The Girl and the Unlucky 13 (Emma Griffin™ FBI Mystery) by A.J. Rivers

Author:A.J. Rivers [Rivers, A.J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-04-16T16:00:00+00:00

Twenty-Nine

When Misty opens her front door the next morning, she looks as if she hasn’t slept. Tugging a long, thin cardigan tighter around her body and dabbing at her nose with a tissue that has seen far better days, she steps back and gestures me inside.

The house smells like many layers of coffee. Cup after cup, brewed throughout the night. There’s something sweet among the bitter notes. On the table are two bowls of partially-eaten oatmeal heavily laden with milk and brown sugar. They’ve tried to eat breakfast.

Tried.

“Why haven’t we heard anything?” she asks.

“The investigation team wanted to take their time and make sure to search the area thoroughly. I don’t want to make any premature conclusions. They worked through the night searching the entire area. They asked that I be the one to tell you what they found,” I say.

John reaches out and grasps his wife’s hand, squeezing it tightly as he prepares himself to hear what I have to say.

“They did find evidence of human remains. But it’s not Ashley. The team found fetal remains. Most likely a stillbirth prior to viability. But the medical examiner is going to have to make a final conclusion about that,” I say.

I’m expecting Misty to seem relieved. Instead, she’s overcome. Her face goes pale and she lets out a sob before her knees buckle under her. John swoops in to grab her before she hits the floor and brings her over to sit on the couch.

“I’m sorry,” she whispers, pressing one hand to her chest while covering her eyes with the other.

“Don’t apologize,” I tell her. “Are you alright?”

John watches his wife for a few seconds before looking up at me with sadness in his eyes.

“Misty lost a baby years ago,” he explains. “It’s still very difficult for her. Anytime she hears that a woman lost a child, it really gets to her. It’s been especially difficult since Ashley went missing.”

“I’m so sorry to hear that,” I say. “I know this isn’t easy for you. Everything that’s happened over the last couple of weeks must be extremely difficult. But we’re doing everything we can to find out what happened to Ashley. This isn’t going to be easy to hear, but I do need to ask both of you for a DNA sample.”

I didn’t relish the idea of making that request when I headed over here this morning, but now I feel particularly uncomfortable about it. The whole idea of the baby is clearly overwhelming for Misty. But there’s never going to be a good moment to ask Ashley’s parents for DNA, so there’s no point in hesitating.

Misty looks up at me with wide, reddened eyes. Her mouth is open as if she’s so shocked by the request she can’t even bring herself to make any sound. Finally, she lets out a sound that’s somewhere between a breath and a gasp.

“They think it was Ashley’s?” she asks.

“Right now, no one is coming to any conclusions. They just have to cover all the bases.

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