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“Yeah. Listen, I need you to try to track Mr. Reynolds’s movements over the past twenty to twenty-five years, if you can. Copy?”

A long pause later, Chris responded, “Copy.”

“Wait. Any word on the second set?” Calloway asked.

“No, sir.”

Calloway placed the handset back on its hook and looked at me again.

“It feels like we’re on to something, but as we learn more, the details get more confusing.” I huffed out a nervous breath. “What in the world happened back then?”

“It must have been terrifying.”

I lifted my finger and looked at the simple bandage I’d used this morning. There would be little to no scar. It felt like ages ago that the man from the street had attacked me. I could still conjure the stink of his body and breath. But he hadn’t been Silas.

“The guy who knocked you down wasn’t Silas,” Calloway spoke my thoughts.

I’d been certain that it hadn’t been Wilmot either. I would know my own father, wouldn’t I? Considering all that he’d kept from me, maybe not.

I shook it off … for now.

“Where to?” I asked, hoping we were going to talk to Susan but knowing I needed to dig deep for some sort of foreign strength if we were going to see her.

“Let’s talk to Thalia, if you’re up for it.”

I would be up for it. I just needed to put everything else out of my mind for now. It was a lot. “Of course.” Similar to Chris, my tone was infused with forced confidence. If Calloway noticed, he didn’t comment.

Thalia Deem lived in one of the old miner’s houses, built to give shelter but not much more than that. She’d married Freddy Deem, a good guy who worked all kinds of construction. I didn’t know them well, but when he was employed on a big project or maybe some building in Tucson, he’d stop by the diner at that same time I was there early in the morning for a large coffee and a cinnamon roll to go. Leaving cash on the counter, with a smile and a friendly salute, he’d thank whoever had packed up the items before he took off for work.

Today, Thalia was wrangling two toddlers as we stopped on the street in front of the house. She seemed to be in a bad mood, a frown pulling at her mouth. When she spotted us, it only got deeper.

The two kids did not appear to be listening to her, but when they spotted us, they moved right next to their mom, one grabbing a hand, the other wrapping her arms around Thalia’s leg.

“What’s up?” Thalia asked as we got out of the car. “Freddy?”

“We aren’t here regarding Freddy,” Calloway said. “As far as we know, he’s fine.”

Relief relaxed the deep discontent of her features, but she still didn’t look happy. “Why are you here?”

“Can we come in?” Calloway asked.

Thalia’s eyes darted back and forth between Calloway and me, her eyes landing on me. “Again, why are you here?”

“Have you heard about the …” Calloway lowered his voice probably because of the kids. “skeletons?” he asked her finally.

“I have, but I thought maybe it was made up. Sounds made up.”

“It’s real. Hazel is a forensic consultant. She’s helping.”

“The bone woman. Yeah. You’re here because of the skeletons?” Thalia didn’t hesitate to speak in her normal voice and volume.

“Thalia, could we come in for a minute?”

“Shit, Sheriff. Sure, I suppose.”

“Mom, you said a bad word,” the little boy said.

I worked to keep from smiling, but Thalia wasn’t amused.