Page 4 of Is Anyone Listening?
"Is that family still in Stonecross?"
"My grandmother runs the Stonecross Inn."
"Where the girl disappeared? Oh, come on, Cassidy. That's a crazy coincidence. This is our case. Every sign is pointing in that direction. You'll have the inside track with your grandmother. You'll be able to get information no one else can."
"I won't, Tessa. I've never met my grandmother. And my father would kill me if I went there. Whenever I asked about my grandmother, he refused to tell me anything except that his mother would never meet me unless it was over his dead body."
"Okay," Tessa said slowly. "I see what you're saying, but aren't you curious as to why you can never meet your own grandmother?"
"Of course, I'm curious. But my father is my only family, and he barely tolerates me. I can't cut the last connection I have to him."
"Does he have to know? You don't see him that often, do you?"
"A few times a year," I conceded. "But somehow he'll find out."
"How would he? Does he listen to our podcast?"
"God, no! I told him about it when we first started it, and he dismissed it like it was nothing."
"Then I don't see how he'll know. You're twenty-eight years old, Cassidy. Do you really need to factor your father into this? If you want to meet your grandmother, why shouldn't you? And she must be pretty old by now. Maybe it's time to connect before it's too late."
"He told me to forget about her a long time ago. If I go to Stonecross, he'll feel like I betrayed him."
"Now who's being dramatic, Cassidy? What on earth could your grandmother have done that was so horrible?"
"I don't know, but it was something."
"Don't you think it's time you found out what that was? And this isn't just about you, remember? This is about looking into the disappearance of a young New York woman, who disappeared from your grandmother's inn. What if we could find out what happened to her and bring her family closure?"
"Technically, she didn't disappear from the inn. She checked out, and no one saw her again."
"Either way, your grandmother is right in the middle of this case."
I frowned. "Even if I did agree to dig into this with you, I still don't see how we're going to find out what happened to this woman. Obviously, the police and her family looked for her."
"Maybe a year ago. Cold cases tend to crack as time passes. And when you put a bright light on a dark corner, sometimes the rats scurry out. You've always said your dream was to be a real journalist. Here's your chance."
I groaned. "Can't I be a real journalist somewhere else besides Stonecross?"
Tessa smiled. "Of course, but fate is leading you back to your past. I don't see how you can say no to that."
"Then I guess I'm going to say yes."
Chapter Two
Two days later, early Saturday morning, Tessa and I packed up the white SUV she'd borrowed from one of her roommates. Before I could slide into the passenger seat, Tessa grabbed my arm and held up her camera. "Let's do a quick video, Cassidy."
"Here?" I protested. "You're double-parked and there are overloaded trash bins waiting for pickup right next to us."
"Exactly. It's the New York City vibe. Come on." She pulled me to her side. Using a selfie stick, she turned on the camera and said, "It's go time. Cassidy and I are headed for Stonecross, Maine, to try to find out what happened to Natalie Warren. If you don't know what we're doing, catch the latest episode of our podcast, Mysteries Uncorked, for all the details. We have an eight-hour drive ahead of us, and once we get to Stonecross, we'll post another video." She turned to me. "What do you think, Cassidy? Are we going to find out what happened to Natalie Warren?"
"I hope so," I said, looking into the camera. "Natalie deserves justice, and her family needs to know what happened to her. If you have any tips, feel free to drop them in the comments."
"See you soon," Tessa said, then clicked off the camera. "Let's go."
We got into the car, and I settled into my seat as Tessa navigated the Manhattan traffic with her usual impatience, leaning heavily on the horn when the car in front of her kept braking unnecessarily. I exhaled in relief when we finally left the city.
It had been months since I'd gotten out of Manhattan, and it felt good to see trees and grass and open roads. I had needed a change in perspective, and this trip was certainly going to give me that.
