Page 8 of Dead Rattled
“I’m glad you asked. We need to do some research on the St. Agnes House. Find out if there were any scandals associated with it and maybe see if we can speak with mothers, like Natalie, who gave birth there. Natalie is going to take a DNA test and upload the results to Ancestry and 23 and Me. I’m hoping Amanda will pop up in her results as a DNA match, the way my brother, River, did in mine. Natalie said she watched her daughter’s casket be lowered into the ground and knows wherethe grave is located. We’re going to go there to see if we can find Amanda that way.”
Ronan shook his head. “You always say spirits don’t hang out in the cemetery waiting for their family to visit them.”
“That’s true,” Ten agreed. “But we’ll be able to tell if there’s a body in Amanda’s grave. I thought you might want to come.”
“Of course I’ll be there,” Ronan said. “It goes without question, I’ll do whatever I can to help you find out what happened to Amanda.”
“I was talking to Everly,” Ten said. “What do you think?”
“I think it’s a terrible idea!” Ronan said, before he could think better of it.
“Take a breath, Daddy.” Everly set a hand on Ronan’s shoulder. “I knew there was a case you were going to work about a baby. It’s Amanda, I’m sure of it. I want to help. Can you imagine how sad you’d be if a doctor told you I was dead?”
Ronan gasped so hard, he started to choke. The idea of not having Everly in his life was more than his heart could bear. “I wouldn’t have survived.”
“That’s how Natalie felt,” Everly said. “We go to the cemetery every year on Mimi Bertha’s birthday. Cemeteries aren’t scary, Daddy.”
“Did you ever check to see if Mimi is in her grave?” Ronan asked, unable to help himself.
Everly nodded. “She’s there, in that ugly polka dot dress.”
Ronan wasn’t sure what to say. His seven year old daughter had just told him she’d checked Bertha Craig’s grave for her remains. “Why did you do that?”
“Because Kenny P. brought his grampa for show and tell last year,” Everly said.
“What does that have to do with checking graves at the cemetery?” The more Ronan heard about the infamous Kenny P., the more he hoped the family would move out of Salem.
“Daddy, Kenny’s grampa was in a jar.” Everly grimaced. “I wanted to make sure Mimi Bertha wasn’t in a jar too.”
“He brought his grandfather’sremainsfor show and tell?” Ronan asked, feeling stunned. What the hell was wrong with kids nowadays?
“Yup! Mikey wanted him to open the vase to see what was inside, but the teacher wouldn’t let him.”
“Thank God for that.” Ronan could well imagine the chaos that would have ensued if they’d opened the urn and Kenny’s grandfather spilled out all over the floor.
“We’re gonna go to the cemetery on Wednesday, right, Dad?” Everly asked.
“Yeah, before school, so we’re gonna need to get up early.”
“Okay!” Everly said, hopping off her seat. “Can you bring me and Ezzie movie snacks?”
“In a little bit,” Ten agreed.
“Okay, thanks, Dad!” Everly scampered out of the room.
“I don’t know what to say.” Ronan felt like his head was spinning.
“I didn’t either, to be honest. At first, I thought my gift wasn’t working. Sometimes it goes wonky when I’m upset, and let’s face it, this hasn’t been an easy few weeks for me.”
“True,” Ronan agreed.Not an easy week,was a gross underestimate of what things had been like for Tennyson, but he seemed to be feeling much better at the moment.
“Anyway, I had Cope and Carson come verify what I was seeing and they both agreed they couldn’t find Amanda either. Of course Carson thought the blanket Natalie brought might not have been used to wrap the baby, but is willing to go along with my suggestions for Natalie to do a DNA test and for us to research the St. Agnes House and go to the cemetery.”
“Is Carson still giving you a hard time?” Ronan asked. Ten and Carson had been the best of friends for as long as Ronan had known them both. Carson had been a bit frosty toward Ten in the aftermath of the Autumn Miller situation.
“He was during my reading with Natalie, but then Cope told him to cut the shit and Carson started to cry. He’s having a hard time with my arrest too. He’s not sleeping or eating much and is scared every time he hears police sirens.”
“Carson’s worried he’s going to be arrested like you were?” Ronan hadn’t considered that Carson might be suffering from PTSD after seeing Tennyson be brutally arrested and hauled away.
