“She sees me as the weak link in this investigation. And for the record, she would be wrong,” Shepard added.
“I can have a uniformed officer knock on doors. Better if you talk to Bonnie and see what she has to say. We need to find Sonny soon.”
“I owe a visit to Elena first. It won’t take me long. The girl might have something more to share. Bonnie can wait.”
He liked her style. “Call me after your visit.”
It was close to dinnertime when Melina knocked on the hospital room door and poked her head inside. Elena was sitting in her bed watching the nurse take her blood pressure. Set in front of her was a plate of nearly untouched food. The watch still dangled from her wrist.
“Knock, knock,” Melina said.
The girl’s eyes brightened, but there was no smile. “Melina.”
“How are you doing?” Melina asked.
The nurse glanced up from the blood pressure gauge. “She’s doing just fine. MRIs came back, as well as the blood work. She doesn’t show any sign of injury.”
“That’s fantastic.” The news meant that Elena would be leaving the hospital today or tomorrow at the latest. But with no custodial parent, Elena would be placed in foster care. Though the foster parents might be well meaning, they were still strangers. This little girl had seen far too much upheaval in her young life.
The nurse removed the blood pressure cuff and stepped back. “Maybe you can get her to eat.”
Melina lifted the covering over the large plate. “Mashed potatoes? Who doesn’t like mashed potatoes?”
“I love them,” the nurse said.
Elena shrugged but didn’t respond.
Melina set down her backpack by the bed. “Let me try.”
“She’s all yours,” the nurse said.
When the woman vanished out the door, Melina walked to the small sink in the room and carefully washed her hands. She dried them with a paper towel and then balled it up. Raising her hand high in the air, she tossed it toward the trash can. It bounced off the rim. “Rats. No points for me.”
She did not speak, but Elena regarded Melina as she picked up the discarded towel and held it out to the girl.
“Do you want to try?” Melina asked.
“No.”
She tossed it in the trash. “Where are your bubbles?”
“Gone.”
“You used them up?”
Another shrug. “Yeah.”
“Well, I’ll have to mention that to Jerrod. He might be able to pick up more.” Using the plastic fork and knife, she stirred the melted pool of butter into small bites before she opened the packet of salt and poured it on the potatoes.
“It’s okay,” Elena said. “I don’t need any more bubbles.”
“Why not?”
“It’s better to travel light.”
“Is that what BB told you?”
“And my mommy.”
Elena twisted Melina’s gold watch around her slim wrist. She remained quiet, and Melina was willing to let the silence stand while the child processed her choices. Trust could not be forced.
Finally, Elena whispered, “I miss her.”
“I know you do, honey.” She swirled the potatoes and the butter. “Did you and BB leave while your mother was asleep?”
“Yes.”
“Is your daddy looking for you?”
Elena glanced at the watch’s face. “I don’t have one.”
“You left your home right after your birthday, right?”
“Yes.”
“And that was August twenty-second?”
“On my birthday.”
Elena’s eyes did not fill with tears. The girl was accustomed to coping with absences, including her father’s and now her mother’s. “BB told Mommy needles were bad. Mommy said she was sorry and promised to stop.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“BB said not to be sorry. Sorry is for losers.”
“That doesn’t mean your mother didn’t love you,” Melina said.
“BB said she was weak.”
“I bet she couldn’t help herself,” Melina said. “She was sick.”
“With what?”
“Some grown-ups can’t stop. They want to, but they can’t.” Melina laid her hand softly on Elena’s arm. “None of this is your fault.”
Elena closed her eyes. “Okay.”
“It’s going to be okay,” Melina said.
The girl’s narrowing gaze suggested otherwise. But she nodded as if she had been taught not to show her true feelings.
“Honey, I’m going to see BB this evening,” Melina said.
The girl reached for her stuffed dog.
“Is there anything you want me to tell her?”
“No.”
“What about Sonny? Do you want me to tell him anything?”
“No. I don’t like Sonny. He has a mean face,” she said.
“Did Sonny live near where BB’s car crashed?”
Elena shrugged and kept her gaze down. “I don’t know.”
Frustration nipped at Melina, but she kept her tone calm. “That’s okay.”
Elena picked at the fur on the dog’s paw. She had worn a bald spot. “Am I going back with BB?”
“No, honey.”
“Why not?”
“Because BB is in a little trouble right now. She’s in time-out.”
“She’s been bad?”
“Yes.”
There was a knock on the door, and Melina turned to find her mother standing in the doorway. She was holding a bag from the local box store that she would bet her last dollar was stuffed with toys, clothes, and packets of Melina’s favorite flavor of Goldfish.
“Can I come in?” Molly asked.
“Sure.” After rising, Melina stepped aside so her mother could get a good look at Elena. “You must be Elena.”
The girl looked at her with more curiosity than fear. She nodded.
“Elena, this is my mom, Mrs. Shepard.”
“Oh my word, don’t call me Mrs. Shepard. That makes me sound all old.” She scrunched her face as she set the bag down by the bed. “You can call me Mimi. That’s what my little grandnephew calls me.”
Her mother took the seat by Elena’s bed. “Have you not eaten your lunch?”
Elena shook her head.
“Melina was the worst eater when she was your age.” She scooped up a small bite of mashed potatoes and swirled it in the melted butter. “Her daddy and I didn’t meet Melina until she was five. She was such a scrawny little thing, and all she would eat was white bread and ketchup.”
“I like ketchup,” Elena said.
“It’s as good as mashed potatoes. Try and see.”
Her mother leaned forward, coaxed the girl’s lips open, and put the food in her mouth. Elena ate, staring at Molly in a way that reminded Melina of herself.
One of her first memories of her mother was in a room like this. She had been in the hospital just a couple of hours and was chilled to the bone despite the layers of blankets put on her by the nurses. The bottoms of her feet had been raw from walking barefoot. She’d felt all alone and tried to hold back the tears.
And the room door had opened, and her mother had swept in, bringing with her the scent of a rose perfume. Melina inhaled the same fragrance now. It never failed to ease the world’s stressors.
Melina folded her arms and watched as her mother coaxed another bite and then another into the girl. Soon Elena was drinking milk from a straw.
“See, Melina, Elena is a very good eater,” her mother said. “I knew she would be.” Molly cleared away the empty plate and set it off to the side. “I have coloring books. Would you like to color?”
Elena frowned. “I don’t know how.”
“Well, then you’re in luck.” Molly set a Frozen coloring book featuring the Disney princesses on the table. She rummaged in her bag and pulled out a twenty-four pack of crayons. “Other than Melina, I’m the best at coloring books.”
As her mother began to leaf through the black-and-white pages, Melina said, “Elena, do you mind staying with my mom? I’ll come back.”
Her mother tossed Melina a bright smile. “Don’t you worry about us. We’re going to be fine. I have some books for Ms. Elena. I also heard that she likes bubbles—and guess what? I have bubbles.”
The girl nodded as she selected a blue crayon from the box.
“Good choice.” Her mother rose, kissed Melina on the cheek. “Do what you need to. I have this covered,” she whispered.
“Thanks, Mom.”
“Are you kidding? I couldn’t sleep last night because I was so excited to meet Elena.”
Melina hugged her mother. “See you soon, Elena.”
The girl scooped up another crayon. “Are you coming back?”
“I will. Soon.”
The girl nodded and began to color.
Out in the hallway, Melina shrugged her shoulders, tossing off an invisible weight she hadn’t realized she had been carrying. Elena was in good hands. She could not say the same for Bonnie.
Sonny had learned her name was Sandra Wallace, and she worked as a bartender and waitress in a local honky-tonk several blocks north of the Lower Broadway strip. The bar was off the beaten track and was frequented by locals before 5:00 p.m., though the occasional tourist stumbled across it.
More importantly, Sandra had the look Sonny liked. Tall, buxom, with brassy-blond hair, she was known for tossing back her head and laughing loud. It was an infectious laugh that made everyone in the room turn and look in delight and sometimes annoyance. Sandra Wallace never entered a room unnoticed.
She liked the attention.
Craved it.
And she had gotten his attention.