Chapter 21

An hour and a half later found Kelly and Sabrina in the front seat of their rental car, pulling away from the small diner where the girls had eaten breakfast.

Since it was Saturday, no summer activities were being held and leaving Jill at the junior high would have been pointless. Instead, she'd made a few calls and decided to take a cab to the girl's home, leaving Kelly and Sabrina to do what they could at the bus depot.

Sabrina chewed her bottom lip thoughtfully and glanced at her quiet friend as she maneuvered the silver Chevy out onto the main street. It was only eight in the morning and traffic was light, giving her a chance to study Kelly without too much distraction.

She'd hardly eaten any breakfast. A few bites, a few sips of coffee, almost as if she was too riled up to do much but fidget in her seat and toy with her fork. In fact, Kelly hadn't been eating much at all the past few days. There was a darkness under her eyes that suggested she hadn't been sleeping enough either, Sabrina realized. She was jumpy, more nervous and guarded than usual, defensive to the point of aggression. Paranoid almost, as if at any moment, someone was going to jump out and attack her.

Something was very wrong.

Not that she hadn't been aware of it before, but maybe now, away from Jill's prying and with a little gentle coaxing, maybe she could get something out of her. Jill would certainly expect that. Without wasting time thinking of a strategy, Sabrina blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"Were your eggs cold?" she asked conversationally. She immediately looked away and rolled her eyes in disgust.

Jill was clearly better at this.

Kelly looked confused for a moment, as if her mind had been elsewhere, before realizing what her friend was talking about. "No-" she stammered. "-they were fine. Why?"

Sabrina shrugged. "Mine were a little. Just wondering if that's why you didn't eat them."

There. It was out. No turning back now.

She shot a discreet look at Kelly to see if she'd raised her guard with the question.

She had.

Kelly's facial expression blanked and she leaned her head tiredly against her window. "They were a little cold I guess. I don't know, I just wasn't that hungry."

"What about the rest of the week?"

"What about it?"

"You haven't been yourself."

Kelly laughed softly. "Sometimes I think you would be happy about that." she answered.

She suddenly looked like the old Kelly, her radiant smile, playful demeanor, and the abrupt transformation startled Sabrina. Could she really do that, as if personalities were switches to be pressed? "Kell, you know what I mean." she said quietly, bypassing her attempt at lightheartedness. "C'mon now, Jill is worried sick, I'm worried. What's going on with you? You've been weird since we left California."

Kelly blanked again. "I've just been feeling a little si-"

"Oh stop. You're not sick." Sabrina cut her off. "Something's wrong. And I think if it's coming between us and solving this case, that we should know what it is."

"Nothing's coming between us and the case, Bri."

"No?" Sabrina challenged. "You're not eating. You're not sleeping. You're not focused. You're not communicating with us, your head just isn't into this." As she spoke, her voice took a stern note that stopped Kelly from interrupting. "And I don't think it's fair that me and Jill have to pick up your slack."

Kelly narrowed her eyes angrily. "I'm doing my job."

"Yeah?" Sabrina continued "How can I be sure of that? I see you distracted all day, sneaking off, being secretive, and as your partner that makes me question if you really are." Before Kelly could verbally lay into her, she quickly grabbed her hand, startling her into silence. "And as your friend that loves you, it makes me wonder if you need help and are too scared to ask for it."

The turnaround caught her off guard. A quick flash of something, maybe anger, maybe fear, flashed across Kelly's face before disappearing, melding into that emotionless mask she so often wore.

"Sabrina-" Kelly started, attempting to pull her fingers out of her friend's grip. "It's noth-"

Sabrina squeezed her hand. "Oh, it's something, Kell. We know it's something."

Kelly looked stricken, before that too was wiped clean. "Bri- don't- It's- it's nothing. Just-"

"Just what?" Sabrina urged. "What's wrong? Are you in trouble? Tell me."

"No! I mean no, I'm not in trouble." Kelly stammered. "I- I can't-"

"Can't what?" Sabrina pressed. "Let me help."

"You can't." Kelly said flatly. She jerked her hand away and folded it anxiously in her lap, fixing her gaze out her window and giving Sabrina her back.

"How do you know if you don't tell me?" Sabrina continued softly. She coasted the car to a stop at a red light and, hands now free, she again reached out and pried Kelly's hand out of her lap. "What's going on with you? Kelly, look at me."

Kelly refused, but didn't make an attempt to pull her hand out of Sabrina's grasp.

"It's something. I can see it, it's eating you up." Sabrina coaxed, squeezing her friend's hand urgently. "Please tell me."

Kelly continued staring out the window.

But she was breaking, the foundation of the wall she'd put up around herself was starting to crack, crumbling away and threatening to expose the vulnerable young woman hiding behind it. There were signs, only hints, ever so subtle, but they were there, revealing what Kelly herself never would. Her tics. The quiet, but sharp intake of breath, the way her knee gave a twitch underneath their hands, the corner of her mouth tugging downward, so slight that the movement would have flashed by unnoticed had Sabrina not been studying the side of her face so intently, searching hard for the very things she was now seeing.

"Kelly-" Sabrina whispered gently, giving her a shake. "-come on."

Finally, Kelly turned, her face pained to the point that it tore at Sabrina's heart. She bit her lip, shook her head, stalling, trying to simultaneously find the words and maintain composure. Sabrina held her breath, torn between being the patient friend she had been and wanting to shake the words from Kelly's mouth like the detective she was.

"Bri, don't-" she started, her voice strained, maybe close to tears. " You don't know what-"

Sabrina felt her heart skip a beat. Here it was. "Then tell me." she pleaded.

Kelly worked her jaw nervously, her breathing shallow and quick, a dam ready to burst. Her eyes suddenly flicked to the side, distracted by the soft tap of a horn behind them. "Look, it's-"

Another tap of the horn drew a loud exasperated sight from Sabrina's throat. "It's what?" she pressed impatiently.

"Bri-"

The tapping horn gave way to an angry blare that had Sabrina whirling around in her seat in frustration, cursing furiously under her breath. "It's red!" she shouted into the backseat. She immediately turned back to Kelly. "What happened? It's what?"

"It's green."

Sabrina's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. "What?"

"The light. It's green." Kelly muttered, point at the stoplight, long since changed. "Go. Drive."

The horn behind them blared again, this time in dissonant harmony with another car that had found its path blocked by the stalled Chevy. The first vehicle angrily swerved around them, it's driver shaking his fist out the passenger window, mouthing what were probably not helpful pointers on how to correctly observe a green light.

"Dammit." Sabrina breathed, stomping roughly on the accelerator in her frustration. The erratic movement jolted both her and Kelly backwards as she thrust the Chevy through the intersection with a slight protesting squeal of rubber on asphalt. She changed lanes to avoid another admonishment from the second driver stuck behind them and then chanced a look at Kelly.

"So what were you saying?" she asked.

But the moment was gone and with it, every trace of weakness from Kelly's soft features. Kelly regarded her question with a careless shrug, her face a careful mask of neutrality. "Nothing, Bri." she answered lightly. "It's just hard, that's all. I was a foster kid too, remember? I know what she went through." She gave a contemptuous laugh. "Well, mostly. I lived."

Sabrina fought the urge to slam her fist into the steering wheel. "And that's what's been bothering you?" she asked, her previous frustration still more than clear.

Kelly nodded dismissively. "Yeah, I'll try not to let it get to me." she answered quickly. "So, how do you want to do this once we get there?"

The abrupt change in subject put an end to the weak, desperate grab for answers Sabrina had been planning in her head. With a heavy sigh, she forced her eyes back to the road, to the large building enclosed in chain link fences and surrounded by parked city buses that was their destination.

"Go in. Find the shift manager. See what bus goes where and then talk to the driver, ride along and question whoever else we can." she answered wearily. "Shouldn't be too hard. We'll divide and conquer as usual."

Kelly nodded her head, almost disinterestedly. "Sounds good, Bri. I bet someone saw her."

"Yeah." Sabrina said quietly. "I have a good feeling about this."

She couldn't have felt any further from the truth, however. The case may have been getting closer to being solved, but the situation with Kelly was still just as hopeless as it had been before. Sabrina let her eyes travel back to Kelly's unknowing face one last time. Like she'd been all week, save for the momentary loss of control just minutes ago, she looked calm, distant, and disinterested. They may have been sitting a few feet apart, but for all that she would accomplish with Kelly like this, miles could have separated them.

Kelly's gaze suddenly caught her staring, and Sabrina quickly averted her eyes.

So close. She'd been so close.

Jill was going to kill her.

Jill lowered her arm and took an impatient step backwards.

The door she'd just knocked on should belong to the family of Kimberly Horowitz, the only known close friend to poor little Becky Saunders, but if it did, she'd have to wait a little longer to be sure.

She sighed and ran a hand through her blonde hair. There hadn't been a car in the driveway when she'd arrived, but hoping that someone would be home, she'd knocked anyway. It appeared she'd have to wait and hopefully it wouldn't be long because she'd sent the cab away.

Drumming her fingers restlessly, Jill sank down on the porch step and sat impatiently to wait for the family's return. With nothing else to do, she watched the sharp line of the house's shadow, shading her on the porch, slowly approach her as the minutes ticked by.

Thirty or forty minutes passed and the shadow's edge drew dangerously close to her feet, when a car's engine finally caught her attention.

Jill looked up hopefully and was rewarded with the sight of a white Dodge sedan rolling up the drive. She stood and, noting the confused and apprehensive appearance of the couple in the front seat, gave a friendly wave. The car stopped and a tall, thin middle aged man stepped out.

"Can I help you?" he asked warily.

Jill bounced over and extended her hand, flashing him what she hoped was her most winning smile. "Hi, I'm Jill Munroe with the Townsend Agency out in L.A.. I spoke to your daughter a couple days ago regarding Rebecca Saunders." As she spoke, she leaned around the girl's father and wiggled her fingers in a little wave towards the car, where Kim was staring out her window.

The girl timidly waved back.

The man took Jill's hand and then the business card she offered him.

"A private detective, huh? Oh, I'm Ray Horowitz." he stammered, looking over his shoulder to his daughter, who only shrugged. "What can I do for you?"

Jill smiled at him and raised her hands in a show of peace. "Don't worry, I just need to ask Kim a few question. Something's come up in our investigation."

Ray Horowitz raised an eyebrow. "About Becky's murder?" he asked, a trace of anger in his voice. "That man, her father, killed her. What else are you investigating?"

"Well, he hasn't been convicted-" Jill started. But judging from Horowitz's immediate look of contempt, she quickly decided that introducing herself as a detective hired to prove Hanover's innocence would not win her any favors. Without thinking, her words changed. "-we need evidence to prove that. And your daughter was one of the few that talked regularly to Becky."

This seemed to satisfy him.

Horowitz sighed and nodded his head before turning around and gesturing for his wife and children. "Alright." he relented. "Whatever puts that monster behind bars." Kim approached them as they spoke and her father pulled her around in front of him, protectively resting his hands on her shoulders. With their light brown hair, dark eyes, and slim build, they looked very much alike and Jill smiled at the sight.

"I never did like that man." Horowitz grumbled, giving his grudging consent. "Do you want to come inside?"

"Sure. Thanks." Jill said, a little too quickly. Even though she'd been sitting in the shade for the past forty five minutes, it was still Nevada in June and she could feel her thin blouse sticking to her back.

After exchanging pleasantries with Kim's mother and older brother, Jill was led into the much appreciated airconditioned home, through their well kept living room to Kim's bedroom. Once assuring her father that their discussion would be brief, Jill closed the door and turned to face the girl. She'd hoped by using her bedroom, a familiar and comforting place, that Kim would be a little more at ease. It hardly seemed the case, though. Jill looked around the girl's room for a moment, taking in the sky blue walls, the painted brass bed, and the abundance of David Cassidy and various rock band posters. It seemed like such a typical young girl's room, colorful, busy, completely normal. Except for the conversation she'd have to have with her.

"So, how are you Kim?" Jill started, giving the girl a trustworthy smile.

Kim shrugged and sat down on her unmade bed. "Alright, I guess." She folded her hands on her lap and looked nervously around. "Is something wrong? Why do you need to talk to me again?"

"No, nothing's wrong." Jill said slowly. "Just- well, different now."

Kim looked puzzled and stopped toying with the edge of her bed sheets. "Different? How?"

"Well, for starters, we found her diary."

Kim looked mildly surprised. "I didn't know she kept one. Was there something important in it?"

The girl seemed just as curious about the diary as she and Sabrina had been earlier and her genuine cluelessness was disheartening. Jill fought to keep the look of disappointment off her face and smiled gently instead. "Becky wrote that she planned to run away." she explained carefully. "It was all planned out right there in her diary. Did she ever mention anything about that to you at school?"

Kim's eyes flitted briefly to Jill's face before finding her hands. She shrugged slightly, but the nervous tic had not gone unnoticed. Hope was restored.

"Kim?" Jill called softly. "Did she ever mention her plan to run away from home?"

Kim sighed and nervously wrung her hands in front of her. "Not outright." she whispered. "But- but she didn't like her foster parents very much. She said she wished she was somewhere else."

"What would she say exactly?" Jill pressed.

The girl shrugged again. "Just stuff. She said her foster dad was a jerk and that she hated him. The last time I saw her she said she wanted to be back with her real mom again."

This was new. Jill sucked in a breath and tried to mask how eager she was for more information, fearful of unsettling her young witness. "Her real mom? She had a mom?"

Becky nodded. "Yeah, but the state took her away from her. They didn't talk or anything. I don't know what she did wrong."

"Do you know where her mom was?"

"No." Kim answered honestly. "She just always said she'd like to go up and see her mom."

"Up?" Jill repeated, a trace of desperation in her tone. "So north? Upstate? Oregon? Idaho?"

Kim shook her head. "I don't know. I don't even think Becky really knew."

Jill sighed her frustration and the sound made Kim look up and frown.

"Sorry, Ms. Munroe." she said meekly. "I didn't think she'd actually do it. If-if I thought she really would, I would have said something about beforel. I'm really s-"

"No, it's ok, honey." Jill said quickly, summoning back a gentle smile. "You've been a big help. And you can call me Jill."

The gesture seemed to put Kim at ease and the anxiety disappeared from her face. "I just want him in jail for what he did to Becky." she whispered after a moment of awkward silence. Her countenance sobered and she lowered her eyes sadly. "I never knew anyone that-that died before. I didn't know her that well but she seemed really cool. I thought we were gonna be good friends."

Jill nodded slowly, unsure of what to say. Kimberly Horowitz was obviously pained and upset by the death of her friend and classmate. She'd stopped making eye contract as soon as Rebecca's diary was mentioned, but the behavior was out of grief rather than guilt or nerves. This girl wasn't hiding anything. Everything she knew had been told.

"Well, Kim." Jill started, putting a supportive hand on her shoulder. "I want someone in jail this too." She reached into her purse and pulled out a rubber banded stack of business cards. "And we'll make sure that happens, don't worry."

With a final pat on the shoulder, Jill stood, peeling off a card as she did.

"Here, honey." Jill said, offering it to the girl. "If you find out anything else you can call that number, ok?"

Kim took the card and nodded. "Ok." she agreed softly.

"And Kim? If you just- you know- need to talk-" Jill continued. "Then I'm good for that too, huh?"

The girl smiled and nodded her head again. "Thanks." she whispered.

Jill smiled and rubbed Kim's shoulder sympathetically as she made her way to the door. "I'm sorry about your friend, Kim." she called. "And don't worry, we're doing everything in our power. I have a feeling this will all be over soon."

The girl was quiet for a moment before finally lifting her head, revealing a brave, watery smile and grateful brown eyes. "Yeah. Thank you…Jill."

Jill offered her a parting smile and quietly saw herself down the hallway and out of the Horowitz's home, giving her parents a brief farewell on her way out. Outside and away from the shade of the porch, the sun was dazzlingly bright, hot yet breezy, a beautiful summer day.

Yet her meeting with Kim had lowered her spirits and Jill noticed nothing but the heat. This girl's death wouldn't be just a single tragic event to be forgotten after her murderer was brought to justice, just another newspaper clipping and file in their archives. This girl would be a painful and real memory for many. Her social worker, her teachers, classmates, and now possibly a mother, affecting how a little girl like Kimberly Horowitz would develop emotionally. And Kim couldn't be the only one.

Jill sighed and squinted her eyes against the glare of sunlight. She needed to get back to the hotel and make some phone calls. Nothing in Rebecca's paperwork had suggested the existence of a mother and it was doubtful the woman would know of her daughter's plans. But it was something and warranted investigation.

She made it a few blocks down to the intersection of a busy street and waited patiently at the bus stop, half wondering if she'd run into Kelly and Sabrina. Though she'd take any bus, regardless of its passengers, to get out of this heat.

When the light traffic streamed by for ten minutes without yielding a bus, Jill began to get antsy. It was getting hotter by the minute, the walking had left her thirsty and tired, and the only shade came from the shadow of a thin, leafless tree. But luckily, just as Jill was about to give genuine consideration to hitch-hiking, a familiar pale yellow vehicle materialized out of the distance and her face broke into an involuntary grin.

A cab. An air conditioned cab. Even better.

With more eagerness than was necessary, Jill waved both arms to flag it down. The vehicle rolled to stop a few yards in front of her and without caring how silly she looked, she jogged up to it and clambered into the backseat.

"Thank God for you!" she greeted breathlessly. "This heat! I feel like I just ate a basket of peaches, I'm so sticky!"

There was no response and puzzled by the cabbie's lack of courtesy, Jill finally looked up and into the rear view mirror. The flirty grin she'd fixed on her face froze.

"Oh-" she stammered after a few seconds of awkward staring. "Hey, there."

The cab driver, the same one she'd seen twice before with Sabrina, only lowered his head to the steering wheel and whispered what was probably a prayer of intercession before taking a deep breath and bravely turning to her. The pained look on his face was as unmistakable as it was unappreciated.

"Where to, lady?" he sighed miserably.

"You get the feeling he just wanted to get rid of us?"

"Not really. He gave us coffee, didn't he?"

"Have you tried it? I think he only offers it to people he wants to get rid of."

Kelly shrugged and took a sip of her paper cup of coffee. Her face immediately twisted into a grimace of disgust at the taste of the bitter liquid. "Ok, you're right. I think that qualifies as attempted murder." she agreed, slinging the disturbingly thick remains of her drink into the bushes.

Sabrina laughed and sent the rest of her drink the same direction as the two made their way out of the bus depot and toward their car.

"Kelly? You ever think you'd willingly spend an entire day on a city bus?" Sabrina sighed, as she climbed into the driver's seat.

"I never thought I'd willingly get back on the city bus."

Though Kelly had seemed distracted and tired throughout their meeting with the operations manager, she didn't miss a beat and her answer pulled a giggle from Sabrina's throat. "At least you're being paid for it now." she laughed.

Kelly rolled her eyes. "There are some things money just doesn't make better."

Sabrina nodded her agreement and the two girls settled themselves in the car and backed out onto the empty street. It had been just after nine in the morning when they left the manager's office and already the June heat had both girls rolling down their windows to breathe inside the sweltering interior of the rental. Sabrina and Kelly shifted uncomfortably in the leather seats, already baked by the early morning sun, and thought quietly to themselves as they drove.

After spending nearly an hour flashing Becky's picture to various bus drivers and managers at the depot, they'd been steered to the operation supervisor's office. Burt Stephens, while not able to recognize the girl, was able to give them the locations of the bus stops closest to her house and the number of the bus she would have taken. But though the girls had been given a solid start, their thoughtful silence had nothing to do with either Rebecca Saunders, their chat with Burt Stephens, or Bus No. 1543

A never ending whirlwind of thoughts about the tape, her slip with Jill, James and Candace Hanover, and her nightmarish time in their home plagued Kelly's mind, leaving her visibly distracted and quiet.

All of which Sabrina was paying very close attention to.

But, not wanting to probe Kelly so soon after her previous attempt, she decided to wait. Sabrina was patient, refusing to waste her second attempt, come up empty handed. The moment would present itself, she decided.

And before she was ready, it was upon her.

The two arrived at the bus stop early and with ten minutes to kill, sat down on the bench to wait for the bus they'd spend the rest of the day in. Kelly looked as comfortable as she'd seen her since arriving, though that probably had more to do with the heat and her being tired more so than relaxed and at ease. But if that was as loose as she was going to get, than now was the time to act. Surprisingly, they were alone and with gut wrenching certainty, Sabrina knew that she'd never get a better opportunity.

"Hey, Kell?" she started.

Kelly, face tilted towards the sun and eyes closed, took a moment to respond. "Yeah?"

"Be real honest with me for a minute, huh?"

The relaxed position Kelly was in immediately straightened into one of guarded anxiety. She furrowed her brow as if confused, but her friend knew better, could see right through her.

"Tell me what's going on." Sabrina asked softly. "I'm worried about you and I-"

Kelly cut her off with a baffled laugh. "Bri, I already told you. It's nothing."

"No, it's something." Sabrina said quickly. "Something happened right before we left L.A. and don't tell me I'm making it up because I know you, Kelly. Something's going on."

Kelly heaved a sigh and casually adopted her previous, relaxed position on the bench. "Sabrina, I told you. It just bothers me that the kid was in the fo-"

"Oh stop." Sabrina snapped, almost angrily. "That's not what it is and you know it. What's going on? Did something happen before we left? Is there someone here that you're trying to avoid? What is it, Kelly?"

To her credit, Kelly didn't so much as flinch at the abrupt accusation. Instead, she shaded her eyes with one hand and groaned, as if her friend was bothering her with absolute nonsense. "No, Sabrina." she sighed. "This is all in your head."

"Is it?" Sabrina answered heatedly. "Come off it, Kelly. If me or Jill was hiding something and acting the way you've been acting the past few days, you'd be just as worried and you'd be all over me demanding an explanation."

"Bri-"

"Tell me you wouldn't."

Kelly sat up and regarded her friend with narrowed, green eyes. "Sabrina-"

Sabrina cut her off with an urgent shove to her shoulder. "Tell me you wouldn't, Kelly. Tell me you wouldn't be just as worried about me as I am about you."

"Stop." Kelly warned. "Sabrina-"

"No!" Sabrina shouted suddenly, rising to her feet. "Dammit Kelly! Enough of this! This has to stop!"

Like a cornered animal, Kelly jumped to her feet as well. And Sabrina knew she'd gone too far.

There it was. The loss of control. She couldn't keep it up anymore. Kelly was losing it. She'd seen Kelly angry, seen the aggressive and violent person her normally quiet and sweet best friend could be when provoked, but this was different. The anger blazing in her green eyes was desperate, panicked, fearful of letting whatever she was hiding slip through her fingers after working so hard to keep secret.

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about." Kelly said in a quiet, silky voice.

"Yeah?" Sabrina challenged. "I think you do. And I think it's more than you're letting on. And I think it involves me and Jill."

"Sabrina, you let this go." Kelly warned again.

"It does involve us, doesn't it? When are you gonna tell us, huh? When your little secret ruins our case or gets somebody hurt? Jill's alone right now. You gonna get Jill hurt because you won't-"

"Stop." Kelly snapped furiously. "You're already on a case, you need to let this go."

But stopping was the last thing on Sabrina's mind. Kelly was on her last shred of willpower, hackles raised, every bit ready for a fight. She wouldn't be this defensive if there wasn't a reason.

"No, you need to tell me what's going on, Kelly!" Sabrina demanded, grabbing her friend's arm. Kelly immediately jerked it away and she knew better than to try that again.

"Look at you!" Sabrina cried. "You're so mad you want to hit me! Tell me what's got you like this!"

"I said, let it go!" Kelly shouted, her voice shrill and high. Whatever was keeping her emotions in check had snapped, allowing her anger to bubble to the surface, control her actions, and decide her words. "Leave me alone! This is none of your goddamn business!"

"No, I think it is!" Sabrina cut in. She took a step towards her friend and in her anger, Kelly didn't back away. "If this is gonna get me hurt or jeopardize our cas-"

"Stay out of it!" Kelly shouted again.

Sabrina sucked in a breath, ready to continue the heated argument, but before she could, the bus hissed to a stop behind Kelly and the sound distracted them both. The doors swung open and for a moment, the two could only stare at it.

"Coming up?" the driver asked, after a few seconds of awkward staring.

Sabrina couldn't answer. Her brown eyes swiveled from him to Kelly. Her head was turned, but her shoulders heaved, her hands were still balled into fists at her side, her entire stance readied for a fight.

"Uh- yeah, thanks." Sabrina managed. She shoved her hands in her pockets, took a deep, calming breath and started for the open doors. She was already inside before she realized Kelly had not followed. Sabrina turned and her eyes found her, still frozen in place, still tensed and confrontational. But the fight was gone from her eyes. She looked horrified and confused.

"Kell, come on." she called, gesturing toward the open doors.

But Kelly shook her head.

"No. You're right. I'd hate to jeopardize the case."

Sabrina groaned her frustration. "Kelly! Don't-" She didn't get to finish her sentence. Kelly turned, ducked her head and disappeared from the outline of the open bus door.

"Kelly!" Sabrina shouted, leaping forward. She stumbled slightly on the grimy steps, had to look away to regain her balance, and it was over. When she looked back up, Kelly was gone, vanished into the rows of stopped traffic, pedestrians, and neatly clipped hedges on the other side of the street. Sabrina's eyes darted frantically back and forth, but now without the additional height the bus steps had given her, Kelly was hidden from her sight. She swore loudly and took a few quick steps away from the bus.

"You coming or not?" the bus driver scolded her impatiently.

Sabrina turned toward his voice, then looked longingly back in the direction Kelly had vanished. There was no point now. Even if she managed to catch up with her, Kelly wasn't in the frame of mind to reason with. Given the choice of fight or flight, Kelly had chosen flight and if she didn't want to be found there was no way she would. The window of opportunity had just slammed shut on her fingers.

"Lady? I don't have time to sit here and w-"

"Yeah, I'm coming!" Sabrina snapped, with hostility not meant for him.

She breathed another curse under her breath, climbed on the bus and, avoiding eye contact with anyone, sank down onto an empty seat. The bus rolled forward and an obnoxious rider clapped his hands in mock celebration.

Sabrina ignored it.

If Kelly wanted to run around town with her secrets, avoid her friends, and shirk her duties, then to hell with her, Sabrina decided furiously. She shrank down into her seat, alone in her cloud of anger and tried to steer her thoughts from Kelly to the case she now had to work on alone.

Fine. Let Kelly go. Let her run off and be alone.

Maybe it was better that way.