“Slob!” He wrenched the can out of Malcolm’s hand and slapped his face. “Ungrateful child! I do everything for you two, and this is how you treat my gifts!”
Malcolm’s face stung but he held still, terrified that if he moved, the man would hit him again.
“Finish this!”
His voice was farther away, and Malcolm knew he’d given the can to Rowan. He thought he had drunk two-thirds of it, so Rowan should be able to finish it. She suddenly coughed and hiccuped at the same time, and the man laughed.
“Good girl. See, boy? Even your sister could finish it, you worthless piece of garbage.” He chuckled as he left, and Malcolm stayed frozen in place until he heard the last lock click into place.
Malcolm ripped off his blindfold and blinked in the poor light. “Are you okay?” he whispered. Rowan’s blindfold was already off, and she set it close to the door in case he returned to retrieve it. Malcolm added his.
“It wasn’t bad. It was sweet.”
“It’s disgusting.” His stomach churned, and he pressed his lips together.
“Do you think we’ll get anything else for dinner?” she asked in a small voice.
Rowan might get more, but Malcolm doubted he would, since he’d screwed up. “Don’t know.”
“At least he was laughing.”
“Yeah, it’s always better when he’s happy. Maybe he’ll bring something else,” Malcolm said, trying to be optimistic for her.
Rowan was thin. Her elbows were more pointed than usual, and her face was skinny. Shame swept through Malcolm because he knew she needed more food, and he had made the man mad today.
I’ll be okay, but she needs to eat. I need to sneak her more of my portions.
“I’m cold.” Rowan sat in a ball on the floor, their blanket wrapped around her shoulders. Malcolm sat beside her and got as close as he could, hugging her through the blanket. She kept shaking. He pulled off his coat and tucked it around her over the blanket.
“You need your coat,” she said.
“Nah. I don’t feel cold right now. Maybe later.”
She laid her head on his shoulder as they huddled together. Malcolm fought to hold still through his shivers, not wanting her to feel them. It was more important that she was warm.
I don’t know what I’ll do if she gets sick.
They needed to get out of there. He’d thought the police would have found them by now, but he didn’t think they were coming.
We’re on our own in the hands of the devil.
12
As she drove to her parents’ home, Rowan waited for her call to be answered.
“Rowan? I was wondering when I’d hear from you today.” Sam Durette’s deep voice filled her vehicle and made her smile. The retired detective was always a ray of light. He had seen the worst of what people did to one another, yet his positivity and humor were always present.
“I’m on my way to the birthday party,” Rowan said. “It turned out to be a long day in the woods.”
“Sounds like something happened.”
“It did.” She told him about the body of the woman she’d found and then about the cache of bones. “The medical examiner thinks one of the skulls is young. Possibly male. A forensic anthropologist will remove them tomorrow.”
There was a long moment of silence.
“There are two sets of bones?” Sam asked.
“At least,” said Rowan. “We didn’t want to disturb a crime scene.”
“I don’t need to tell you not to get your hopes up.”
“You don’t,” she said. “Even if it has nothing to do with Malcolm, hopefully the bones will be identified and provide answers to other families who are missing loved ones.”
“Tell me about the woman in the river.”
Rowan gave a brief description. “Detective Bolton caught the case because it’s similar to two others he is handling.”
“What is similar?” Sam asked sharply.
“Nude female. Dumped somewhere. Strangled. Although that hasn’t been confirmed as the cause of death for this victim. The other two were in their early twenties, and we don’t know the age of this one yet. So I guess there aren’t that many confirmed commonalities.”
“I hadn’t heard about the other two women,” said Sam. “Usually I notice that sort of thing in the news.”
“I saw an article about it,” said Rowan. “I think it was bigger news in their hometowns than here.”
“Could be.” He cleared his throat. “Sorry I can’t be there tonight. I need to stay with Grace. She keeps telling me to go, but I know she’s not feeling well.”