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“Jade told me not to . . .” Elizabeth whimpered.
She’s right. I can’t. Everyone would think I’ve lost my mind. And Chloe needs me. What if . . . what if I ended up under a doctor’s care or in a mental hospital? What if they took her away from me?
No. She couldn’t say anything. Nothing. She shouldn’t have even told Jade.
Five minutes later, she dashed out into the rain and jumped into her Escape. Chloe. She needed to grab her daughter and hold her close.
“Let’s go to Wembley Grade School,” Ravinia said, looking at the clock on Rex’s dash. “There’s still time.”
Rex followed her gaze. Three thirty. “Might be too late to find someone who’ll talk to you.”
“You said school gets out at three thirty.”
“It’s a guess. Three o’clock, maybe. And nobody sticks around unless they have to.”
“Just take me there.”
Rather than argue the point, Rex headed in the right direction. What the hell. If it was a waste of time, it was his time to waste.
The series of buildings that made up Wembley Grade School looked as if they could really use a face-lift. They were painted concrete and the paint was faded, appearing as if it had been a few years since the last application of medium brown had been rolled on. The drinking fountains were circa 1965 and though the playground equipment still looked sturdy enough, Rex figured it had been erected enough decades ago to make him question its current safety compliance rating.
“You’re overdressed,” he told her, examining her short black dress.
She made a strangled sound, tugging on the hem. “Underdressed, overdressed. Who cares? I’ll tell her I just came from work.”
“I’ll come with you.”
“Yea
h, what are you gonna be, my dad? I can handle this.” And with that, she climbed out of the car and hurried somewhat awkwardly on her short heels.
Rex tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. He shouldn’t let her just go on her own, but he also sensed she might have more success without him. A man showing up at a grade school without a student and asking questions was enough of an anomaly to raise questions. A young woman, barely more than a girl, looking for a relative might be more palatable. Not that he expected her to come back with any meaningful information. The best link they had to the Gaineses was Marlena from the Brightside Apartments, but he was pretty sure he’d tapped her out. Still, Ravinia wanted to meet her and maybe she should. She isn’t half bad at the job, he thought grudgingly, which made him feel superfluous in a way that bothered him and made him feel far older than his thirty-six years.
Fifteen minutes passed. Then twenty. He was thinking about driving away and searching out food, figuring it would take her awhile. He could call her on her cell to let her know, but just as he was reaching for his phone, she suddenly appeared, hurrying as fast as her command of her shoes would let her.
At the car, she ripped the pumps off and flung them into the backseat.
“She went to Van Buren High,” Ravinia said in a rush as she settled herself in her seat. “Some teacher there named Bernice Kampfe—K-A-M-P-F-E—took an interest in her. That’s what Mrs. Holcomb said, the lady I talked to. She said Bernice Kampfe knew Elizabeth Gaines well, so maybe she knows where she is now. Let’s go to Van Buren. How far away is it?”
“How’d you get all that so fast?” he demanded.
“Holcomb was the oldest teacher I could find. I told her I was Elizabeth’s cousin. You were right. They were all leaving. School was already out, but I caught up with this one who walked with a limp. She’s retiring next year. I pretended that Elizabeth and I were close once, but her parents divorced and it was bad and I’ve lost touch with her. I looked into Mrs. Holcomb’s heart and she’s one of those really nice people who want to believe the best in everybody. So anyway, she remembered Elizabeth and said I should talk to Mrs. Kampfe.”
Ravinia was flushed with success, and he could only sit back in reluctant admiration. He didn’t believe in this looking into the heart thing much, but there was no accounting for Ravinia’s ability to suss information out of people.
“Well,” he said, accessing the GPS app on his cell phone. “I think Van Buren’s the one about half a mile away.”
“Good.” She smiled broadly. “And then let’s get food. Pizza.”
“That works.”
Her good mood was infectious, and though Rex sensed he should be a lot more worried about his “new partner” than he was, he drove her to Van Buren High School. She hurried inside again, but was back within ten minutes. “They’ve gone home for the day. Maybe you can look up Bernice Kampfe’s address.”
“Might be easier to find her at the school tomorrow. You never know how people will take it when you show up at their door unannounced.”
“Doesn’t sound like I have a choice,” Ravinia groused. “When I get my license, though . . .” She made it sound like a threat.
“You can go into the private investigation business all on your own.”
