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His voice dropped several degrees as he answered. “Everyone always gets hurt when they get involved with me.”
“It’s the same way with me,” she said, only slightly lying.
His eyes narrowed at her, and she could tell he knew she was fibbing.
“What other questions do you have for me?” he asked suddenly.
She thought about it for a moment. “Football or basketball?”
He smiled. “Both.”
She nodded. “Jock?”
He shook his head. “No, outcast, but I was good at sports and so they tolerated me in all circles.”
“Why were you an outcast?” she asked. His smile slipped suddenly.
“I was the boy who got his sister killed,” he answered. “One joy of public school you probably didn’t have to deal with.”
“We were so young. When Amber disappeared…” She shook her head. “No one was around us to know about it.”
He nodded. “I was eight and already too tall, skinny, and awkward to be popular.”
“You went to the same school all your childhood?”
“Yeah,” he said with a sigh. “And had the same bullies the whole time.”
“Where are they now?” she asked, somehow knowing he would know exactly where they were.
He smiled. “One’s a teacher at the middle school and getting bullied by all the kids. One is a football coach for the high school. And one, the meanest of the trio, is in jail for spousal abuse. He didn’t know when to stop, so he’ll spend the next ten years behind bars.” He took another sip of his beer.
“You had friends, though. Right?” she asked.
“Yeah.” He nodded and set his beer down. “Mike and Leo. We did everything together. Mike is married to his high school girlfriend, Heather, and working as the local bank manager back home. Leo moved to Dallas and is still single.”
“Just where are you from in Texas?” she asked suddenly.
“El Paso. It’s dry, hot, and…” He shrugged. “Home.”
She frowned, remembering the stories of the missing kids she’d researched when she’d been a teen. She’d hoped that one of the other cases would lead her to Amber. Instead, she’d found herself more and more engrossed in the horror stories of other people’s loss. “Your sister…” She looked at him. “I think I read about her.”
He nodded. “Yeah, you probably did. There were so many articles about what happened to her. Even now, years later, they still write about the case.”
“I’m so sorry.” She touched his hand again. “For years I’d hoped that Amber was still out there. That I would find her. That one day I’d be walking in a mall or in the store and…” She closed her eyes for a brief moment. “There she would be.” She finished when she opened them. “Standing there, identical to me. We’d have a great laugh about losing one another, and she’d tell me about how a family had illegally adopted her.” She sighed and sank back in her chair.
“You don’t think that any longer?” he asked her.
She shook her head. “No. It was childish of me. I know she’s gone. My only hope is she didn’t suffer.”
He was silent again, and she remembered more about his sister’s case. The five-year-old had been abused in every sense before being lit on fire alive. She knew she had to change the subject quickly.
“You said that your father is still alive? What does he think of your career choices?” she asked.
“He’s proud. Of course, he still hopes I’ll give it up and come take over the ranch. He’s been talking about selling it lately. I’m trying to convince him to retire someplace tropical.” He smiled. “He’d love it here.” He motioned towards the water where the sun was setting. “Is there ever a night without these amazing sunsets?”
She thought about it for a moment. “During a storm.”
“Right.” He nodded. “Hurricanes. How do you cope with them?”
