Page 80 of Backwater Justice
“We were able to see a few shooting stars,” Kat said gleefully.
“Sorry I missed it.” Isabelle pretended to pout.
“I’ll let you play with my toy tomorrow night when we’re back in Salem,” Kat joked. She yawned and stretched. “I think I’m going to turn in.”
Isabelle noticed a few board games on a shelf. “Do many visitors use these?”
“Sometimes. Once in a while, there’ll be two or three truckers who want to relax with some company.”
Isabelle nodded. “Come on, Kat, let’s give it a go.” She pulled one of the boxes off the shelf.
Kat blinked several times. “Scrabble?” Then she realized Isabelle had something important to share. “I haven’t played in years, but sure. I think I can muster another hour of consciousness.”
“Super,” Isabelle said, and turned to Bethany. “What time do you knock off in the morning?”
“Six.”
“I may not be up, so if I don’t see you, it was nice meeting you. And remember to call me if you need anything.”
Isabelle tucked the game under her arm so that if Bart was, in fact, tailing her, he would see that the two women were going to play a board game. Nothing suspicious about that. As soon as they got into the room, Isabelle began to tell Kat about the secret room, the machine. Everything. She showed her the photos and told her how Charles was able to crack the code.
“Holy guacamole!” Kat said. “You took a very big chance.”
“I know, but it was an opportunity I couldn’t ignore.”
“You are something else.” Kat gave her a high five. “We’d better tell everyone.”
It was almost time for the Sisters to check in with one another. Kat’s laptop was still in her room, so she cozied up to Isabelle for the Zoom meeting. As soon as everyone tuned in, people were talking a mile a minute.
Myra took charge. “Sounds like we’ve had a productive day. Isabelle, you go first.”
Isabelle recounted her discovery of the secret room and the machine. “I’m guessing a powder mill.” She uploaded the photos.
Kat dabbed her finger in the smidgen of residue. “This seems a little different from what we found on the desk in the apartment.”
“In what way?” Myra asked.
“This is much finer. The powder on the desk was a little grainier.”
“Hang onto it for now,” Charles suggested. “If we bring it to a lab and it’s a controlled substance, which I assume it is, you could end up in the nick.”
Fergus agreed. “We don’t want to go down that road again.”
Everyone agreed. There was once a time when the Sisters were under house arrest, but a clever Lizzie Cricket figured out a way to remove the ankle monitors and wrap them around the barn cats.
Maggie was next with her information about the George family interview. “My friend Steve is going to run my story about Lori George on the eleven o’clock news. We want to give her more of a three-dimensional presence. I sent off a collage of photos and some quotes from her parents.”
“Did they mention getting the Bureau involved?” Myra asked.
“Yes, but I think they’ll hold off for a few days. Though if local law enforcement doesn’t step it up, they’re not going to have any other choice.”
“No ransom demand, correct?” Charles asked.
“No. Nothing. If she was kidnapped, you’d think someone would come up with demands,” Maggie added.
“True.” Myra thought for a moment. “I’m going to call my friend Ellie Stillwell. She has an in with a U.S. Marshal. Maybe he can help without bringing in the bureaucrats.” She checked her watch. “I should probably call her now. It’s eleven o’clock there.” Myra stepped away from the live chat and dialed Ellie’s number.
“Myra. Is everything alright?” a sleepy voice asked.