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“He’s hanging out with the wrong people. I should never have left him in that house with those boys. I should have stayed. Maybe...maybe he wouldn’t have changed.”
Mrs. Edgar’s face hardened. Sophia had told her what Javier did to her in her bedroom. She said, “No, you were right to leave, and I thank God every day that I had a place here for you. You know Javier would not have stopped at simply touching you. You know that, right?”
Sophia nodded, feeling miserable.
“What have they done?”
“I think—Javier might have killed someone.”
“We need to tell the police.”
“The police think Sergio did it.”
“Sergio?” She looked as confused as Sophia felt.
“He confessed. I don’t know what’s going on, Mrs. Edgar. But I’m scared. For Henry, and...for you and everyone here.”
Mrs. Edgar bristled. “Do not be scared for me. I am the adult. I am responsible for you.”
“A private investigator talked to me today.”
“Where? At school?”
“Over there.” Sophia motioned to the corner. “She said that Sergio told the police he killed a clerk at the Cactus Stop. She thinks he’s innocent, that he’s protecting someone. The killer wore the sweatshirt I gave Sergio for Christmas. And...and I know, the weekend this all happened, that Henry had the sweatshirt. We’d gone to see the Christmas lights at the zoo before they took them down, remember? Henry was cold and Sergio gave him the sweatshirt to wear. That was two weeks ago Friday. And the man was killed that Saturday. And then last week, Henry gave it back to Sergio. The investigator said it had gunshot residue in it. But why would Sergio protect Javier? I asked Henry about it, and he says it was self-defense. But that doesn’t make sense. And Henry claims Sergio is protecting me, but why? I didn’t do anything!”
“I want this investigator’s name.”
Sophia reached into her pocket and pulled out the rumpled card, handed it to her.
Mrs. Edgar looked at it, put it in her apron. “First, we call the police. Then we’ll see what options we have. I think you should stay home from school tomorrow, just to be on the safe side. And Henry can’t come over right now. I’m sorry, I know he’s your brother, but I do not tolerate violence.”
“I’m sure he feels bad about it.” But Sophia would never forget the anger in Henry’s eyes. She had never seen him like that before.
“Maybe, but he still needs to apologize with sincerity. And if he’s hanging out with a murderer—he cannot be here. This home is your sanctuary, and it is the sanctuary for the other girls, as well.”
Sophia bit her lip and nodded. She felt so lost and alone, but Mrs. Edgar was right.
Until Henry was away from Javier Escobar, he wasn’t safe to be around.
Mrs. Edgar put her arm around her and led her inside.
Thirteen
I only had an hour or so before I needed to head to work, but it was enough time to talk to Julia, then check out where Henry lived, which wasn’t far from Lyle’s Diner.
When I walked in, a pale reedy woman with graying blond hair approached. “You must be Margo, Millie’s cousin.” She took my hand and squeezed. “I’m Julia Henderson, it’s so nice to finally meet you!”
“Don’t tell me you’ve heard about me.”
She laughed lightly. “Of course I have. Millie and I go way back. We grew up in the same neighborhood. Come, sit. Coffee?”
“Thanks,” I said.
She motioned to the counter. Lyle’s Diner was an old-fashioned restaurant with cushioned red vinyl booths and surprisingly comfortable stools. Though the atmosphere looked to be right out of the fifties, the kitchen was modern and immaculate. The cook was in the back wearing all white, including a chef’s hat. A single waitress handled the floor, but it was four in the afternoon and the diner had only a few customers. The posted hours were 6:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. six days a week, and 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Sunday.
Julia poured a cup for each of us, motioned to a saucer that had creamer and sugar. I added a little cream. I could drink my coffee black if I had to, but I preferred light. She put in both cream and sugar.
“Millie said that you’re a private investigator looking into the kids going around robbing businesses.”
