Evil Never Dies

Hayley sighed and went back to whatever she was doing before.

Kitally shot Lizzy a confused look. “What does that have to do with Hayley?”

“That girl,” Lizzy said, ignoring Kitally and pointing in the direction she’d last seen Salma. “She’s gotta go.”

“What happened to helping others whenever possible?” Kitally wanted to know.

“Do you see those words carved on my fucking forehead?”

“Wow,” Kitally said. “I get that you’ve got some major issues to deal with, but you don’t have to be such a bitch.”

Lizzy took a breath, tried to calm herself. “I’m going to my room to grab a few things and then I’ll be out for most of the day.”

“What about Shady Oaks Nursing Home?” Kitally asked.

“What about it?”

“You told me over the phone yesterday that you needed to talk to me about checking the place out.”

“Yeah, well, figure it out. The file is on the desk in the office,” she said as she walked off.

“I’ve never seen her so pissed off,” Kitally said after Lizzy walked away.

Hayley shrugged. “She’ll get over it.”

“Should I leave?” Salma asked.

“No,” Kitally and Hayley both said at once.

Tammy Walters and her four-year-old son lived in a one-bedroom apartment off Forty-Second Street. Long, unkempt dry grass and broken-down fencing surrounded the outside of the building, but the inside of the apartment was clean and neat, if sparsely furnished.

Tammy sat on a sofa, and Lizzy sat in an overstuffed chair facing her. “What can you tell me about your sister Miriam?”

“Do you mean what kind of person is she? Her hobbies, her goals?”

“Sure,” Lizzy said. “Anything that might tell me what she’s like.”

Tammy thought about it for a moment. “Miriam is my best friend. Although we have the same birth parents, you wouldn’t know it once you looked at the two of us together. Miriam is tall and slender but with curves—you know what I mean?”

Lizzy nodded.

“But me—well, take a look at me—I’ve got a lot of meat on these bones and being five feet, three inches, nobody ever accused me of being tall.”

She laughed, but Lizzy could see that her heart wasn’t in it. Although she talked as if her sister was still alive, the probability of that being the case was growing slimmer every day.

“Not only is Miriam beautiful,” Tammy said, “she was always the brightest student in school.” She sighed. “I’d be lying if I said I was never jealous of Miriam, because I was. And if her own sister is sometimes jealous, think how many girls in high school were. I used to joke and call my sister ‘poor beautiful Miriam.’ ”

Tammy’s son brought over a toy, and, without missing a beat, she co

“Do you know how Miriam met Wayne Be

“Yeah. I do.” She pointed to her chest. “It was me.” She fiddled with her tight black curls. “After I heard that a girl I knew was handpicked by Wayne Be

“We would all make different decisions and choices if we could see into the future.”

“Yeah, well, how many people make choices that put a loved one’s life in danger?”

Lizzy lifted a shoulder and left it at that.

“Anyhow, I talked Miriam into applying, and, of course, she got into the program. If she wasn’t so damned beautiful, Wayne Be

“Did she complain about him?” Lizzy asked.

“No. It was way worse than that. Poor beautiful Miriam fell in love with Wayne Be

“Really?”

“Yep. It took Miriam about twenty-four hours to fall for the guy. As if she knows what love is, right? She’s eighteen. He’s way too old for her. I just figured it was a harmless infatuation. Think about it,” Tammy said, leaning forward, her voice lowering. “Tall, handsome, distinguished, smart, and compassionate. A well-respected man looked up to in the community, a man who wasn’t satisfied with making millions of dollars but who claimed to have a burning need to help others.” Tammy moaned in disgust. “If my sister had made a list describing her perfect mate, Wayne Be

They both watched Tammy’s son run around the apartment making airplane noises, his wooden airplane rising to the floor and then back to the sky, around and around. The kid stopped in front of Lizzy, his airplane held frozen in holding mode. “Are you go

“I don’t know,” Lizzy said. “I sure hope so.”

The little boy took off again. When he was out of earshot, Lizzy said, “In your opinion, is it possible Miriam and Mr. Be

“Not only is it possible—it happened. Our father is an asshole, so Miriam moved in with me. She’s been living here with my boy and me for a while now. After she met Mr. Be

“Did she know he was married?”

“She’s a smart girl, remember? Of course she did.”

“So she must have known it wouldn’t last forever.”

“She was book smart, I guess, not exactly relationship smart. Like a lot of mistresses out there, Miriam thought she was special.”

“So what do you think happened? Do you think he told her it was over and she left town?”

“Nope. Not even close. I’ve heard rumors that Miriam had met someone else, a younger guy, so, in my opinion, I think one of two things happened. Miriam either threatened to tell the world about their relationship if he didn’t leave his wife, or she told him about this other guy and Be

Tammy sighed and then wiped away a tear. “She can’t be dead. She just can’t be. He must be keeping her against her will somewhere, like maybe in his mountain cabin. I heard he had a vacation home in Lake Tahoe. All rich people have one of those—don’t they?”

“You told me over the phone that you had a picture of them together. Can I see it?”

Tammy laughed. “Be

Lizzy frowned. “We need proof.”

“Calm down, girlfriend. You see, Mr. Be

Tammy picked up an envelope and dumped its contents onto the coffee table between them. Pictures of all sizes slid out, some falling to the floor.

Lizzy scooped up the ones from the floor. “Did your sister know about this?”

“You bet. It was her idea.”

Lizzy examined one particular photo: a clear shot of Miriam and Wayne Be

“I sure do.”

“How about date and time?”

“Yep. I got it all.”

Lizzy’s adrenaline kicked in. “I’ll need a list of friends and family, anyone who might have seen Miriam with Be

“I’ll make you a list right now.”