Mariah Stewart - Last Look

“If he hurt her…if he raped her…she probably thought he deserved it, after he defiled her,” Paula Rose said righteously. “Then again, maybe wherever she was, she didn’t hear about him being sentenced to death. Didn’t know he was executed. Maybe if she’d’a known, she would have come back and let people know she was alive.”

“Did Shannon have a boyfriend?” Andrew asked. “A boy she liked, or one who liked her, maybe someone who called the house a lot?”

“We weren’t allowed to date until we were sixteen, so no one would have been calling, unless it was for homework or something like that.”

“Any names come to mind, anyone who called for homework assignments a lot?”

“No.”

“Do you recall if there was anyone back then who paid more attention to her than he should have? Maybe someone who followed her, or showed up where she was when she wasn’t expecting him?” Andrew followed on with his line of questioning.

“No.” Paula Rose shook her head. “I don’t remember her ever mentioning someone like that. There was just Eric. I know he brought her home from school a couple of times, like when it was raining or stormy or something, he’d drive her home.”

“He ever come into the house? Did you ever see them together anywhere other than in his car?”

“Oh, goodness, no. He’d just pull into the driveway, close up to the porch, I guess so she wouldn’t get wet, and he’d drop her off. She’d get out of the car and come right inside. That was all.”

“So the police were called when?” Andrew asked, moving the interview along.

“I’m not sure when, exactly. Before Momma left for the church, she told me to get on down to the school bus and she’d take care of finding Shannon, so I did. I left for school. It wasn’t until I came home that afternoon and saw the police cars around the house I knew something was wrong.” She took another swallow of tea. “I knew something bad had happened to Shannon.”

“Does anything else stand out about that day? Was there anyone around the house who maybe seemed out of place?”

“Not that I can remember. After I got home from school, I got sent right over to my grandparents, so I don’t know who all was here or hanging around. I was only home for a minute, and my parents told me Shannon was missing but they were doing everything they could to find her. I stayed with my grandparents for a few days because my parents were just too upset to deal with me, I guess. And I think they didn’t want me at home in case she was found, you know. It was a very sad, very scary time for all of us. Especially me, being so young and not really knowing what was going on.”

Paula Rose sighed heavily.

“At first, the police didn’t seem sure if she’d been kidnapped or murdered, so they brought the FBI in, several agents and that one who figured out Eric had killed her, he was in charge, I think. Then Eric was arrested, and went to jail.” She took another sip of tea. “Which seemed right at the time. Everyone thought it had been him all along.”

“Everyone like who?” Andrew asked before Dorsey could.

“Everybody.” Paula Rose shrugged. “Soon as everyone knew she’d been in his car and they found that bloody shirt, everyone figured he’d killed her. The police, my father, my grandparents-everyone in town thought it was him. Hearing that FBI agent say it just made it so.”

“Except that it wasn’t,” Dorsey pointed out.

“True. But I still say that if she ran away, it was because of what he did to her.”

“Can you think of any other reason Shannon would have wanted to leave home? Was she unhappy? Had she been having any problems?”

“None that I knew of. Then again, like I said, I was only eleven. If there was something going on with her, she wouldn’t have told me about it.”

“Who would she have told?” Dorsey asked.

“Aubrey. Or maybe Kimmie White.”

“Did you ever hear her talk about running away? About leaving home?”

“No. But I’d have been the last person she’d tell, if she was going to do something like that. She’d have been too afraid I’d tell Momma.”

“So, I guess we should schedule a visit with Aubrey.” Andrew stood, as did Dorsey. “I’m sure she’s expecting us by now.”

Paula Rose laughed. “I’m sure she got a phone call, just like I did. Natalie, too, most likely.”

“And Kimmie? Do you think your mother called Shannon ’s old friends to give them a heads up?” Andrew took the half-empty glass from Dorsey’s hand and placed it along with his on the tray.

“Undoubtedly. She was pretty heated up when she called me. She did not appreciate you asking if she’d known Shannon was alive all this time.”

“Actually, what I asked was if there was anything that might have happened over the years that might have made her think that Shannon might not be gone. Something that might have made her think Shannon was trying to contact her.”

“Well, however you phrased it, she didn’t care for it one bit.” Paula Rose began to walk toward the door, obviously intending for the agents to follow her.

“I’m sorry for that. But while we’re on the subject, how about you? Was there anything that might have happened years ago that, looking back, you might wonder if your sister might have been reaching out to you?” Andrew stood his ground, watching her face. “Phone calls where the person on the other end did not speak? Hang-ups? Something in the mail that came anonymously?”

“No. Sorry.” She opened the front door and stood waiting for them to walk through it. “But if anything comes to mind, I’ll certainly give you a call, Agent Shields.” Outside, Andrew turned back.

“I expect you’ll need one of these, in that case.” Andrew held out one of his cards. “You can call my cell phone and-”

“I surely will do that.” She snatched the card from his hand and closed the outer door. “You both have a nice day, now.”

“Well, we’ve certainly scored big with the Randall family today, haven’t we?” Andrew drove to the end of Paula Rose’s street and made a right.

“We? I’d say you. I was doing just fine.”

“And here I always fancied myself a lady’s man.”

“We all have our little delusions.” She rested back against the head rest, a tiny smile playing on her lips.

“So what do you think of the Randalls so far?” he asked. “Any impressions you’d like to share? Other than the fact that they’re a strange group?”

“You thought so, too?”

“Definitely. Let’s start with the mother. She’s devastated about her daughter, yet when it comes time to make a positive identification, she sends her eldest daughter-alone-to do the deed.”

“Maybe, like she said, she just couldn’t face it. It had to be a shock, after all these years, to find out that Shannon could have been alive, only now she’s been murdered for real. Maybe she couldn’t face Shannon ’s death twice.”

“All I know is, if Shannon had been my sister, my mother would have walked barefoot over hot coals to get to her. And we’d have all been walking with her.”

“I can’t relate.” Dorsey looked out the window. “I have no siblings and my mother died when I was young.”

He glanced over at her as if he was about to say something, then thought better of it.

“And Paula Rose-you get the feeling she’s played that baby-of-the-family role for all it’s worth?” he asked.

“Definitely.” She nodded. “And I think I’d bite my tongue off before I went to her for guidance for any problem I was having. I noticed a definite lack of charity in her attitude toward her long-lost sister.”

“You’re referring to her comment about ‘the way Shannon turned out’?”