First Impressions (Edenton 1)

“There was a big scandal at that church about four years after Eden was tossed out by her parents. The man who raped Eden got caught with another young girl.”

“Another rape?”

“No. Seems that it was mutual. There was a lot of commotion and accusations, but there were no charges and no arrests were made. Runkel and the girl were separated, then he went back to his wife and kids. As soon as the girl was of age, they were at it again. The wife packed up the kids and moved to California. As soon as the divorce was final, Runkel married the kid. Good thing, because by then she was seven months pregnant.”

“You think Eden knows any of this?”

“Not a word of it. I think she’s gone out of her way to not know any of it. When she left that town, she left it forever.”

“So now Runkel is living with the kid? She’s how old now?”

“He left her when she turned twenty. She took the kid and went back to her parents.”

Bill gave a low whistle. “Where is he now?”

“Works in a carpet store. He’s in the same town and everybody knows to keep their young girls away from him. He’s no longer an active member of the church.”

“What about Ms. Palmer’s parents?”

“Both dead.”

Bill looked at the files on his desk. “You don’t think this Runkel had anything to do with what’s going on here, do you? Maybe he plans to blackmail Ms. Palmer. I’m sure she’d pay him to make him stay away from her daughter and the grandbaby.”

“I thought of that, but he hasn’t left town in years, and I checked his phone records. No calls to North Carolina. I don’t think he knows about Eden or her daughter.”

Bill looked at Jared for a moment. “So what do you plan to do about him?”

“Except for Eden, he doesn’t seem to have done anything that he can be prosecuted for. Or anything anyone knows about, that is.”

“Any unsolved rapes on the books?” Bill asked, eyebrows raised.

“Three,” Jared said with a half smile. “I checked into it, and I think he probably did it.”

“Did they save DNA?”

“Yes.” For a moment Bill and Jared looked at each other and nodded. Maybe Eden wasn’t willing to go through the horror of a trial, but maybe the other victims were.

“Get on it,” Bill said.

“I’ve already started.”

“So what else?” Bill asked.

“Why didn’t you tell me that Tess Brewster had never had a paintbrush in her hands in her life?”

“I knew you’d find it out. Besides, when you’re around Ms. Palmer, you don’t think about or see anything else. Just her.”

Jared gave him a look that told him not to go there. “What do you know?” Jared asked.

“Only that Tess didn’t paint those pictures. But she did take them to the frame shop.”

Jared sat down. “Where did she get the pictures? You don’t think she bought them, do you? Maybe this is a red herring and she bought them at a garage sale and had them framed. Maybe she was going to hang them in her apartment.”

“Did she have an apartment? I thought she lived here at the agency. With you.”

Jared smiled, and for the first time in days, he relaxed. “Like all of us. So what’s th

e theory on the paintings?”