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Chapter One
Brooklyn Walsh
February 2007
Thursday — 11:26am
Thenoiselevelofthe high school gymnasium had died down since most of the students had either returned to their next class or gone to lunch. Most of the freshmen and sophomores were currently in class, whereas the juniors and seniors were enjoying their midday meal in the cafeteria. It used to be where the seniors were permitted to leave school grounds to eat, but the administration had put a stop to that a few years ago. The only students allowed to exit the building now during school hours were those with internships at authorized local businesses.
Morton High School was currently hosting Career Day, so numerous tables and chairs had been brought into the gym. It was a chance for the students to talk to professionals in specific sectors to get a feel for what the future might hold for them. There were also some college and university representatives on hand, along with all branches of military recruiters. Many students wanted to experience life out in the real world prior to pursuing a higher education, and the recruiters were available for those seeking an alternate path.
Since Caterpillar and Nestlé both had facilities in Illinois, each of those corporations had been given two tables each to speak with the students interested in working for their companies. The smaller businesses were positioned on the righthand side near the bleachers. The different occupations ranged from accountants to lawyers to law enforcement. Even the hospital in Peoria had sent a nurse and a lab technician, while one of the local veterinarians had shown up personally as a favor to Principal Frawley.
“Brook, are you coming?” Sally asked over her shoulder as she walked down the hallway. She came to a stop after witnessing Brook standing in front of the open doors of the gymnasium. Sally was dressed in her favorite pair of strategically ripped jeans and a pink sweater that her mother had given her for Christmas. She’d even made sure to wear the matching lip gloss that she’d purchased at the mall last weekend. “Today is the day. Remember?”
Nate was going to ask Sally to the prom.
Everyone knew that Nate had gotten the other members of the football team to help him make a huge banner. It had almost certainly already been taped to the cafeteria wall. Brook was really happy for her best friend, but it wasn’t as if today was going to be some monumental occasion for the couple. Nate and Sally had been dating steadily for the past year, so it was pretty much a given that the two of them were going to attend prom together.
Brook had other things on her mind, not that Sally was interested in her friends lately. She didn’t understand that there were more important things than prom, and today was probably the only time that Brook could speak to the one person who had all the answers.
“You go ahead,” Brook replied with an encouraging smile, not wanting Sally to know the truth. “I promised Principal Frawley that I would speak with the representative from U of I.”
“Are you serious right now?” Sally asked in disbelief. She set her hand on her hip in frustration. “Nate is going to ask me to prom in front of everyone. You can’t miss that, Brook.”
“I have an AP chem exam after lunch,” Brook explained, not telling Sally something that she didn’t already know. “I’m not sure that the university’s representative will still be here. I shouldn’t be long. Go, and I’ll catch up with you. Marcie will be filming it all, anyway. I’ll watch it after school today.”
Sally pursed her lips and shook her head in irritation. She clearly wanted to argue, but something had caught her attention over Brook’s shoulder.
“Fine, but don’t be too long.”
As Sally continued down the hallway toward the cafeteria, Brook glanced over her shoulder to find that Principal Frawley was walking side by side with Mrs. Kidd. No wonder Sally had vacated the hallway. She hadn’t been on Mrs. Kidd’s good side since the fender bender in the parking lot last month.
Not wanting to explain why she wasn’t on her way to lunch, Brook quickly ducked into the gym and made her way over to Chief Conway. He was Morton’s Chief of Police, although a lot of the students just referred to him as Sheriff Wrong Way. He hated it, of course, which only fueled the students into using the nickname more often. Brook had no intention of speaking to any of the college reps that were also hanging around the gymnasium, but Sally didn’t need to know that.
“Chief Conway?” Brook had made a conscious decision to address him properly. She was likely to get more information out of him regarding Pamela Murray’s murder. “Do you have a second?”
Brook reminded herself for the tenth time this morning that the chief couldn’t read her mind. He wouldn’t know that her interest in Pamela’s death was personal. He wouldn’t have a clue that she suspected there was more to the case than what had been reported in the news over seven years ago.
Young Girl Mutilated!
Body Found Behind Public Library…Maimed!
Those were just two of the headlines that Brook could remember from back then. She’d been so young, but the terror that had gone through the town had been palpable. What had made it worse was that Jacob—Brook’s brother—had been at the library that fateful evening. He’d sworn that he witnessed Ben Pearson with Pamela at the library that night. Jacob hadn’t lied, because others had corroborated his story.
Still, something hadn’t added up with the timeline.
Brook feared that her brother might have had something to do with the girl’s murder.
From what Nicole Conway had told the entire school, Pamela’s face had all but been cut off her facial bones. The police had suspected the body was that of Pamela due to the pink sweater that she’d been wearing that day, but they’d waited until they had received confirmation through her dental records before making a public statement. It had taken months before most of the parents had allowed their daughters out of the house after dark.
Brook could still recall the moment that she’d found a hideous drawing in Jacob’s desk. She was almost certain that it had been of Pamela’s face, but Brook had no idea if her brother had drawn it from memory or simply from his imagination.
“Of course, I have time for you,” Chief Conway replied as he finished speaking with a woman at the next table. “Brook, right?”
Brook nodded, wishing that she’d brought with her some books or something. She hated not knowing what to do with her hands, so she folded them across her stomach. When Chief Conway’s eyes narrowed slightly at the movement, she quickly dropped her arms to her sides.
“Why don’t you have a seat?” Chief Conway motioned for Brook to join him behind the table. “Are you interested in becoming a police officer?”
