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"Duff," said the man behind the counter, extending a hand to Rachel.
She took it. "Nice to meet you, sir."
"She really was a fine woman."
"Excuse me?"
"Your aunt." He smiled, revealing a couple of rotten teeth. Briefly, she was reminded of Silas' golden smile, and she felt a shiver. But her curiosity overshadowed the chill.
"Lived out there all by herself, didn't need nobody for nothin'. She was an expert hunter, you know. Used to bring me some of her catches to stuff."
"Really?" Rachel leaned in, her curiosity piqued. "I knew she lived alone, but I never realized she was into taxidermy."
"Yep," the man nodded, his eyes crinkling with fond remembrance. "She did some fine work on a couple of beavers I caught once. Made 'em look like they were ready to build a damn right there in my living room."
Rachel couldn't help but smile at the image, feeling an unexpected warmth for this stranger who knew her aunt. Sarah lived only an hour from this town, so she supposed it made sense.
"Sarah always said you had a good head on your shoulders," the man continued, his voice taking on a more serious tone. "She'd be proud to know you're out here, trying to make a difference."
"Thank you," Rachel murmured. Of course, she knew better. Her aunt blamed her for the unsolved disappearance of her own parents. Nothing anyone said would take that knowledge away.
"Alright now, you two best get settled in," the man said, handing over the keys to their rooms. "It's late, and I reckon you've got a long day ahead of you tomorrow."
As they turned to leave, Rachel couldn't shake the feeling that their conversation held more significance than she first thought.
Rachel followed Ethan down the dimly lit hallway to their rooms.
Eager to process the day's events, Rachel fumbled with the keys as she unlocked their shared motel unit. The door creaked open, revealing a large room divided by an open doorway. Faded wallpaper clung to the walls, and the musty scent of old carpet filled the air. A sense of weary nostalgia settled over the space, a testament to the many travelers who had sought sanctuary within these walls.
"Home sweet home," Ethan quipped, setting down his duffel bag with a thud. He eyed the two doors on opposite sides of the room, each leading to an identical bed. "At least we won't be fighting over blankets."
"Very funny," Rachel replied, forcing a smile despite her exhaustion. Her gaze lingered on the beds for a moment before turning back to the task at hand.
"I'm gonna grab a shower," Ethan announced, already unbuttoning his shirt as he made his way toward the bathroom. "You want one first?"
"No, go ahead," Rachel said, shaking her head. "I need to do some research anyway."
Ethan nodded, disappearing behind the bathroom door. Moments later, the sound of running water filled the room, accompanied by the distant hum of the motel's aging plumbing.
Rachel wasted no time in pulling out her laptop, settling into the stiff-backed chair near the room's only window. In the dim light of the streetlamp outside, she began piecing together the information they had gathered thus far. Her fingers flew across the keyboard, searching for any details about the prostitute named Candace.
She couldn't shake the feeling that the clock was ticking, the urgency of the situation weighing heavily on her shoulders.
"Maybe Aunt Sarah knew something..." she mused, recalling the conversation with the motel's owner. It seemed unlikely that her aunt's connections to this town would be significant. It had been a while since Sarah had lived in the area.
Still... it couldn't hurt to ask, could it?
She considered this a moment, wincing as she did.
Her relationship with her aunt was...
An uncomfortable one.
At the age of ten, she'd been orphaned when her parents had vanished. Their bodies, or persons, had never been found.
Her aunt had taken her in, looking after her like one of her own, but Rachel had grown up an orphan, and they'd both known it.
What Aunt Sarah had in the way of wilderness skills, hunting expertise and local knowledge, she somewhat lacked in the parenting department.
