Read Saints and Sinners: (A Geeks and Things Cozy Mystery Novella #5) (Geeks and Things Cozy Mysteries) for Free Online

asked in a whisper.
    Chris followed her gaze but shook his head. “I don’t see anyone. Come on, let’s go find something to eat. I think maybe we’re both just hungry.”

 
    CHAPTER EIGHT
     
    A half hour later, they sat across from each other at home. They hadn’t intended to go all the way home for food but somehow they’d just wandered by the restaurants that peppered both sides of Main Street.
    “I need to tell you what we found out from Lois Hendrix,” Kalina said as she blew the steam off the spoonful of soup in front of her.
    “OK.”
    “She said that Paige was kind of a bully toward Patrick. It got to the point that it could have been considered abuse. But Patrick wouldn’t let her tell their parents about it. Lois was convinced that Paige talked Patrick into getting on the boat that day.”
    “Did they know how to operate it?”
    “Apparently.”
    Chris took a sip of his drink and studied the sandwich crumbs on his plate. “That might explain some of the behavior the Maxwells observed. The talking to herself. The self-harm. In fact, they said it sounded sometimes like she was arguing with someone.”
    “That’s what I thought, too. She was used to bossing Patrick around and hurting him. Without him there, maybe she just started hurting herself.”
    “But eventually it stopped. The talking and the cutting.”
    “Maybe she just blocked that part of her life out and accepted that she wasn’t Paige Fischer anymore. She embraced being Verona Maxwell. I bet if you’d asked her anything about Paige, she wouldn’t have a clue.”
    “You mean like multiple personalities?”
    “Yeah. Something like that.” She let out a sigh. “I bet it would be really helpful to see what she talked about with her psychologist.”
    “Those records would be difficult to get, especially with the patient dead.”
    “You have to try.”
    “I’ll see what I can do.”
    “And you should talk to Abigail Fisher’s sister, Bethany. Something about the way the Fischers died doesn’t sit right with me. I tried to find their obituaries but there wasn’t much there.”
    “It’s worth looking into. Besides, maybe she kept something from Paige’s childhood we could use for a DNA match. And I’m guessing you want to come along.”
    “If that’s OK with you.” She batted her lashes at him and smiled.
    “As long as you aren’t running off on your own, I’ll let you tag along. I need to keep an eye on you.”
    They lapsed into silence for a while and Kalina focused on her soup. The baby gave a kick or jab to her bladder once or twice but she was much calmer than she’d been earlier in the day. She had enjoyed most of being pregnant but she was eager to meet her daughter and to hold her tiny fingers in her own hand. That thought sparked an idea. “You have Patrick’s fingerprints, right?”
    “Yes. Why?”
    “Have you thought about running his prints to see if they match any adults around the same age he’d be now? To at least rule him out as a suspect. I mean if there’s nothing then there’s probably a good chance he isn’t the killer.”
    “I’ll get someone on it.” He pushed his chair back and disappeared from the kitchen.
    In his absence, Kalina pulled out her phone and Googled Bethany Fairfax. Lucky for her, there was only one in the entire state of Massachusetts and she lived not too far away in Marblehead. That couldn’t be a coincidence. She copied the address she’d found online to the Notes app on her phone and grabbed her purse. She nearly collided with Chris as she tried to leave the kitchen.
    “I found Bethany Fairfax,” she announced. His furrowed brow told her he didn’t know who she was talking about. “Abigail Fischer’s sister. Fairfax was her maiden name.”
    “Oh, right. I’ve got the lab running Patrick’s prints. Where does Ms. Fairfax live?”
    “Marblehead.”
    “Is that so?”
    “Yep. Want to go see if the aunt has any idea what might have happened to the rest of her