Chapter Sixteen

The parsonage was still teeming with the homecoming of the adult Camden siblings, their spouses and their respective children three days later. But they were there for another reason: the first year of university for Ruthie and Peter was now only four weeks away, and they were there to help the newlyweds pack as much as to help untangle their frayed nerves.

Somehow, the husband and wife were able to calm down enough to focus on the future. They were also feeling exhilaration, for a second pregnancy test – this one done by Ruthie's family doctor – confirmed she was indeed pregnant. They decided to do what they did best. They made sweet, passionate love in their marital bedroom, making sure the door was locked behind them. Ruthie remembered the time she snuck into her parents' bedroom – which was now theirs for the next couple of weeks – and saw her parents do the wild thing. She was more than two years away from her first period and in a state of wonder that her parents were so crazy for each other at their age, let along witnessing the act herself for the first time.

She was reflecting on this, a full ten minutes after she and Peter climaxed, when the phone rang.

"Camden – I mean Kinkirk residence."

"Ruthie, is that you?"

"This is Ruthie Petrovsky Camden. Who is this?"

"Ruthie, c'mon, you don't remember me? This is Shana Sullivan."

"Shana?" Ruthie, totally unclothed and still perspiring from both a cold sweat and a hot passion from her shared experience with her husband, rolled out of bed and was now standing up. Peter was totally spent and didn't even notice his wife was no longer next to him. "Wow, it's so good to hear from you. How's Brett?"

Brett was the man Shana had slept with behind Matt's back, while he was still dating her. She later got engaged and married to him.

"Divorced," said Shana, grimly. "I caught him having an affair with someone else. That's karma for you."

"From what my brother told me, you and him were drifting apart anyway," said Ruthie. "Matt and Sarah love each other very much, Shana. If you ever find a way to be all friends, that'd be great."

"We are friends. Besides, I didn't call to catch up with Matt. I wanted to talk to you – Ruthie."

"Why?"

"Well, you're not going to believe this, but I kind of got sick of medical school towards the end. I graduated, but I found being in residence was taking a real toll on me. So, as it turns out, were three old friends of mine, and all former flames of Matt: Heather, Connie and Cheryl ... to be more precise. We were getting together in a café in Manhattan about once a week and finding we had more common interests than we imagined. Between our training in our respective fields, we found we had enough to go into business together. So we formed the Greenwich Chicks Detective Agency."

"You're kidding me?" said Ruthie. Still holding on to the cordless handset, she had now walked across the room, took her night coat off the hook hanging on the bedroom door, and put it around herself.

"I'm serious," said Shana. "We took some additional training and are now licensed private investigators. And after Matt called me last night and told me about your and Peter's predicament, we decided to offer our services."

"No disrespect," said Ruthie, "but Peter and I can take care of ourselves. Roxanne, Kevin and Michaels are working the case and, now, so is JAG. They're not going to appreciate you guys – I mean, you gals –putting on your trench coats and stepping on their toes."

"Actually, I should correct myself," said Shana. "We're not offering, we're insisting. Heather's on her way to the West Coast right now. Connie and Cheryl will fly in tonight and I'm coming tomorrow. We're going to go over Kevin and Roxie's notes and see if we can't read something between the lines."

"We can't afford to pay you. And I'm pretty sure Matt and Sarah can't either even with their salaries as residence doctors."

"We're doing this pro bono," said Shana. "Matt helped all four of us out of a jam years ago. We're returning the favour."

"Well, all right," said Ruthie in resignation. By this time, she had walked down to the kitchen and was pouring herself a fresh cup of coffee. "But I can't see how you guys can help us. This serial killer is so elusive that my husband and I were horrified that we killed the wrong man; even if he was trying to murder us."

"That's just my point," said Shana. "I don't want you guys getting into any more trouble. Let us do the work for you. You have to get ready for UCLA, and more important, you have to think about being parents in college."

"Fine, come on over," said Ruthie. "I'll tell Peter. He'll want to know your stories though – I mean, you were the four women Matt wanted to sleep with the most before he found Sarah. Come to think of it, he did sleep with Heather."

The conversation ended there before Ruthie could get herself entangled more. When Peter awoke, he said he had no problem getting extra help. After all, it took the combined efforts of their and many of Lucy's classmates to bring down a child molester.

The next day, once all the women had arrived in Glen Oak, Roxanne and Kevin (now back at work but under careful scrutiny by Michaels) were less than thrilled to open their files to the private eyes, but finally did out of Roxie's loyalty to Lucy's youngest sister. The cops made copies, one for each of the four, but insisted that the data was to be used on an "eyes only" basis and any further discoveries would be solely on a need to know basis. It was an idle threat, for by that time the case had gone completely cold. Protestations to the contrary, Kevin knew he and his partner now needed all the help they could get.

Another four days passed by, as the Greenwich Chicks gathered in the garage apartment (where they were bunking during their stay on the West Coast) and poured through the files. It seemed hopeless. They were as stumped as the cops were. Finally, as they were getting ready to pack up and go back to New York City, Connie thought of something interesting.

"Hey, guys," said Connie, "I never thought about it before, but I seem to remember my high school prom. I really was the high school harlot and I was shocked when Matt asked me out."

"Why are you thinking about that?" said Cheryl.

"Oh, I don't know. Matt and I had a great summer together. In fact, it was the best time I ever had with a guy because I never did sleep with him."

"What's your point?" asked Heather.

"What if this isn't about Ruthie and Peter, or her siblings? What if this is about her parents?"

"We've been over that," said Shana. "Everyone that Eric and Annie tried to help out has been vetted. They're either dead, or have relocated, or have a rock solid alibi."

"There is one person they haven't checked out ... at least, not yet."

Connie pulled out a photograph. It showed one of Ruthie's favourite teachers, Mrs. Riddle and her husband on their wedding day. Of course, they checked out because they were on extended vacation in Europe using a EURAIL ™ pass, visiting nearly every country on the continent. But it was one person behind them, apparently goofing off to ruin an otherwise classy black and white picture. She passed it over to Shana. She gasped.

"You know him?" asked Connie.

"Yes." Shana picked up the phone and called the police station. Roxanne answered the phone. She took down the name. It sounded ridiculous, but at this stage, even a long shot was worth pursuing.