Page 58 of Fatal Mistake
“Actually, there are more, but these boxes hold items we believe have more meaning in the investigation.” Cal prepared to show them to her by sorting through each carton and choosing the evidence in the order he would display it.
“I’m glad you’re looking at this stuff,” Shane said from where he sat across from Tara. “I suspect Keeler’s possessions will shed additional light on his personality.”
Cal thought the same thing, as the evidence didn’t have a forensic relationship to the bombs but was so odd it had stood out in their search of Keeler’s place.
Cal sat next to Shane and looked across at Tara. “Ready?”
She nodded, but he’d have to be blind not to see her agitation. He ignored his protective urge that had him wanting to slam the lids back on the boxes and lifted out a plastic evidence bag containing a woman’s scarf. He set it on the table in front of her.
She took a quick look and her head snapped up. “Oren had this?”
Cal nodded. “You obviously recognize it.”
“It’s mine. It went missing in eighth grade.”
Cal’s concern for her well-being rose, but he forced himself to keep his tone neutral so he didn’t color her thoughts. “Tell me about it.”
She slid a finger under one of her rubber bands and twirled, tightening the band. “My parents went to France for their anniversary. They were killed in a car accident right after they came home.” She let the band release, and when it connected, she winced but continued her story. “My mother brought this scarf home, but one day it mysteriously disappeared from my things.”
“Didn’t you wonder what had happened to it?” Shane asked.
“Of course. I was heartbroken when I couldn’t find the small box I stored it in. I liked to take it out and dream of what it would have been like if they’d lived and they’d taken me to visit Paris, too.” She worked the rubber band again.
Cal suddenly wished he could make her dreams come true and board a plane with her to Paris. Spend days, maybe weeks, exploring the city with her by his side.
“I went to live with June at that time,” she continued. “And we decided that somehow the box had gotten mixed in with packing materials and tossed in the garbage. We burned all of our trash in a barrel, so there was no hope of retrieving it.”
She picked up the bag, running her finger over the outside and trailing it around one of the purple paisleys. “I was so upset. Oren comforted me. Said it was meant to be. God’s way and all.”
Shane shook his head. “But he took it.”
“Or found one like it, I suppose.”
Cal wanted to fire off a scathing comment about Keeler, but that wouldn’t help Tara, so he gentled his tone. “I think the odds are very much against him locating an identical scarf purchased in Paris.”
“You’re right, I suppose.”
Her pitiful tone ripped into Cal’s gut, and his anger rose at Keeler, if that was even possible. The guy was a fool. He was friends with an amazing woman like Tara, and then he threw it all away to take on a crazy mixed-up life that ended in terrorism.
Cal swallowed down his anger before continuing. “How old were you at the time?”
“Thirteen. Before my parents left for Paris, my mom and I went shopping to find the perfect dress for my eighth grade graduation.” Her face lit with a bright smile, chasing away her sadness for the moment. “My mom picked out the scarf to match the dress. After she died, I wanted to wear them as a way to have her with me at the graduation.”
“And Keeler ruined that,” Shane stated.
“Yes, but I wore the dress, and she was still there. He didn’t take that away.”
“Good for you,” Shane said.
She rested her hands on the table and stared at them. “Where did you find the scarf?”
“Keeler kept it in a desk drawer and wrapped it around a number of items.” Cal reached into another box and drew out a small bag. “This is one of them.”
She took it from him. “My decoder ring from a box of Trix. I was like six or seven when it went missing.”
“Another item that mysteriously disappeared?” Shane asked.
She nodded.
