Caustic (8 page)

SEVENTEEN

SKYE

We pulled into the police station. After leaving Chester in the car with the windows down, we entered the brick building. Mostly, there were a bunch of guys in uniform, sitting around and eating doughnuts… exactly how I pictured it would be in a small town. I mean, what were they going to do? Get a cat out of a tree? I was guessing that was probably the biggest thing that happened in Fairmont.

“Can I help you, Ellis?” A large portly man came up to us in full uniform, minus the hat. Even had a gun on his belt. Maybe darker things happen in Fairmont I realized.

“We need to file a missing person’s report. Skye, this is Jerry, the police chief. Skye’s sister has been missing for quite some time, but we have some new information that she may be in the area. If you could just file it, and send it out to some of the neighboring counties, maybe someone will have seen her.”

“Well, how long she’d been gone, son?”

I responded instead. “Six years.”

He shook his head. “You have a picture? I mean, how would I get a rendering? Six years is a long time.”

“You can just take a picture of me.”

His eyebrows furrowed. “I’m sorry?”

“We’re identical twins. So, you can just take a picture of me. We even have matching tattoos. You can put that on the report.”

He nodded, his bald head shining under the bright lights. “That’ll do just fine. Let me grab that report. We can fill it out in my office.”

I placed my hands on the linoleum counter. They were cool, and it seemed to calm me down. This had been a great idea, but I didn’t realize how sick it would make me feel. Reporting my sister as missing was almost as bad as wondering is if she was dead. I pushed those thoughts so far from my mind over the past three years that I didn’t realize they would affect me this way. What if she was dead?

Another younger police officer came up to us, but he was in nicer clothes, not a uniform. “Detective Aldridge, and you are?”

“Skye Kellan.”

He extended a hand to us, and Ellis and I shook it, greeting one another. “I don’t mean to pry, but how long has it been since you’ve seen your sister?”

“Well, she was last seen three years ago. But I haven’t seen her in almost six.”

“But identical twins? You would assume she would still at least have your facial features, even if she dyed her hair.”

I nodded. “Yes.”

“And the tattoo? Where is it located?”

“It’s on my right foot, her left. It’s a fish. When you would put our feet together, they would kiss. Corny I know, but we were fifteen when we got it. I don’t even know that my parents know about it.”

He looked down at his shoes, and I wondered what that meant. “Miss Kellan, would you come with me? I’ve something I think you need to see.” I nodded slowly. Somehow, I realized I didn’t want to see whatever it was he wanted to show me. Somehow, I knew right away that when a cop looked at his shoes, and had trouble making eye contact, it was bad. I followed him through the office, and down a long hallway. We descended a set of stairs as sweat dripped off of my forehead. Ellis walked right behind me, not saying a word, but just his presence was encouraging enough. I was glad that, as much as I was pushing him away, he refused to listen.

After walking down the staircase, we entered into a dark basement with no windows. There were two glass windows on the left side of the hallway, but curtains covered whatever room was behind them, and a door at the end. I read the letters, and I felt like I couldn’t breathe.

He was taking us to the morgue.

EIGHTEEN

SKYE

He pushed open the door, and I crossed my arms as I felt goosebumps trail up my skin. I looked around the room to see dark blue tiles on the floor and the walls. I’d only been in here for a second, and I already hated it. It was even worse than the hospital. It just smelled and felt like death. Kind of like the state nursing homes felt; my grandparents on my father’s side had both been in them. I hated the way they made me feel. I tried to pretend that I wasn’t there as a child, spending most of my time out in the courtyard away from the dying people. But, in here, no one was dying; they were already dead.

Detective Aldridge called out to the medical examiner who had his back towards us. He was an older gentleman in a white lab coat, and he turned at the sound of his name. “Leonard, you know that Jane Doe that somebody brought in last night? I was wondering if you could pull her out for me.”

The older gentleman gave me a look, like he recognized me from somewhere. “Family, I take it?”

Then his eyes settled on Ellis. “Ellis Waters? What are you doing here?”

Ellis shook his head. “I don’t actually know. I guess I’m here for moral support in case…” His voice trailed off.

“In case my sister is on your table. At least, I think that’s what he means.”

The medical examiner studied me again, cocking his head at me slightly. “I’m sorry to say this, dear, but there is an awful resemblance. Though the girl I have is blonde. Hold on just a moment. I’ll get her for you.” He mumbled under his breath as he walked away from us, and towards the wall that had all the drawers in it. A solid wall of steel, where I knew if I got close enough, I’d be able to see my own reflection them. That made me even more uncomfortable.

“Here she is. I’ll give you two a minute.”

He opened the latch, and pulled out, what I assumed, was a body under a white sheet. He moved to fold down the top, so that I could see her face. I prayed and hoped beyond all hopes that it wasn’t Leia. I walked over to the drawer, and was glad that I hadn’t eaten any breakfast. It surely would’ve surfaced. I felt so sick just being in here, and now this? Inspecting a dead body to see if it was my lost sister? I didn’t know if I could handle this. Ellis walked behind me, and slipped his fingers into mind.

“I’m right with you.”

I nodded as I swallowed again, trying to keep the bile in my stomach. The medical examiner folded down the sheet, so that where could see her face, and I realized that it wasn’t Leia.

“It’s not her. Leia has freckles, and this girl doesn’t.”

The medical examiner then nodded, and started to fold the sheep back up. “Wait. She really does look like us.” I looked back at the detective who was standing just a few feet behind me. “You really have no idea who she is?”

He crossed his arms and stood, looking very tense, “Unfortunately, no. And she’s the third one in the past two months. They all look the same, about your build, but with blonde hair and eyebrows. Same green eyes like you. When you walked in here, it was like seeing a ghost.”

I nodded to the medical examiner. He covered her back up, and pushed the drawer back into the wall. “So, you’re telling me that you have three girls with a striking resemblance? Doesn’t that tell you something?”

The detective looked sheepish. “Yes. It tells me everything, except who the killer is.”

“So, these girls were murdered?” Ellis interjected.

“Yes, she was strangled. All of them. Two of the other girls were missing persons, and we’ve contacted their families. But, this last one came out of nowhere. We had a suspect in custody for a few weeks, so we assumed that we’d caught the guy. The killings had stopped, and everything had gone quiet again.”

Ellis squinted at him. “I live here in town, and I haven’t heard a whisper about this. So, everything’s been quiet the whole time. What are you trying to cover-up?”

“These murders didn’t happen here. These girls have been brought here from three different counties. We have one of the best medical examiners in the state, besides the big cities. And these girls were hurt and tortured. We had to make sure we knew everything about them. Leonard here has been doing this for over thirty years, so he’s seen it all.”

I looked at the older gentleman who had made its way back towards his tools. It looked like he was cleaning them. “Thirty years? How do you keep yourself together for that long? I don’t think I could spend another twenty minutes down here.”

He straightened his glasses as he addressed me. “I like the dead. There’s more to be told in that body of yours than you have any idea about. Your body has been cataloging everything that you’ve been doing to it, and with it, for the past, I’d say, twenty-two years?”

“How did you now?”

“Your bone structure. I can just look at a person and tell you their age, where they’ve been, what they’ve eaten, and how they treated their body over their lifetime. I love studying.” Suddenly, he turned towards Ellis. “Give me a moment alone with the girl, won’t you? I’m sure you two gentlemen can continue whatever you are doing upstairs. She’ll join you in just a minute.”

“I don’t think that’s necessary,” Ellis said in a protective way.

“No, it’s fine.” Suddenly, it didn’t seem so terrifying down here. Knowing that my sister wasn’t in one of those drawers gave me a sense of calm. I only hoped she wasn’t in another drawer at another morgue. But I couldn’t think like that, I had to go upstairs and fill out a missing person’s report in hopes that someone somewhere would find her.

Ellis said his lips into a thin line, but he nodded, and he and the detective walked out of dark room. It was just Leonard, and me, and what I would guess would be a half a dozen corpses by the looks on the tags on the steel wall.

“You’re a young girl, impressionable.”

“I wouldn’t go that far.”

“Fine, but you should know something. Ellis Waters is a dangerous and angry kid. I know that Stan and Mary took him in, and made him into a better person, but, down deep, he’s still a very rough individual. You know what they say about him, don’t you?”

“They say he’s a murderer. But I know the truth. He’s not. And, as much as I appreciate that you’re looking out for the well-being of a complete stranger, I’m fine. I can handle myself.”

He put up his hands as if in surrender, and I saw that the blue gloves were completely clean. He must’ve been meticulous about this place. There wasn’t a piece of equipment out of place anywhere. I wondered if that’s how he kept his life, too. “Why did you feel the need to tell me? Why couldn’t I have just gone upstairs, and it all be okay?”

He straightened his glasses again. I was starting to wonder if it was a nervous habit. “I’ve had three girls come in here in the past couple months. They’re all around your age, and they look like you. And with the rumors about him…”

“No!” I said exasperated. “Ellis didn’t hurt these girls. Besides, he wasn’t even around here yesterday. He couldn’t have hurt her. I don’t believe you.”

I turned on my heel, and walked directly to the door. I felt the cold handle underneath my fingertips, and, as I turned it, I didn’t look back. Leonard may have been good with the dead, but he had terrible manners for the living.

NINETEEN

SKYE

By the time I arrived back upstairs, Ellis was sitting in a private office with the sheriff. They were going back and forth, animatedly discussing something. I could see Ellis’s hands flying wildly around his head. I slowed down my walking to see if I could hear anything before I got there.

“Just leave it alone, Jerry. I’m only here for one reason… Skye.” That was all I heard before I reached the office.

“I’m sorry that the detective took you down there. He should’ve warned you, and given me notice. That was a rookie mistake.”

I shook my head. “It’s fine. It wasn’t her, thank God.”

He extended his large hand toward me. “Please sit down. He’s just an eager young detective, and wants to close his first case. I guess he must’ve heard us talking, and thought that maybe his Jane Doe was your sister, I’m so sorry. We should have prepared you for that.”

I shrugged and sat down in the chair that look like it was from the 1970s across from him. Ellis was sitting in a similar chair next to me. “Like I said, it’s fine.” I sighed heavily, “Let’s just get this done. I’m ready to go home.”

We spent the next hour going over every single detail we knew about Leia. Ellis even chimed in a few times, some little pieces of information I didn’t even know about her. Like how she had been obsessed with dying her hair hot pink when she got out of the institution, or how she discussed things with him like drawing her own tattoos, and possibly working at a tattoo parlor. I didn’t know any of those things about her, and, throughout this trip, I was realizing that even when she and I lived together, I hardly knew anything. If I had just listened more, or paid closer attention… Maybe things would have been different.

“So, this about sums it up. I’ll need you to sign on the bottom line stating that if we find out if any information you’ll be the first point of contact. I really do hope that we find something out about your sister for you, Skye. I can’t imagine what you’re going through.” He sounded so genuine. I wondered if it was years of practice, or if he really did feel sorry for me. Either way, as long as he did his job, it wouldn’t matter. “If we don’t hear anything in the next week, we’ll put out a statewide search, and I’ll be in touch with you to let you know that’s happening.”

“Thank you. I appreciate it. I know that this is a long shot, and I’ve taken up part of your day, so I really appreciate your help.”

He shook his head, “Even though she’s an adult, and was when she went missing, she is still a missing person. Mostly, we count kids as runaways, not adults. They have the tendency to tell someone where they’re going, so there’s someone somewhere out there that knows where she is. Someone has to know something.”

I gave him a small smile, knowing that he was trying his hardest. Maybe he would have better luck than Ellis and I did. It was his job, after all. He escorted us out to the front door, and held the door open for me as Ellis and I passed through. He didn’t seem as friendly with Ellis as he had earlier in the day, and I wondered what happened between them.

“So, back to my place then? I guess you’ll want to collect your things and head home, right?”

I thumbed over my shoulder. “What happened between the two of you back there? You seemed so angry when I walked in.”

He rolled his eyes. “Just old rumors are swirling around again. People around here can be so close minded sometimes.”

“Rumors about what?”

He shrugged. “Frank. I guess he must’ve done something pretty dumb yesterday; I made a promise to myself that I would go check on him more often. But I thought he would be all right while we were gone, apparently not. He smashed somebody’s car window because he thought that they were secretly reflectors that were watching him? Or something like that. I really don’t understand the inner workings of his mind.”

“Oh.”

As he started up the car, he turned to me. “That reminds… What did the medical examiner want to talk to you about? Wasn’t it weird that he wanted you down there alone? I didn’t like it.”

Of course he didn’t like it; he wanted to keep me safe. Or so I thought. “It was nothing.” But honestly, ever since my conversation with Leonard, I was becoming increasingly more uncomfortable around Ellis. I wasn’t sure if it had to do with the rumors that had rolled around about him for so many years, rumors I don’t think he denied. Or if it was just because I was leaving, and this would end. As we rode along on the bumpy road towards his cabin, with Chester slobbery face kissing my cheek every chance he got, I wondered if this would be the last moment we would have together. If I would ever see either of them again. Ellis hopped out of the Jeep when we got to his place, and Chester quickly followed him. I watched both of them ascend the stairs into the small cabin, and wondered if this was it. And, if it was, had I said all the right things? Probably not. But this is what we were left with, and I would have to accept that.

I trudged up the stairs, and collected my things in silence, as Ellis sat on the living room couch, petting Chester absentmindedly. It only took me a few minutes until I had all my belongings stuffed back in my suitcase. I was lugging it into the hall when he stood up to help me.

“Here, let me get that.” He picked it up and carried out to my car, putting it inside the trunk much more easily than I would’ve been able to.

“So? What do we do from here?”

I shrugged. “I have no idea. I have to go home and get a job. And spend time with my grandfather before he dies. And, as much as I want something to happen here, I don’t know that it can right now. And, for that, I’m sorry.”

He looked down at his shoes, kicking a pebble with his thick boots. “I’m sorry, too. I never should have given in like that last night. It wasn’t right.”

“It wasn’t?” Part of me was crushed, while the other piece knew what was coming.

“No, Skye, we’re not meant to be together. You’re right. Under the circumstances, we don’t work. And I knew that last night before I kissed you. But I didn’t care, because you didn’t care. But clearly you do. You have a life to get back to, so go. Forget about all of this.” He lifted his eyes to meet mine. “Forget about me.”