Free Bone Dust White by Karin Salvalaggio Page B

you left the house?”
    Elizabeth hesitates. “She seemed excited, which was a nice change. She’s been given a new lease on life. Some days she’s euphoric.”
    “And other days?”
    “Less so. It’s been a huge adjustment for her.”
    “I can imagine.”
    “With all due respect, I don’t think you can.”
    Macy slips her notebook out of her bag and puts it down in front of her. The room is empty save a table in the far corner. The doors open and Jared and the nurse she’d spoken to earlier walk into the room and head over to the self-service area. Even from a distance Macy can tell they’re a couple. For some reason she’s relieved to see that Jared looks miserable. The woman next to him is chatting gaily while he’s slumped so low it looks as if he’s trying to disappear.
    Macy turns her attention back to Elizabeth. “Are you comfortable speaking here or would you rather go somewhere more private?”
    “Here is fine. I’ve got nothing to hide.”
    “Tell me more about Grace’s state of mind. You’ve said she was excited yesterday morning. Did you know she was wearing a red nightie when they found her out in the snow? According to the first responders she was nearly naked.”
    Elizabeth’s cheeks redden. “I truly have no idea. It belonged to her mother.”
    “Did she say if she was meeting anyone? Had anyone been coming to the house?”
    “She’s only been out of the hospital a couple of weeks. No one has visited aside from my girlfriends.”
    Macy looks at Warren. “Did you tell her about the roses?”
    Warren clears his throat. “No, not yet.”
    Elizabeth looks up at the sheriff. “Roses?”
    Macy keeps her voice low. “We found a bouquet in one of the garbage bins. They were still wrapped in their packaging. If you don’t know anything about them, we have to assume the killer brought them with him.”
    Elizabeth’s hands start to shake. “I don’t understand. Why would he bring roses?”
    “Grace might have a stalker.” Warren presses his palms flat onto the table. The knuckles on one of his hands are swollen and bruised. “Leanne may have come across him spying on Grace. Maybe she confronted him.”
    Elizabeth drops her voice to a whisper. “So this may not have had anything to do with Leanne?”
    “We’re just speculating at this point.”
    Macy opens her notebook and flips through until she finds what she’s looking for. “I heard there was an incident with a teacher named David Freeman when she was fourteen.”
    Elizabeth sighs. “The whole thing was blown out of proportion.”
    “So what did happen? There’s usually some grain of truth to these things.”
    “There’s really nothing to tell. It was an innocent schoolgirl crush.” Elizabeth shifts awkwardly in her chair. “There was talk that Grace was having an affair with a married man but thankfully his name was never revealed.”
    “Charges were filed.”
    “And charges were dropped. They both denied the whole thing. The only mistake he made was thinking he could handle it on his own. He didn’t know how to cope with Grace. She could be very needy with anyone who showed her kindness. The doctors weren’t sure how long she had left to live. It was a difficult few years for her.”
    “Does she have any friends we could speak to?”
    Elizabeth remains silent.
    “You know I can find out who Grace’s friends are without your help.”
    Elizabeth closes her eyes. “Grace has no friends.”
    Macy writes down the words “no friends” in her notebook and underlines it three times. “So why don’t you tell me about Grace’s present state of mind?”
    “She seems calm but really, it’s hard to tell.”
    “I need to talk to her.”
    Elizabeth looks at Warren for support but he agrees with Macy. “Sorry, Elizabeth, there’s a killer out there and Grace is our only witness.”
    Elizabeth stands up with difficulty and tells them she wants to go upstairs to prepare her niece. Warren offers to go with her.
    “Grace