“Why did you come back to Virginia after your release from prison?”
“It’s where I grew up. It’s home, for what it’s worth.”
“Can you account for your whereabouts over the last forty-eight hours?” Vaughan asked.
“Working mostly. You met the boss. Steve doesn’t like giving much time off. And he’ll tell you I arrived at work yesterday about 5:00 a.m. and worked straight through until 6:00 p.m. The security cameras picked up me arriving, working, and leaving. Steve will give you a copy.”
“Why did you approach Hadley back in July at the hardware store?” Spencer asked.
“I recognized her. Is there something wrong with talking to an old friend?”
“She looked a little spooked in the video footage.”
“I’m sure I startled her. It’s been eighteen years.” He checked his watch. “If you don’t wrap up this interview soon, my pay is going to be docked.”
“If my kid were missing, I’d be pretty upset,” Vaughan said.
“I’m worried. But I learned in prison not to wear my heart on my sleeve.” He flicked the growing ash off the tip of his cigarette and inhaled again. “Sky is a tough kid. And I’ll say it again. She’s smart. She’ll turn up.”
“Speaking of tough, we found Hadley Foster’s body this morning,” Vaughan said with no emotion. “She was stabbed to death.”
Jason dropped his cigarette butt to the asphalt and ground it with the tip of his worn boot. “I’m sorry to hear that. I didn’t wish her any harm. Did you find Skylar?”
“Not yet,” Vaughan said.
Relief softened his features.
Spencer’s expression was unreadable. “Hadley moves back to Virginia in January. You find out you had a daughter with her. Marsha’s body is discovered. You confront Hadley, and a month later she’s murdered.”
Jason flashed a grin and wagged his finger at her. “None of that has anything to do with me, Agent Spencer.”
“I’m bothered by your proximity to the sisters who are both now dead,” Spencer said.
“Mark also knew both the Prince sisters. Mark might appear to be a saint, but he’s not. Five will get you ten; he finally had it up to his ears with Hadley’s spending, whining, and whoring. He just shut her up for good.”
“What was Marsha Prince like?” Spencer asked.
“Pretty. Smart.” A smile flickered on his lips. “She was the sweeter of the two Prince girls.”
“Did Marsha get along with Hadley?” Spencer asked.
“Hadley was not fond of her sister.”
“How do you know that?” Vaughan asked.
“She made it pretty clear when the two were in the office at the same time.”
“Any idea who would have killed Marsha?” Vaughan asked.
Jason sniffed. “None.”
Steve appeared at the side door and tapped his index finger on his watch.
Jason raised a hand. “On the way, boss.”
Vaughan handed him his card. “If you do hear from Skylar, call me.”
“Yeah, sure.” He turned. “I can’t lose this job, or my probation officer will send me right back inside.”
“Do you care about Skylar?” Spencer asked.
He blew out a breath. “Yeah, I do. She’s my flesh and blood, and I’m proud of her.”
“How did you feel when you realized Hadley and Mark had kept your daughter from you for all these years?” Vaughan asked.
“I wasn’t thrilled. If I’d known about her, maybe things would have been different for me.”
“I’d have been pissed,” Vaughan said.
Jason shrugged. “Not much I could do about it.”
“But it still bothered you, didn’t it?” Vaughan pressed.
“I got better things to worry about than Hadley’s lies.”
Vaughan studied him a moment, seeing the subtle tension in his jaw, before he shrugged and broke eye contact. “If she contacts you, let us know,” Vaughan said.
Jason nodded. “Same. Tell me when she’s found.”
Vaughan watched as Jason returned to the garage and turned his attention back to a car on the lift. He and Spencer found Steve and obtained the security footage before heading back to his car.
Vaughan fired up the air-conditioning as she hooked her seat belt. “If Nate were missing, I’d be tearing this town apart.”
The cool air felt good against her hot skin. “I sensed pride when he said she shared his blood. She carries his DNA, and that matters to him. And I would bet money he was furious when he found out about Skylar.”
“He has a solid alibi for yesterday morning.”
“Yes, he does. How does Veronica figure into this?” she asked.
“Veronica looked like Hadley. So did Galina. Maybe whoever took Hadley and Skylar was just practicing on Veronica and Galina.”
Nikki McDonald had left her apartment early this morning, knowing the drive north to Baltimore could take extralong in the morning commute. As much as she had dreaded the predawn drive up I-95, she had set up an interview in a coffee shop with Rose Howard, Hadley Foster’s first cousin. Rose and Hadley had gone to high school together, and Rose’s mother, Julie, had been Larry’s older sister. The family had left the Alexandria area six months before Marsha’s murder.
She ordered a large coffee and found a seat in the back corner so she had a good view of the front door. When the front doorbells jingled, she noticed a woman who shared many of Hadley Foster’s features. She was shorter and not as lean as her cousin, but the blue eyes and full lips were almost identical.
Nikki stood and crossed the room. “Rose?”
The woman was dressed in a dark suit and carried a leather briefcase. “Ms. McDonald.”
“Yes.”
“I don’t have a lot of time.”
“Understood. What kind of coffee do you like?”
Minutes later, they were sitting at a corner table, each stirring sweetener into their coffees.
“It was weird seeing Hadley’s face on the television,” Rose said.
“You weren’t any more shocked than I.” She sipped, knowing this fourth cup would send her heart rate into overdrive. “I was trying to find Marsha’s killer, but it blew up in this awful mess with her sister and her family.”
Rose tapped her manicured finger on the side of the cup. “I’m ashamed to say I’d almost forgotten about my cousin. It’s been so long. Why do you care?”
“It’s an unsolved mystery,” Nikki said. “It’s bad enough being murdered, but to be forgotten and have the guilty walk free is unforgivable.”
“I don’t see how I can help you,” Rose said. “I was Hadley’s cousin but had next to no contact with my uncle Larry, his wife, or the other kids.”
“The families didn’t get together at the holidays or birthdays?”
“No. Larry and Mom had a falling-out long before I came along. I never told Mom I hung out with Hadley, because I sensed she’d have been pissed.”
“What was Hadley like?”
“Like any other teenager. Selfish. Funny. Full of life.”
“What was she like with Mark?”
“I think she liked him well enough, but at the time, he served a purpose.”
“And what was that?”
“A ticket out of her house. Her father approved of him, and Larry didn’t like many of the guys she brought around. And his family had money. Hadley liked money.”
“Was there anyone who threatened Marsha? Was she afraid of anyone?”
“I think there were several guys who worked for Larry who weren’t the best. The asphalt business was damn hard work and attracted a bunch of roughnecks. Men who could work long hours in horrible heat. They weren’t choirboys.”
“Marsha and Hadley both worked in his office.”
“They did. Their father paid them less and worked them harder, seeing how they were the owner’s family. Marsha accepted it because she was getting a good education. Hadley really started to resent her father after he told her she wouldn’t be able to go off to college.”
“Was Hadley angry enough to kill her sister?”
Rose sat back, shaking her head. “I want to be fair to Hadley. My goal is not to trash her now that she can’t defend herself. I know how the media can be. But she could be really selfish and petty at times.”
“What about Mark? The cops think he might have stabbed Hadley. Could he have also killed Marsha?”
“Mark was always the nice guy. He wanted to protect Hadley. Besides, he was away at some kind of football camp when Marsha vanished.”
“I know Hadley was dating another guy the summer her daughter was conceived,” Nikki said.
“Yeah, Jason.” Rose sat back, eyeing Nikki. “You’re good at doing your homework.” She sipped her coffee, as if trying to figure out how much to tell, and then, with a small shrug, said, “Hadley was stepping out on Mark with Jason. It wasn’t a lot, just once or twice. I think she liked the idea he was edgy and dangerous. For a while, she had a tiger by the tail, and she liked it.”
“Can you spell Jason’s last name for me?” Nikki asked.