Page 53 of Saving Meadow

I opened the double doors to the building and opted for the stairs, taking two at a time until we reached Meadow’s floor. I felt marginally better knowing that Beth had been asked to leave the building. However, that still didn’t explain where Meadow was. When Mike and I entered the reception area, it was empty. I headed to Meadow’s desk; her phone and purse were both on her desk.

Where the fuck was Meadow?

Without remorse, I picked up Meadow’s phone and started scrolling through her phone log. Missed calls from me, a call labeled mom, and more from me. Christ. Now was not the time for me to be thinking about Meadow’s lack of social circle but my heart broke. She’d isolated herself so deeply the only people she’s spoken to in the last week were her mother and me.

Her text messages were the same; me and her mother. No social media apps, but there was a secondary messaging app. I pulled it up and scrolled through a few messages from VV21. I assumed that was the Veronica Venus Meadow had told me about from her survivor’s group. Their last exchange was at 4:21; Meadow said she was headed to her car.

I pulled out my phone and called Kristy.

“I need you to work your magic,” I said without preamble. “I need everything you can find on Beth Stevens.”

“Anything else?” she asked.

I told her about the message board that Meadow belonged to and the handle Veronica Venus. The mystery woman was Meadow’s closest friend; I’d like to speak to her and see if she had any helpful information. While Kristy was tracking down the information I needed, I joined Mike in Beth’s office, picking up a paper coffee cup and tossing it in the trash on my way.

“Find anything?” I asked.

“No. No personal items, desk drawers are neat and organized. The computer is password protected so we’ll need a tech to come in to unlock it,” he answered and dumped the trash can over, spilling papers on the ground. He bent down spreading them out with a pencil. “Nothing here that I can tell, normal office trash, a receipt for a vanilla latte dated today, 4:03. Nothing that screams out at me as homicidal maniac.”

“A vanilla latte?” I asked.

“Yeah.” Mike used the pencil to point at the receipt. “Cash receipt.”

“Vanilla lattes are Meadow’s favorite. I threw a to-go cup away on my way in here. It was on the floor next to Meadow’s desk.”

“Fuck. She drugged her. We need to call Kilby and Lance.” Mike pulled his phone out to make the call. How could I have let this happen?

Within the hour Fusion Telecom was swarming with police. Adam Klein had been more than forthright when talking about Beth. Her attitude had worsened over the last four months, leading to her being fired. The time frame coincided with when the murders had started again. He’d also confirmed what we’d profiled. While he couldn’t give the exact dates, the rough estimation matched.

Five years ago, Beth’s husband divorced her. A year after her divorce she began a serious relationship with a man, Brian Astro. They’d been engaged until he ended it a few months ago. Both break-ups fit. While I was pleased that more pieces of the puzzle were clicking into place, we still didn’t have any idea of where Beth would take Meadow. A squad car had been sent to Beth’s to sit on her house, and one had been sent to Brian’s to pick him up for questioning.

I checked my watch and the noose around my neck tightened. Meadow had been with Beth for at least two hours. Two fucking hours in the hand of a depraved killer, they could be anywhere. Beth could’ve already butchered Meadow. I’d been so wrapped up in her I’d dropped the ball. Meadow’s death was on me.

Technical analysts from both the local PD and the FBI were combing over Fusion’s servers trying to recover the security footage that had been deleted. The cup had been rushed to the lab to be checked for the presence of ketamine. Unfortunately, there was no field test that would detect the drug, and we were in a holding pattern. No leads, no indication where they’d gone, nothing. I was useless standing in front of Meadow’s desk, completely impotent.

Mike rushed over and Sally, who’d been brought up from the car, sat next to me. Much like she’d done to Meadow when she sensed she needed protecting. Fuck, this was all my fault. Why hadn’t I seen it? My dog had a better instinct than me. She knew. Sally had met the woman one time and growled as she stood between Meadow and the threat. Which was more than I did. I’d missed every single fucking sign pointing at Beth.

“Kristy called. Lab tests came back, positive for ketamine. So far, they recovered security footage from six bars including Meadow’s attack. I know you don’t need me to say this, but you were right, it’s Beth. Brian is talking, and they broke up four months ago on the nineteenth. He was having an affair, and she found out about it.”

“Let me guess, a pretty young thing?”

“That’s what he said. His secretary, twenty-two. And the husband? He cheated too. Got his mistress knocked up, after years trying to have a baby with Beth with no luck. A police report was filed on the sixth. A domestic disturbance. She’d come unglued when he was trying to pack his stuff and leave.”

“Fuck!” I yelled, and Sally barked.

“One more thing. And you’re not gonna like this.”

24

Sally

“Oh good, you’re finally awake. I thought you were gonna sleep through the good part.”

Awake?

The good part?

Damn my head hurt. My head was groggy, and it was hard to focus. I was lying on my side in the back of a car. It was dark outside, but there was a bright light shining that had me squinting against the harsh cast. I could vaguely make out Beth’s silhouette in the front seat. Why was I in a car with Beth? I struggled to sit up and nearly rolled off the backseat. Both hands shot out, and I caught myself on the seat in front of me.