Rachel’s tension melted. “Thanks.”
“I guess you know I’m Kate Tilden.”
“Yes.”
Brenda said, “Momma, Ms. Wainwright is here to talk to you about Annie Rivers Dawson.”
She shifted in her chair and winced as if the slightest movement triggered pain. “I didn’t think she’d come to talk about the weather.”
Rachel and Brenda’s gazes met and for a moment she saw in Brenda’s strained smile the apologetic look of a daughter not sure how to handle her dying mother’s candor. “Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?”
“Not at all. I’d enjoy the conversation. Sit.”
Rachel perched on the edge of a cushioned chair.
Kate looked at Brenda. “Would you get us some tea? Might be nice to make an occasion of a rare visitor.”
Brenda hesitated, as if she didn’t want to leave her mother alone, and then smiled. “Sure, Momma. I’ve also made cookies.”
Kate waved her veined thin hand. “That’s a good girl.”
Rachel shifted on the chair wanting to sit back but feeling as if she didn’t have the right to be informal.
“Go on, sit back and make yourself comfortable. I might be sick with the cancer but I don’t bite.”
“I’m not afraid of the cancer. I lived with it daily when my mother was ill.”
“She died.”
“Three years ago.” Rachel understood the disease; it sapped energy fast and she didn’t want to give the impression she’d stay past her welcome. She settled back in her seat. “Let me know if you get tired or you need for me to leave.”
“I’m always tired and I’m always alone. If you can manage a yawn or two then I’d like to have your company.”
“Deal.”
“So what do you want to know about Annie? I’m not surprised you found me. I don’t think there’re many people left that knew her personally.”
“Your sister roomed with her.”
“That’s right. I met Annie when I stopped by the apartment to drop off papers for Beth.”
“What were your impressions of her?”
“Bright, bubbly, ambitious. Could sing like an angel. She worked hard and wasn’t afraid to ask for what she wanted.”
“She also sang at your church.”
Watery eyes brightened with admiration. “You’ve done your homework.”
“I try.”
“Yes, Beth introduced Annie to our pastor. She sang “Amazing Grace” on Easter Sunday and there was not a dry eye in the house.”
“She sang there often?”
“Pretty regular for several months. That’s where she met her husband, Bill Dawson. You talked to him yet?”
“He’s a hard man to catch. He won’t return my calls and I can’t get past his receptionist.”
“He wasn’t the easiest man from what I remember. But he sure did love Annie.” She winked. “I hear he likes to run early in the morning about seven. Centennial Park.”
“How do you know that?”
“I was church secretary for thirty years. I heard it all.”
Rachel thought about Annie’s letters. If Bill had been her great love, why not mention him by name? She’d noticed Annie had been careful to include no identifying information on her lover. “Was she seeing anyone else?”
“Like that Jeb Jones fellow, the one that murdered her?”
“Him or anyone else.”
“She flirted with every man she saw. Beth’s boyfriend had a real thing for her. Turned to mush every time she came in the room and it made Beth powerful mad. The ladies at church loved to listen to her sing but didn’t like it when she lingered after service at the socials and talked to the married men.”
“I keep hearing that.” She hesitated. “Did she show an interest in any man?”
“If she did, I didn’t notice.” Her gaze warmed with a memory from the past. Gently she touched the headscarf that covered her thinning hair. “I used to try and style my hair like hers. I wanted it to be long and blond. Once I went to the drugstore and bought a bottle of blond hair dye. My husband found it. He made me pray with him for hours.”
Rachel’s heart reached out for the young girl.
Kate curled thin, deeply veined fingers into fists. “That story makes my husband sound like a bad man. He wasn’t. He wanted the best for me, and the idea of me copying a barroom singer was terrifying. He saw the troubles behind Annie’s smile.”
“What did he see?”
Kate hesitated a moment. “I never like to speak ill of the dead. And I never spoke against Annie.”
Rachel heard the hesitation in her voice. She didn’t have to say a word because Kate had the look of a woman ready to talk.
“She was real sweet and nice when I first met her at the church. But over time, when I’d see her at the house she was moody and angry. She got into a heck of a fight with Beth one night. Beth was sure Annie was sleeping with her boyfriend.”
“Was she?”
“It wouldn’t have taken more than a wink to encourage him. He all but drooled over Annie.”
“So no?”
“I don’t know. Annie was messing around with someone.” A sigh lifted and released fragile shoulders. “Since I saw you on the TV I’ve done a lot of thinking. Not much else I can do these days. I don’t have a future, only a past. Behind Annie’s bright smile and sweet voice were lots of dark secrets.”
“Her sister Margaret says that she was perfect.”
“I remember Margaret. She was about sixteen when Annie died. And she adored her sister. But she was sixteen and Annie was one person for her baby sister and another when she went out at night.”
“What about Jeb?”
“Another admirer. Another man who fell under her spell.” A hint of bitterness coated the words and then a quick smile to soften it. “That sounded judgmental. I’m sorry.”
“
How old was Brenda?”
“Twelve years old. I was married to the assistant pastor of the church. When Ray died, Pastor Gary gave me a job in the church office and I’ve been there ever since.”
Brenda gave off the vibe of an energetic woman. She couldn’t see this woman dating KC. “You have any idea who Annie might have been seeing?”
Rattling teacups signaled the return of Brenda who carried in a large serving tray with a teapot, china cups, and a plate of cookies. She smiled as she set the tray in front of Rachel.
“It’s nice to have the company,” Brenda said. “These days it’s me and Momma. We don’t get many visitors from the church these days.”
Kate frowned. “That’s not true, Brenda. Pastor Gary was just here.”
Brenda smiled at Rachel as she poured her tea. “We understand he’s a busy man and has a lot of duties with the new church expansion and all. He’s a good man.”
“He was like a second father to Brenda after Ray died. We’d not have made it without him.”
Rachel accepted the cup, declining the sugar and milk. “I hear it is one of the biggest churches in the region.”
Kate sat a bit straighter, her pride clear. “He built it from near nothing to a real palace for the Lord.” She waved away a cup heavy with milk and sugar. “We were meeting in a community center when we first started that church. There must not have been more than one hundred people attending in those days. But he had a fire in his belly and God in his soul. It didn’t take long before the congregation outgrew the community center. We had our own building in two years. Not fancy like today but it was big and we were all proud to call it our church home.”
Her love and respect for the man energized her. “Would he remember Annie?”
Kate reached for a cookie and broke off a piece. “I’m sure that he would. He loved her singing and he was the one that married Bill and her. She was such a pretty bride.”
“You were there?”
“I played the organ.”
“I understand many local churches helped search for her when she went missing.”