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discussed Margaret’s idea with her fiancé, Gabe, Kaitlyn headed straight to Cameron Chase’s office and asked for the names, and contact information of the other families who’d lost daughters, sisters, and mothers to Evan and Devan Lucas. After all, the Gamers’ murders had been his case. He’d have their phone numbers and addresses in their file.
    At first Cameron refused, stating that he couldn’t violate the families’ privacy like that. Like most law enforcement officers, he was very protective of victims’ families.
    After she and Gabe presented the idea and asked for the contact information several more times, he relented. But he insisted on calling each family himself to get their permission for Kaitlyn and Margaret to contact them about the FOM chapter. He left it to them to explain that the members of this particular chapter would be the families left behind by the Gamers’ homicides.
    Representatives of six of the seven murdered victims were present for the first meeting. Val Staley, the youngest victim, was only fifteen-years-old when she died. She’d been a runaway from Chicago when her body was found outside Indianapolis. Her mother and stepfather, who lived in Chicago, said the meetings were too far away for them to attend.
    Margaret positioned a group of folding chairs into a circle, invited participants to sit, and called the meeting to order. “I want to thank each of you for coming this evening to our first session of the Families of the Murdered chapter. My name is Margaret Bennett. I have a private counseling practice here in Morel. I’m also studying to be a forensic psychologist. I respect your privacy and I expect you to respect the privacy of others. I want you to speak freely, trusting what you say will not be repeated outside of this group. Everything said in this meeting is confidential.”
    She cleared her throat. “Three years ago, my brother Gregory, was killed by a drive-by shooter. He’d done nothing wrong. Gregory was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. The shooter was aiming for a man standing near him. My life hasn’t been the same since. I was thrust into a world of senseless violence, grief, and pain. I kept hoping I would awaken from the nightmare and find out it had all been a terrible mistake. That didn’t happen. But, I got lucky. I found a chapter of FOM near the university I attended and started going to their meetings. It made all the difference to me, and I hope these gatherings will make all the difference for you.”
    Pausing for a moment, Margaret sipped from her coffee cup. She had the group’s undivided attention.
    “I believe the process of healing is enabled by telling your story again and again to people who have experienced the same kind of event. Experiencing the pain, rage, and despair helps us heal and realize our own abilities to cope. Something each of you have in common is that you lost a loved one to violence at the hands of Evan and Devan Lucas. That commonality is the strength of this group. With that said, I’d like to hear from you. One at a time, please introduce yourself, and tell your story.”
    She touched Kaitlyn’s shoulder. “Kaitlyn, may we start with you?”
    Shakily, she got to her feet and fought the urge to bolt from the room. “As you heard, my name is Kaitlyn. My sister, Abby, was murdered by the Gamers. I’m here because there is no one I can talk to about Abby’s murder. My mother is in her own kind of denial and won’t hear a word about Abby, and what happened to her. No one I know has ever experienced the murder of a loved one. They want to, but they can’t understand what it’s like.”
    Unshed tears blurred her vision, but she continued. “I think of Abby and me growing up. She was my younger sister. We supported each other as children do when their parents go through a bad divorce. When I think of Abby, I see her in the prime of her life, strong and beautiful. And in a flash, it’s all taken away.