Black Orchid Girls (Detective Amanda Steele)

SIX

“Please, we need to talk. Can you…” Amanda helped the female ranger to her feet and over to a nearby bench.

Malone stayed back with Todd Hampton, and Trent joined Amanda and the woman.

Amanda sat next to her. “I’m Detective Steele, and this is Detective Stenson.”

The ranger was sniffling and not looking at them.

“What’s your name?” Amanda asked her.

“Helen McCarthy.” The woman swiped at her cheeks, which were wet with tears. She stared at Rideout and Liam, who were now making their way from the crime scene toward the trail where a wheeled gurney waited. Amanda had to wonder how much good it would do with the terrain, but she supposed it was still a better option than trying to carry the body. That observation led her to realize that if the killer had brought the body to the scene, he or she would have had a very difficult time.

“Do you know the girl’s name?” Amanda was trying not to get too excited.

“No, I don’t,” the ranger whispered, just when Amanda was starting to wonder if she was going to respond at all.

“But you knew her?” Amanda posed the question as delicately as possible, not wanting to upset the woman further.

“I spoke to her a few times. She was always so… so…” Helen pinched her nose. “You don’t have a tissue, do you?”

Amanda shook her head.

Trent whipped one out of his front pants pocket and passed it over. Amanda gave him a wide-eyed look. He was full of surprises.

Helen proceeded to blow her nose loud enough to signal incoming ships to shore in a heavy fog.

“You said ‘it is her’ when you first arrived,” Amanda said, “like someone had told you about her. You didn’t see the body before now?”

Helen sniffled and shook her head. Her gaze went to Todd Hampton, and Amanda could fill in the rest. He’d come down with the police to talk with the Swansons.

“Did Mr. Hampton tell you about her?” Amanda asked, quite certain she knew the answer.

“Uh-huh. Well, he just described her. Then now”—she waved the used tissue in the air as she gestured toward the crime scene—“when I saw that blond hair, I knew.”

“We understand she came here often. Do you know why?”

“She loved the mystery snails.”

This was the second time the snails had come up.

Helen dabbed her nose with the now well-used and bunched-up tissue. “The snails are quite common in this area, especially here.” She pointed to the shore where the girl had been found.

Their Jane Doe came to the park often and had one destination when she did. The question about whether her killer had been familiar with her or not had been answered with a resounding yes. Next… “Why was she so interested in the snails?”

“They’re quite fascinating, honestly. They are the largest river snail found in the Potomac River watershed. She had their scientific name, but I can’t remember it. Anyway, they can grow up to three inches long.”

“Wow,” Trent replied, as if they hadn’t just heard that from the Swansons.

Amanda noted how talking about a topic other than the girl had helped Helen calm down. But there was something specific Helen had said that really caught her attention. “The girl knew their scientific name?”

“She did. She told me once that she planned to dedicate her life to environmental research.”

The victim did appear college age, but it would be a huge leap to act on that assumption and waste investigation hours without a true direction. “Was she in school for it?”

“She went to Geoffrey Michaels University. The science lab…” Helen’s face scrunched up. “That doesn’t sound quite right.”

“The Potomac Center for Science and Environmental Studies? Is that what you mean?” Trent asked.

“Yeah, that’s it.”

Amanda was aware that was a campus of Geoffrey Michaels University. It was also located right there in Woodbridge. If they couldn’t get the girl’s identity through the park membership, they had somewhere else to go.

“Did she ever come here with other people?” Trent asked.

“Uh-huh. Sometimes with her boyfriend. He was a stereotypical jock. Good-looking and muscled. I got the feeling science and the environment weren’t so much his thing. Quite sure he came for her.”

Strong and familiar with Jane Doe’s love for this park and the snails. He could have held her still while he stabbed her. She also would have trusted him enough to let him get close to her. “Do you know his name?”

“No. I wish I could give you more.”

“Oh, you’re doing great, Helen.” Amanda gave her a reassuring smile and used the woman’s name to set her more at ease. “Can you tell us a little more about what he looked like? Hair color, eyes…?”

“Sandy-colored hair. Can’t really remember his eye color.”

Amanda nodded while Trent scrawled in his notepad. “Since you ran into the girl several times, what time of day was this normally?”

“I’d check her in pretty much right at opening.”

“So around six in the morning?” she asked to clarify.

“That’s right.”

“And did she come on any sort of regular schedule?” She knew what Todd Hampton had told them, but she wanted to know if Helen could offer more specifics.

“Every Monday and Wednesday. Sometimes on Fridays.”