Black Orchid Girls (Detective Amanda Steele)

THIRTY-NINE

Amanda admired Zoe’s beautiful picture from yesterday that now adorned the fridge door. She’d put it up the moment they got home, but she had an idea of something else she wanted to do with it. That would have to wait, though.

It was Saturday morning, and the original plan had been to take Zoe to the aquarium. But Chloe Somner’s funeral this afternoon had ruined that good intention. There was no way she and Trent could skip attending. The suspect pool was shallow—if even existent at this point—but someone might stand out at the service. Maybe even Luke Hogan would do or say something that would have Malone authorizing them to bring him back in. Waiting on his DNA results would take far too long. There were also other results they were waiting on, though. One, who had paid for the drive to the park Monday morning. Two, who had spoofed Josh’s phone.

She hated that she had to postpone the fun outing, and it reminded her of the times she’d also missed out on with Lindsey because of some case. If only Amanda had known how short her time would be with her little girl, she would have squeezed every minute dry. If Zoe was taken from her by the doofus, Colin, Amanda’s time with Zoe could also be approaching its end. She should send Trent to the funeral by himself. That was the mother in her. But two sets of eyes were always better than one, and she had a responsibility to be there. After all, she owed it to the two young women who had been murdered—one of whom would be lowered into the ground today, the other to follow soon.

It was the guilt that had her making a humongous batch of pancakes this morning. Zoe was happily munching away on them, but she didn’t know their plans for today had fallen through. Amanda had never mentioned them to her. She had only let Lindsey down once due to the job because that was all it had taken to adopt a new strategy. After that first time, she had avoided getting Lindsey psyched up about a trip or outing just in case she couldn’t follow through. She became good at surprising her daughter at the last minute, never risking the disappointment. She wanted to do the same with Zoe. Never disappoint her. Too late on the never part, but she was determined not to let it happen often.

Zoe’s cheeks were puffed out like a chipmunk’s full of nuts.

Amanda laughed. “Maybe take smaller bites before you choke.” Or swallow that loose tooth…

“I’m… okay.” Zoe managed to talk around all the pancake in her trap like a pro. Mumbled, garbled, but coherent enough to make out.

“So this afternoon, I’m going to take you to see Kristen and Ava.” Maybe one day Zoe would call them her aunt and cousin, but it wasn’t that time yet.

Zoe swallowed, then smiled. “Fun.”

She and Ava, Amanda’s niece, had really bonded in the last couple of months. It probably helped that they both knew Libby. Ava had her as a teacher when she’d attended Dumfries Elementary. Ava was thirteen now, in high school, and was in need of spending money, so sometimes Amanda threw babysitting dollars her way.

“But I need to go to work,” Amanda added.

Zoe looked down at her plate and used her fork to push some strawberries through maple syrup. She popped one in her mouth.

“I’d rather be with you, but sometimes—”

“I know. You help people.”

The compliment had Amanda sitting back. “I do my best.”

“You helped me.” She sounded melancholy. “Mommy taught me not to be selfish, to share my toys.” She lifted her gaze to meet Amanda’s. “I need to share you.”

This little girl was an older spirit, and her appreciation and compassion melted Amanda’s heart. “Thank you for understanding, sweetie.”

“Yes, I’m the best.” She grinned, syrup running down her chin. She started laughing and dabbed at the sticky trail. Her fingertips now glistened, and the laughter became more raucous.

Amanda joined in. This was heaven. This right here. As Kevin had once said with Lindsey, the messier the meals the better.

Amanda was still smiling as she and Trent headed to the church where the funeral was taking place for Chloe Somner.

Trent looked over at Amanda. “You seem awful happy to be heading to a funeral.”

He probably took her good mood to mean that yesterday’s meeting with Colin Brewster had gone well, but she still had no idea what the outcome would be. Deb said she’d call, but she hadn’t thus far. Amanda didn’t want to worry about what that could mean. “It’s just Zoe. She cracks me up.”

“What did she do?”

“She loves to wear her food.” She chuckled, and it had Trent smiling.

“And that’s a good thing?”

“Yeah, it is.”

Trent pulled into the church’s lot. It was already packed, and it was an hour before the service. “Wow, this place is busy.”

“Guess we should have expected this. Chloe was popular and young.” Just that latter fact typically drew a crowd.

“And her murder was in the news. Everyone’s wanting to gawk at the family.”

Trent’s view of the human species was cynical but held far more truth than she cared to admit.

He wedged the department car between a Kia and BMW.

They went into the church and stood to the side of the doors, watching everyone coming in. Some faces were familiar—students and faculty from the school and those they’d spoken to throughout the course of the investigation thus far.

From their vantage point, she and Trent could see up the aisle to the front of the church where the casket was. Its lid was open, but someone was standing near it and routing people away for the time being. According to the greeter at the door, attendees could go up and say their goodbyes when the service was over. Those people must have missed receiving that message or were trying to push their luck.

When the time came, the priest said some words. Sitting there and hearing about a God who wrapped Chloe in his loving arms was sickening. Amanda could never reconcile a caring being with someone who took loved ones. All of this was almost too much to handle. She’d been so focused on the case and then distracted by the fun with Zoe before coming here that she hadn’t stopped to consider she was going to a funeral.

Images of Kevin’s and Lindsey’s caskets lowering in the ground flashed over her vision, and she did her best to blink them away.

She had to start living life forward, not back.

When the service ended, those gathered sang hymns and listened to the priest send up a prayer on behalf of Chloe’s soul.

People were slow at moving out and many headed to the casket.

Amanda bobbed her head in that direction and said to Trent, “We need to be closer.”

They found a place nestled off to the side that still gave them a line of sight to every mourner who came to pay their respects to the young woman.

Josh Ryder could barely keep himself upright as he stumbled toward the casket. He stopped next to it and looked down. He sobbed like a child, pressed a kiss to his fingers, and touched them to her collarbone. He staggered off, stumbling on the leg of a chair, but someone helped him stay upright.