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Lia cleared the lump from her throat. She wasn’t a misbehaving teenager. She was there with a purpose, and the sooner she got to the point the better.
“Thank you for agreeing to meet with us,” she said.
Mary placed her palms flat on the desk. “You said you wanted information about Vanna Zimmerman?”
“Yes,” Lia agreed. “Her foster mother mentioned the two of you were close when Vanna was in college.”
“I’m not sure what I can tell you. I haven’t heard from Vanna since she disappeared fifteen years ago.”
“No one has,” Kaden told her. “And now we believe we know why.”
The woman stiffened in shock. “You found her?”
Kaden held up a hand. “Nothing’s confirmed, but we suspect the skeleton that was discovered near Pike, Wisconsin, is Vanna.”
Something that might have been hope died in Mary’s eyes. “I remember the headlines in the newspaper about a body being discovered. I didn’t bother to read the story.” She shook her head. “How tragic. I’d always hoped . . .”
“So did my brother,” Kaden murmured as her words trailed away.
“Yes.” She squared her shoulders, as if trying to gather her composure. She was clearly disturbed at the thought of Vanna’s death. “I spoke to him several times over the years. I was so devastated when I read his obituary in the newspaper.”
Kaden grimaced. “He never stopped looking for Vanna. Or loving her.”
Mary leaned forward, her stern expression softening as she sent Kaden a sympathetic smile.
“Vanna was a different woman after she met your brother. Abetterwoman.”
Kaden nodded. “Darren was a rock for a lot of people. Including me.”
There was a brief silence before Mary pushed herself back in her seat, tapping a finger on the arm of her chair.
“Where did you say the skeleton was discovered?”
“Pike,” Lia answered. “It’s a tiny town—”
“I know where it is,” Mary interrupted. “I used to visit the college’s extension office just outside of town. I was responsible for the interns who worked there.”
Lia and Kaden shared a quick glance. Perhaps this meeting wouldn’t be a waste of time.
Lia returned her attention to the older woman. “So, you knew Vanna spent a summer in Pike?”
Mary pinched her lips. “Unfortunately.”
“Why unfortunately?” Lia demanded.
The older woman glanced away, as if considering her words. Or maybe she was deciding whether or not she wanted to talk to them at all. The old-fashioned clock on the wall ticked off the seconds, the wind rattling the windows. At last she heaved a faint sigh and turned back to meet Lia’s curious gaze.
“Let me start at the beginning,” she said.
“Please,” Lia murmured. She was desperate to discover any information about Vanna’s time in Pike.
Mary slowly leaned forward, placing her forearms on the desk as if she was preparing to share a long story.
“I met Vanna when she took my freshman botany class. It was obvious from the beginning that she was there on fellowship and that she had a chip on her shoulder that annoyed her classmates. She sat by herself in a corner, and even though she could have answered every question I asked, she refused to respond.” Mary clicked her tongue. “It was almost as if she was daring me to kick her out.”
“I’m sure as a professor that bothered you,” Lia said.
“More than that, she reminded me of myself at that age,” Mary surprisingly confessed. “Sullen. Defiant. Too smart for my own good.”
