Kathy Reichs - Virals

The door opened.

Sylvia Briggerman stood no more than five feet tall and wore an outfit that would have made Lucille Ball proud. I guessed her age at somewhere north of eighty.

“What’s that?” Sylvia’s eyes looked enormous behind thick bifocals. “Guests?”

“Your grandniece and grandnephew are here.” Parrish spoke slowly and loudly. “They’ve come to visit. From the city.”

“I don’t have a nephew.”

Great. We were sooo busted.

Then Sylvia’s face brightened. “Katherine?”

Oh, God. No.

This was too cruel. I couldn’t do it.

Hi nudged my back. Nudged again. Toe-kicked my heel.

“Yes, Aunt Sylvia.” I burned with shame. “I’m here. You remember me, don’t you?”

“Of course. Silly!” Sylvia turned to Parrish. “Don’t keep my niece on the doorstep. Show her and her little friend in.”

Parrish waved us forward.

“I’m sure she’ll know you,” Parrish whispered as Hi passed her. “Her memory comes and goes.”

Hi nodded solemnly. “Thanks. You’re doing a wonderful job. I’ll let my parents know.”

It was official. We were terrible people.

“I’ll return in a few minutes.” Parrish closed the door quietly.

Sylvia’s living room was an eye-stunning canary yellow. Bookcases lined one wall and a reading machine occupied one corner. Standard come-as-a-group sofa and chairs. Coffee table. TV, probably built when Lucy was big. Fake flowers on every horizontal surface.

The old woman sat on the plastic-covered couch and arranged her skirt. When she looked up, her eyebrows rose in surprise.

“Hello? Can I help you?”

“Hello, Ms. Briggerman.” No more lies. “My name is Tory Brennan. This is my friend Hiram. We came about your niece, Katherine.”

“Oh.” Sylvia tugged down the sleeves of her gown. “Where is Katherine? I haven’t seen her today.”

“We’re not sure,” I said carefully. “We’re also looking for her.”

True, as far as it went.

“She stays busy, that one.” Sylvia smiled. “Always on the beach. She plans to go to college, you know. To study ecology. I’m not sure what that is, but I’m certain Frankie would have been proud.”

“Frankie is your brother?” Hi half-asked. “I thought he grew up at the Orphan House?”

“Well of course he did, young man. So did I.”

Sylvia pointed to a black-and-white photo hanging over the bookcase. A boy and girl stood by a swing set, dressed in worn but well-patched clothing. The girl was slightly older, and held the little boy’s hand. Both smiled like it was Christmas morning.

“Frankie and I aren’t blood-related, but we grew up together just the same. That was good enough for us. Katherine always calls me Aunt Syl.”

“What was Katherine doing when you last saw her?”

“She’s working on her science project,” Sylvia replied. “The one she and Abby have to do for school.” A frown deepened wrinkles crossing the bridge of her nose. “I hope Katherine arrives soon. She shouldn’t miss dinner.”

“Who is Abby?” I hoped Sylvia’s mind hadn’t tiptoed into another time.

“Abby Quimby is Katherine’s best friend. Haven’t you met her? They do everything together.”

Hi tried a new tack. “What beach did Katherine like? Might she have gone there for her project?”

The watery blue eyes seemed to lose focus. Several seconds passed. Finally, “Hello? Can I help you?”

“Hello, Ms. Briggerman.” I smiled brightly. “We were talking about Katherine.”

“Katherine’s not here.”

I looked at Hi. Time to go. He nodded.

“Thank you so much for your time, ma’am.” I said. “Is there anything you need before we leave?”

“Could you do one thing for me?” With surprising agility the old woman rose and shuffled from the room. Hi and I exchanged glances. He shrugged. Moments later she returned carrying a light blue sweater.

“Please give this to Katherine when you see her. It’s her favorite. I don’t want her to catch cold.”

What to do? I couldn’t take the sweater. But how to give it back?

I felt terrible lying to this woman. She couldn’t recall that her beloved niece had vanished years ago. The whole thing broke my heart.

My gut clenched. Tears threatened.

I needed to escape.

Now.

SNAP.

Electricity fired through me. My eyes watered, burned, flashed golden. My senses kicked into hyperdrive.

Hi noticed my eyes and stepped forward to block Sylvia’s view.

“Ms. Briggerman, how are you set for ice cubes? We’d better check your trays.”

“Ice cubes?”

Hi guided a confused Sylvia into the kitchen.

A clock ticked a thundering metronome. The refrigerator roared from the next room

On instinct, I held Katherine’s sweater to my nose. Inhaled deeply.

At first, just wool and dust. Then, from deep within the folds, a delicate blend of aromas. Shampoo. Perspiration. Clearasil.

A vague image formed in my brain.

Dissolved.

I filed the impressions away for later consideration.

Knock knock.

“Okay, kids.” Parrish was at the door. “Time for Sylvia to rest.”

SNUP.

The flare passed. My head cleared.

But the distinctive smell of Katherine’s sweater had burrowed into my brain.

I caught Hi’s eye, tipped my head toward the door.

“Bye, Auntie Syl!” he said loudly. “We’ll come back soon!”

Sylvia resumed her seat and spread the long, satin skirt out around her. Without acknowledging our departure, she leaned back, closed her eyes, and began to snore.

I left the sweater beside her.

On the bus ride home, I searched for Abby Quimby on my iPhone, found two listings.

I keyed in the first number. Disconnected.

I tried the second.

A woman picked up on the third ring.

“Abby Quimby?”

“Yes.” More curious than wary.

I wasted no time.

“Katherine Heaton?” Quimby sounded shocked. “I haven’t heard that name in forty years. Dear God, has she been found?”

“I’m sorry, no.” I hated lying, but had to be careful. “I’m updating cold cases for the DOE network. I thought you might have information we could use.”

“I’d love to help, but I told the police everything I knew. The day she disappeared, Katherine and I were supposed to meet for lunch. She never showed.”

“Sylvia Briggerman told me you were working on a science project together.”

“Yes.” Quimby paused. “You know, I don’t think I mentioned the science project in my statement. No one ever asked, and it didn’t seem important.”

“Please tell me what you remember.”

“Our assignment was to do an ecological survey,” Quimby said. “Simple stuff, really. But Katherine and I wanted to study an endangered species. It was 1969, and the whole conservation movement was just picking up steam. Katherine was scouting the beaches, looking for possibilities.”

“Do you know where she’d planned to go the day she went missing?”

“Oh my goodness!” Quimby’s voice rose. “The Morris Lighthouse. I’d forgotten that. I can recall it so clearly now. I’m not sure if I told that to the officer who interviewed me or not. At the time, I was very upset.”

My pulse quickened. The Morris Lighthouse wasn’t mentioned in the missing person report.

“Wasn’t that lighthouse decommissioned by ’69?” I asked.

“Yes. It had been replaced by the one on Sullivan’s Island. Katherine wanted to see which bird species were nesting there.”