Brian Freeman - The Burying Place

Stride sat next to Serena and kissed her cheek. She saw Maggie's eyes flick between the two of them, watching the obvious tension. 'Hi.'

A young police officer with hair as shock red as Maggie's stood awkwardly beside the table.

'Serena, this is Kasey,' Maggie said.

'Yeah, I heard about you,' Serena told her. 'You showed some real guts out there.'

Kasey's face cracked into an uneasy smile. She sat stiffly next to Maggie, as if she was at attention.

'You doing OK?' Maggie asked her.

'I'm freaked out,' Kasey admitted.

'Do you want me to get someone to stay with you tonight? You guys might feel better if you weren't alone.'

Kasey shook her head. 'We'll be fine. Bruce has got the house locked up like a prison.'

The waitress laid a steaming, sixteen-inch pizza on an aluminum tray between them. Sausage meatballs and red discs of pepperoni dotted the pie in neat rows. Silently, they nudged apart several squares and pulled them on to each of their plates.

'Is there anything new on Callie?' Maggie asked, pursing her lips and blowing on a piece of pizza to cool it.

'I think that Regan Conrad knows more than she's telling me,' Serena said.

'I'm sorry, who?' Kasey asked.

'Regan's a nurse who was having an affair with Marcus Glenn,' Serena explained. 'She had a key to their house, and she knows the layout. She also has a prior relationship with Migdalia Vega, who was in the house when Callie disappeared. That's a lot of connections.'

'So what do you want to do?' Stride asked.

'Get a search warrant.'

'I'm not sure we've got probable cause,' he said.

'She told Valerie Glenn she knew what happened to Callie,' Serena insisted. 'Plus, I heard a baby when I was at her house on Saturday.'

'You really think Callie is there with Regan?' Maggie asked dubiously.

'If I said yes, I think a judge might give me a warrant.'

Stride frowned. 'Maybe.'

Serena popped a piece of pizza in her mouth. She tried to decipher the odd dynamic among the three of them. She and Stride were already acting like strangers, but even Stride and Maggie seemed to be avoiding each other. She told herself that it was a virus, starting in Stride's head, spreading to herself, and now infecting Maggie, too. Kasey looked uncomfortable being with them. The young cop pushed around the pizza on her plate and barely ate a thing. She had nervous, darting eyes, like a sparrow hopping on the lawn, aware that a cat might be ready to pounce.

Beside her, Stride checked his watch. 'The news is on.'

He slid out of the booth. A television was suspended on a stand in the corner of the restaurant twenty feet away. He turned it on and flipped through the channels until he found a summary of current news. They didn't have to wait long for the hot story of the week. When the network cut away to a live feed of Blair Rowe in front of the county office building in Grand Rapids, Stride turned up the volume. Serena could hear it from the table.

'… a new twist in the disappearance of Callie Glenn,' Blair reported with high-pitched excitement, adjusting her black glasses on her nose. 'As you know, we've learned disturbing facts about Callie's father, Marcus Glenn, in the days since this little girl vanished. However, tonight the buzz in Grand Rapids is not about Marcus Glenn, but about Callie's mother, Valerie. She's been the beautiful, tragic figure in this story, pleading for the return of her daughter and insisting that her husband is innocent. The police have pointedly raised no suspicions in this case about Valerie herself, perhaps in part because her sister is a senior member of the Sheriff's Department. When we come back, however, I'll take a closer look at Valerie Glenn and her history of mental illness. I'll also share startling new information that may well prove to be the missing motive that police have needed in their investigation of Marcus Glenn.'

The station went to commercial.

'Valerie's history of mental illness?' Serena exclaimed. 'What is this bitch trying to do to her?'

Stride returned to the table. 'Did Valerie give you any hints about this so-called secret?'

Serena shook her head. 'She didn't say a thing.' But she thought about Regan: If you know why, you'll know everything.

Stride's phone rang. He took it out and checked the caller ID. 'Good news travels fast,' he said. 'It's Denise. I better take this.'

He headed for the door, leaving the three women alone.

Serena kept an eye on the television. With Stride gone, Maggie fidgeted. It was as if the virus had spread between the two of them, too. Their friendship felt strained.

'I should go,' Kasey announced during the lull in the conversation. 'I don't want Bruce to worry.'

'You sure you don't want a cop in the house tonight?' Maggie asked. 'I can have somebody there in an hour.'

'No, thanks.'

'OK, I'll see you tomorrow.'

Kasey hesitated and looked down. 'I, uh, I don't know about tomorrow.'

'If you need a day, take a day,' Maggie said.

'Yeah, well, here's the thing. I'm going to quit.'

'You mean quit the force?'

Kasey nodded. 'After what happened last night, Bruce and I think that would be best. You know, get away, start over. Go someplace where this guy won't find me.'

'I don't want to lose you, Kasey,' Maggie replied, 'but I wouldn't blame you if you decided to go.'

'It would be different if it was just me, but I have to think about my family.'

'Of course.'

'Anyway, I'll call you tomorrow.'

'Sure.'

Kasey stood up. Serena watched her red curls bounce as she left the restaurant using quick, determined steps. The young cop pushed through the door, turned right on First Street, and disappeared.

'What would you do in her shoes?' Serena asked.

'I'd probably run like hell, too.'

Maggie still didn't look at Serena.

'What's going on with you?' Serena asked. 'Is something wrong?'

'Nah, just the usual,' Maggie replied.

'Did Jonny tell you anything today?'

'Like what?'

'Like what's bothering him.'

'No, he clammed up,' she said.

Serena studied Maggie's face and realized to her dismay that she didn't believe her. 'He said nothing?' she asked.

'No, sorry.'

Serena leaned across the table. 'I could really use your help. I need to know what the hell is going on with him.'

'I shouldn't get in the middle of this,' Maggie told her.

'I think you already are.'

'What do you want from me, Serena?'

'The truth.'

'You can't handle the truth,' she said in a Jack Nicholson voice.

'Don't joke,' Serena said.

'I'm sure he'll tell you when he's ready.'

'Tell me what?'

'Whatever's bothering him.'

'You sound like you already know what that is,' Serena said.

'Oh, fuck, can't you leave me out of this?' Maggie snapped, startling her. 'He's your lover. I'm just the third wheel since you two shacked up. Talk to him, not me, will you?'

Serena stood up. She found herself blinking back tears. 'Fine.'

'I'm sorry,' Maggie said.

Serena said nothing.

'Panic attacks, OK?' Maggie said.

Serena looked down at her. 'What?'

'Ever since the fall, Stride's been having panic attacks. Flashbacks.'

'He told you that?' she asked.

Maggie nodded. 'I think it's PTSD. He needs help.'

Serena wondered why she hadn't recognized it herself. It made sense to her now, hearing Maggie describe it.

'I didn't say anything to you about this,' Maggie said. 'All right?'

She nodded. 'Yeah.'

Serena thought about Jonny watching his life come apart at the seams, and she felt guilty that she'd been unable to help him through it. Because he hadn't said a word to her about his pain. Instead, he had bared his soul to Maggie.