipation spikes, hoping it’s fromKeith and not another from Echo. It’s neither; the message is from Liv.
“LEAVINGMOM’S. COULD I STOP BY?”
A quick glanceat the clock tells me it is after seven in the evening. The daylight hours are getting longer with the combination of Michigan’s recent time change—spring ahead—and the approaching summer solstice. That means we have about two hours of sunlight.
While I’m not falling victim to everyone’s warnings, I don’t like the idea of my sister leaving here after dark.
I text back.
“I’M IN COTTAGE TWO.COME BY.”
She replies:
“I’LL BE THERE IN FIFTEEN.”
In preparationfor Liv’s visit, I eye what’s left of my iced tea from dinner and leave it on the kitchen counter. The thought of hearing about my family, the people who haven’t reached out to me in two days, makes tea the less desired choice. I pour myself the last glass from lastnight’s wine bottle, throw the bottle away, and put away the plate left from my dinner sandwich. I also close my notebook, the one filling with unanswered questions.
