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“Forensics are lost. The murders were dealt with by authorities higher than me. No sense in kicking over a hornet’s nest.” He paused for a moment and laced our fingers. “I wish that Micah felt like he could tell me,” he murmured, more to himself than to me, and I could see the conflict in his eyes. “He’s a good man, and I hate the thought of him carrying that alone for so long.”
It didn’t faze me that Neil knew it was Micah, and hell, who else would need to throw a gun down a well? This was a small-town sheriff crossing a line because he knew the people of Whisper Ridge—he knew their hearts, and I loved him for it.
Love?
I did love him, but I wouldn’t tell him yet. Not in the middle of this latest of my mess-ups.
“I promised Micah I would fix it.”
He rolled his eyes and huffed. “Of course you did.”
“Do Ineedto fix anything?”
He met my steady gaze. “I know Micah was protecting someone else… Look… I want you to forget this. I want Micah to forget this. Okay?”
“Okay.”
The phone buzzed on the desk, and I put it on speaker. Carter didn’t waste time with pleasantries.
“I’ve sent you the files,” he said, his voice flat and business-like. “But I scanned the medical records I have, and … yeah, Rebecca Lennox, forty-three, was diagnosed with stage four breast cancer. She was told it wasn’t something they could fix, unfortunately. Still, she had options for treatments, but here’s the thing—she never received any. She never even went back to the hospital where she was diagnosed for her follow-up appointment.”
I frowned, processing what he was saying. “Never went back. No treatment at all?”
“Nothing,” Carter confirmed. “It’s like she just … disappeared from the system. No further records, no nothing.”
A cold feeling settled in my gut.
“What about Edward?” I asked, already knowing the answer wouldn’t be any better.
“Edward?” Carter hesitated for a moment before continuing. “I couldn’t find much. There is no medical history to speak of other than the coroner’s report on hissuicide. As far as I can tell, a clean bill of health before that.”
“Did you find any burial records for Rebecca?”
Carter didn’t hesitate, his voice coming through the line with that mix of urgency and frustration I knew all too well.
“I meant it, Connor. There’s no trace of her,” he said, cutting straight to the heart of it. “No benefits, social security records, or even a death certificate. It’s like Rebecca Lennox just vanished into thin air after her diagnosis.”
I felt a chill run down my spine, trying to process what he told me. “No death certificate? Nothing?”
“Nothing,” Carter repeated, his tone flat. “And here’s the thing, Connor—this isn’t just unusual, it’s impossible. In the U.S., if someone dies, it has to be reported. There should be a death certificate, hospital records, or something.”
I stared at Neil, letting the information sink in, and he stared right back. Rebecca Lennox had been given a death sentence, and then she’d vanished as if she’d never existed. Edward’s life had ended in suicide. No one searched for Rebecca, and no one questioned it. So many questions. What about inheritance? What about wills? What about … everything?
“Thanks, Carter,” I finally said. “I owe you one.”
“You owe me a hell of a lot more than one,” Carter replied, though his tone had no malice—just the usual dry humor. “But you know I’ll hold you to it. Take care, Connor, and Oberon says he expects you at a Team reunion dinner.”
“Yeah, yeah.” I laughed it off, but none of us had organized reunions yet, and I wasn’t planning on it in the future. Messaging the group was okay—easy and safe. Meeting up with them would break my heart when only the three of us were left.
I ended the call and stared at the phone for a long moment, the weight of the information pressing down on me.
“Okay,” Neil began with caution. “Rebecca is diagnosed and then disappears from the system. We need to talk to the people who know her—Amy, Jeff, and my mom. I’d ask my dad, but maybe I'd get more if I go through his old work records.” He sighed. “Worse, we need to talk to Micah and Rachel.”
“You want me to do that?” I asked with care. I didn’t want to tread on any toes, but I also didn’t want to bring the law to Micah’s door about anything in the past.
But Neil shook his head. “Together.”
“You want to start with them?” I was giving Neil the control here—he was right, he did know this town. He regarded me thoughtfully and shook his head.
