“I’m not sure why, either,” Gus said. “Probably … well, you know. They tried to be as quiet about it as possible, but losing a kid isn’t easy. And they had to handle that on their own. I’m sure leaving felt easier than staying here. A fresh start.”
Logan paused with her water cup halfway to her lips. “Wait, what?”
“Me and my wife lost our boy just before he turned six. It’s the hardest thing that ever happened to us. After that, all I could think about was your dads.” Gus wiped his mouth. “Didn’t have any family or friends to mourn their kid. They didn’t even have a plot on the hill. They buried the girl at Pioneer Cemetery. I still think about it. All the time.”
“Gus.” Logan pressed her palm flat to the table. Her head spun. There was another child—one her fathers had never told her about. Whatever had happened—whatever she didn’t understand about her fathers—this was the missing piece. “What happened?”
“Can’t say for sure,” Gus said. “I know it was back a ways. 2006? Maybe 2007?”
“Thirteen years ago,” Logan breathed.
“Right,” Gus said. “They must’ve adopted you after they left. I know it doesn’t ever make up for losing a kid, but I’m glad those two got to have a family in the end.”
Logan could taste her heartbeat. “Hey, thanks for this. I’m gonna head out.”
“Wait,” Gus said. “Didn’t you have questions about your dads?”
“I think you answered everything.” Logan stepped out of the booth and shouldered her purse.
“You’re heading back to the Bates?”
“Straight home,” Logan lied.
“I can give you a ride.”
“Nope. I’m good.” She put a twenty on the table. “Thanks again for sticking up for me. See you around.”
Logan stormed out of the Chokecherry and turned right. Away from the Bates. Away from Snakebite. She walked down the sidewalk until it ended, and then stumbled along the gravel shoulder. Lake water slapped at the shore to her left, gray and endless along the valley. Between two massive hills, she saw the iron fence, the mounds of dirt, the dusty road up to Snakebite Memorial, and her stomach twisted in knots. It was finally time for the truth.
She’d waited long enough.
28
And Then There Was One
BRANDON VOICEOVER: Tonight on ParaSpectors, there’s no way out but down. The team heads to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where we’ll be tracking down the infamous Tulsa Devil. Local legend says that the Tulsa Devil isn’t your everyday demon. Everyone in this city has been touched by the Devil in some way or another. Alejo is out sick this week, but I won’t be investigating alone. Along for the ride is super-fan and detective-in-training Logan.
[A young girl is shown at Brandon’s side with a bag of gear. She wears a black T-shirt that reads WHO’S AFRAID OF THE DARK? A nametag appears across the screen: LOGAN ORTIZ-WOODLEY, INVESTIGATOR/DAUGHTER.]
BRANDON: I don’t know what we’ll find down here. But I bet you’ll be less scared than your dad.
LOGAN: Anyone would be less scared than Dad.
Ashley wasn’t sure why she was watching this. It burrowed into her like claws, reminding her of what she’d done. How she’d taken Alejo away from his family. How she’d probably ensured that this happy, excited Logan Ortiz-Woodley would never exist again. Her mother said that the Ortiz-Woodleys were a poison.
Ashley wondered if Snakebite was the poison; if she was the poison.
[Logan smacks the SonusX against her palm. They stand in the basement of a Tulsa hotel waiting for the voice-detection box to power up.]