Last Look

“Could we have the names of her friends, the ones she spent the most time with?” Andrew asked.

“Heather Whalen, Carrie Harrison, Kimmie White. The four of them were always together.”

“Do you have any idea where those girls might be now?”

“They’re all still around,” Mrs. Randall replied. “I can get their addresses and phone numbers for you before you leave.”

“Thank you,” Andrew said. “What about boyfriends?”

“No, no, Sha

“Mrs. Randall, very often, girls have friends who are boys, not boyfriend, girlfriend. Just…friends.” Dorsey told her. “Were there any boys she was just friends with?”

“Not that I know of. Sha

“Collins.”

“Agent Collins, right.” Judith Randall wet her lips. “ Sha

“Let’s go back to that last morning, if we could,” Andrew suggested gently. “How did the day start? Was there anything bothering her? Did she seem to be preoccupied with anything?”

“No, no more than usual.” Judith Randall tried to smile but failed. “You know how teenagers are, Agent Shields. Upbeat and happy one minute, moody and sulking the next.”

“Was Sha

“I don’t remember she was,” Mrs. Randall said thoughtfully. “I remember her being late leaving for school because she had to run upstairs to get something for some project she was working on-whatever project that was due at the end of the week, she and her friends were all working together on it. That’s why she was at Kimmie’s after school instead of coming right home.”

“Did she usually come right home from school?”

“Not always. Sha

“The reports in the Bureau’s file indicate that Sha

“That would be about right.” She nodded. “We know she was there, her grandmother saw her. Sha

“We will, yes,” Andrew told her. “When did you realize that Sha

“Unfortunately, not until the next morning.” Mrs. Randall’s eyes filled again. “I’d gone down to Charleston with my sister, Andrea, to see a movie and have di

She bit her bottom lip and added, “I didn’t check on her that night. I was tired from the trip, and just figured she was sleeping.” She looked at Andrew, then Dorsey, with haunted eyes. “I was just too tired to walk up to the third floor to check in on her and Aubrey. If I had, I would have known, I could have called the police sooner, they could have started looking for her, found whoever took her before it was too late…”

“Mrs. Randall, it’s not your fault,” Dorsey told her gently. “Whatever happened was beyond your control. If Sha

“It’s hard not to. We all blame ourselves. My husband also blames himself for not checking, but he thought she was up in her room studying when he arrived home from church that night. He’d gone straight into his study, so he wasn’t aware she wasn’t home. And Aubrey figured Sha

“Mrs. Randall, take us through the next day. When did you realize Sha

“When she didn’t come down for breakfast. I told Paula Rose to run upstairs and tell Sha

“Aubrey’s room was on the third floor as well?” he asked.

“Yes. She and Sha

“Aubrey must have been shocked when she came back from her trip and found out that Sha

“Yes, she was. And she’s been devastated by this latest news. I swear, she just has not been the same since.”

“Where would I find her now?” Andrew asked.

“She’d be back at her little house in Stephens. About halfway between here and Charleston. She has her own television show down there, you know. Does all sorts of things-cooking and baking and gardening. Just like Martha Stewart.” Judith’s expression softened.

“I’m sure you’re very proud of her,” Dorsey said.

“I am very proud of all my daughters.” She leveled her chin. “All of them. I don’t know who or what led my God-fearing child to a life of sin, but I know she did not go willingly. And I know she would have come home if she could have.”

She turned to Andrew.

“Twenty-four years ago, the FBI sent a man down here to investigate my daughter’s disappearance. We all believed him when he said that Eric Beale killed her and hid the body someplace where we couldn’t find it. A jury believed that as well, and Eric Beale was sentenced to death for killing my girl.” She took a deep breath before continuing. “Now we find out that none of it was true. She had not died. That Beale boy did not kill her. He went to his death knowing he was i

She looked from Andrew to Dorsey, then back again.

“You find out the truth this time, hear? Whatever the truth might be, you find it. We’ve all been living with a lie all this time. It’s about time we all knew what really happened to my girl, and why that poor boy had to die for a murder he did not commit.”

“We’ll do our best,” Andrew said, and rose from the sofa. “I promise you we will do all that we can.”

“You do that, Agent Shields, then you come back here and tell me what really happened. No mistakes this time. No jumping to conclusions. You bring me facts.”

“Mrs. Randall, do you know where I can find the Beale family?” Andrew asked.

“I surely do not. I don’t know if they’re dead or alive. They moved right after their boy was executed. People in town…well, let’s just say people in town here were less than charitable to them after their son was arrested.” She covered her face with her hands. “God forgive me, I said such harsh and terrible things to Jeanette Beale…”