“That was an interesting piece you did on Dr. Reggis,” Edgar said. He double-clicked his mouse and looked up.
“You think so?” Kelly said without a lot of enthusiasm. “Thanks.”
“A sad story for everyone involved,” Edgar said.
“To say the least.” Kelly said. “A year ago he could have been a poster boy for American success. As a heart surgeon, he had it all: respect, a beautiful family, a big home, all the trappings.”
“But it was a house of cards,” Edgar said.
“Apparently,” Kelly said. She sighed. “What’s with Caroline? Did she get her homework done?”
“Mostly.” Edgar said. “But she wasn’t feeling too good and wanted to go to bed.”
“What’s the trouble?” Kelly asked. It was rare for Caroline to miss her TV.
“Nothing overwhelming,” Edgar assured her. “Just some stomach upset with cramps. She probably ate too much and too quickly. She insisted we stop at an Onion Ring restaurant after her skating practice, and the place was mobbed. I’m afraid her eyes were bigger than her stomach. She ordered two burgers, a shake, and a large fries.”
Kelly felt an uncomfortable stirring in the pit of her stomach.
“Which Onion Ring?” Kelly asked hesitantly.
“The one out on Prairie Highway,” Edgar said.
“Do you think Caroline is already asleep?” Kelly asked.
“I wouldn’t know for sure,” Edgar said. “But she hasn’t been up there very long.”
Kelly put down her juice. She left the room and climbed the stairs. Her face reflected her anxiety. She stopped to listen outside of Caroline’s room. Once again, all she could hear was the clicking of the computer keyboard drifting up from downstairs.
Quietly Kelly cracked the door. The room was dark.
Opening the door further, she stepped inside and silently walked over to her daughter’s bedside.
Caroline was fast asleep. Her face looked particularly angelic. Her breathing was deep and regular.
Kelly resisted the temptation to reach out and hug her daughter. Instead she just stood there in the semidarkness, thinking about how much she loved Caroline and how much Caroline meant to her. Such thoughts made her feel acutely vulnerable. Life was indeed a house of cards.
Backing out of the room, Kelly closed the door and descended the stairs. She returned to the library, collected her juice glass, and sat down on the leather couch. She cleared her throat.
Edgar looked over. Knowing Kelly as well as he did, he knew she wanted to talk. He switched off his computer.
“What is it?” he asked.
“It’s the Dr. Reggis story,” Kelly said. “I’m not satisfied with it. I said as much to the news director, but he overruled me, saying it was tabloid fodder not hard news and that I wasn’t supposed to waste any more time on it. But I’m going to do it anyway.”
“Why do you feel this way?” Edgar asked.
“There are some gnawing loose ends,” Kelly said. “‘The biggest one involves a USDA inspector by the name of Marsha Baldwin. When Kim Reggis stopped here on Sunday, he told me that he thought the woman had disappeared. He implied that foul play may have been involved?”
“I assume you have been looking for her,” Edgar said.
“Sort of,” Kelly admitted. “I really didn’t take Kim Reggis too seriously. As I told you, I thought he’d gone over the edge after his daughter’s death. I mean, he’d been acting bizarre and according to him the woman had only been missing for a few hours. Anyway I attributed his allegations to raving paranoia.”
“So you haven’t found the woman,” Edgar said.
“No, I haven’t,” Kelly said. “Monday I made a few isolated calls, but I wasn’t really into it. But today I called the USDA district office. When I asked about her, they insisted I talk to the district manager. Of course I didn’t mind talking to the head honcho, but then he didn’t give me any information. He just said that they hadn’t seen her. After I hung up, I thought that it was curious that I had to speak to the head of the office to get that kind of information.”
“It is curious,” Edgar admitted.
“I called up later and asked specifically where she’d been assigned,” Kelly said. “Guess where?”