“I’m sorry,” was all she could come up with. She was, though. Losing a real parent had to be as tough as it got, especially when there was love in the family.
Kit nodded, then raked his hand through his hair. “Thanks. Time heals old wounds, I guess. Dad remarried when I was fifteen. We moved off the island after Rhett graduated high school. Couple years later, I had a baby sister.”
She smiled. “How cool, especially for your parents, with two built-in babysitters.”
“Both of us doted on Jane,” he said, a sad look on his face.
“Another literary name?”
“My stepmom loves books as much as dad does. They met through a book club,” he said. “They’re a good match, but they’ve never been the same since they lost Jane.”
“Your sister? I’m so very sorry. How horrible for you and your family.” She wasn’t expecting to hear such sad news. Especially now that Renée was missing, she wasn’t sure she could deal with more bad news.
Kit had a faraway look in his eyes, as though he’d traveled back in time to his family’s tragedy. “She was only six,” he told her.
“Would it be rude of me to ask what happened to her?”
He raked his hand through his hair again. She supposed it was a habit of his, as she’d seen him do it before. “We don’t know.”
“Was she sick?” she couldn’t help but ask. She wanted to know as much as she could about Kit’s family.
“You’ll keep this to yourself?” he asked.
“Of course,” she told him, but wondered why it mattered, since Jane’s death had happened so long ago.
“She’s been missing for more than twenty years. I’d been out of college for a year or so. My stepmom, who raised us, was younger than Dad, but it didn’t matter, because they’re like two peas in a pod. I was seventeen when Jane came along. Cutest little girl. Rhett and I adored her. Spoiled her constantly. This is the part I can’t tell you, but suffice it to say, Jane’s disappearance is relevant to what I’m working on.”
In a soft voice, she asked, “The cult story?”
“Let’s leave it at that for now.”
“Okay.” Unsure what else to say, she tried wrapping her mind around the strange events that took place here and in town.
Through the window, Ali saw red and blue lights flashing but didn’t hear a siren. “Looks like the police are here,” she said. “I dread this. I can’t begin to imagine what Val’s going through.”
“I have no doubt this is the start of her worst nightmare,” Kit said, then stood up, walking to the door. Ali joined him, waiting to let the authorities in to do their job. Sending up a silent prayer this nightmare would have a magical ending, she prepared for a long night ahead.
Chapter Twelve
When Alison saw Ricky Sanders from the sheriff’s department, along with three others she hadn’t met, her stomach sank. She knew he wasn’t the most experienced or the brightest star, even though he wore two actual gold stars plastered on his shirt. Was his presence a sign of a bad outcome?
Kit took charge as soon as the cops entered.
“Well, well, now look at this,” Sanders said when he saw her standing beside Kit. “Trouble follows you everywhere, don’t it?” he said between snaps of bubble gum. “You do something to the kid? You wantin’ some ransom money?” He laughed, while the other three deputies reminded her of Larry, Moe, and Curly as they waited silently for direction. The three deputies looked to be in their early twenties. Most likely, this was their first real investigation.
“Don’t speak to Alison like that,” Kit warned. “Do you what you were sent here to do.”
“I gotcha. You two got a thing goin’ on. You don’t waste time, do ya, girl?”
Kit stepped as close to Sanders as he could without touching him. “I asked you not to speak to her like that. Are you deaf?”
Ali watched the three deputies snicker at Kit’s comment to Sanders, who must be their superior, which was the biggest joke of all. Renée didn’t stand a chance if this idiot controlled the investigation.
“I see we got a smartass on our hands.” Sanders spoke to the three idiots, stepping away from Kit, who towered over him by nearly a foot.
“Listen, you’re not here to decide what I am or not. A child is missing, or have you forgotten why you’re here?” Kit’s words were laced with unreleased anger. Seeing him stand up to the deputy, Ali was proud he wasn’t frightened by a badge.
Inwardly, Ali laughed. Sanders would be no match for Kit, unless he used his weapon. He would be the kind to use a gun just to bully others.
“She’s probably run away with some boy. Girls her age oughta be locked up till they’re old enough to marry,” Sanders said to no one in particular.
Alison saw headlights reflecting on the windows. She hoped it was Valentina with good news.
“I see you have a high opinion of women. Men like you make me sick,” Kit said. “Do your damned job, or I’m going to make a phone call, and it won’t be to your uncle.”
“You threatenin’ me?”
“Call it whatever you like. Do your job and quit wasting time showing us what an ass you are,” Kit said, his fists clenched at his side.
Valentina came through the door, her blonde hair a tangled mess, eyes red from crying. She glanced at the deputies. “Is this how you search for a missing person? Get out. Now!” she said. “I refuse to allow you in her room. Go!” She pointed her finger toward the door.
“Hey, woman, you need to calm down. You’re the one that called us, remember?” Sanders said.
“I didn’t call you,” Valentina said, “your stupid-ass uncle sent you here. This is my house, and I’ll give you to the count of five to get out of here!”
Alison went to Valentina, placing an arm around her. “You heard what she said. Go. Now.”
“You better not call the department again, cause we ain’t gonna waste any more time on you, you got that?” Sanders smirked. “Go on—she can find her kid herself. Probably out screwin’ around anyway. Girls like her, well, if you ask me, they deserve whatever they get.”
Kit grabbed Sanders by the shoulders. “Get out before I toss your puny ass over the balcony for the fish to feast on. I’m not the least bit intimidated by you or the uniform that you’re a disgrace to. Go.” He turned Sanders toward the door.
“Let’s get out of here,” Sanders said to the three silent deputies. “Let ’em find the kid on their own.”
Finally getting the message, Sanders stomped out, his crew following behind like baby ducks. When they drove off, not only did they turn their red and blue lights on, but they also turned up the sirens, too. All for show, Ali thought.
“Have you heard anything?” Ali asked Valentina.
Valentina shook her head. “Yes, and it’s not what any mother wants to hear.”
Without offering an explanation, Valentina went to the kitchen and took a soda from the refrigerator. “Y’all help yourselves; then we’ll talk.” She sat on a barstool, no longer the confident woman Ali had gone shopping with just a few hours earlier.