“Has Melodie had contact with any of her friends from Sarah Child?” Eve asked.
“Yes, of course. We’re all trying to keep things as normal as we can. It isn’t easy.”
“How about Rayleen Straffo?”
“Her in particular. They’re tight, and tighter yet since they had that awful experience together. We had Rayleen over Thursday, that’s a usual date for them. Allika and I felt it would be good for them to see each other as they normally do. Then Melodie had dinner over at the Straffo’s last night.”
“Two days in a row? Is that usual?”
“It’s not a usual situation. Frankly, I was relieved to have Melodie out of my hair for a few hours after we clashed about her starting a new school on Monday.”
“We’d like to talk with her.”
“Lieutenant, I know you have a job to do, and believe me, I want you to do it. I just don’t want Melodie upset again. I don’t want her to have to go through the details of what happened to Craig Foster again. She has nightmares.”
“We’ll try to stay away from that. It’s another avenue we need to explore.”
“All right. But in her current mood you may not get anything but the silent treatment, too. I’ll get her.”
Angela rose and walked out of the room. Eve could hear muted voices-the impatience in the mother’s, the sulky defiance in the child’s.
Shortly, a grim-faced little girl was marched into the living area by her equally grim-faced parent. “Melodie, sit. And if you’re as impolite to Lieutenant Dallas and Detective Peabody as you have been to me, you can expect to be on house arrest for the next two weeks.”
Melodie shrugged, a pissy little gesture, and kept her gaze on the floor as she plopped into a chair.
“It’s not my fault Mr. Foster and Mr. Williams are dead. But I get punished.”
“I’m not going to start this round again,” Angela said wearily.
Eve decided to do a straight push. “Melodie, I need Rayleen’s diary.”
The girl’s chin jerked up, quick shock, then just as quickly lowered. “I’m sorry. I don’t understand.”
“Sure you do. Rayleen gave you her diary. I need to have it.”
“I don’t have Rayleen’s diary.”
“But she has a diary.”
“She…I don’t know. Diaries are private.”
“Do you have one?”
“Yes, ma’am. It’s private.” And she looked imploringly at her mother.
“Yes, it is.” Angela sat on the arm of Melodie’s chair, laid a hand on her daughter’s shoulder. Whatever their battle lines, Eve noted, this was a united front. “Melodie knows she can write whatever she needs or wants to write in her diary, and no one will read it. I don’t understand what this is about.”
“Privacy’s important,” Eve agreed. “So’s friendship. I guess a lot of friends don’t mind sharing what’s in their diary. Did you read Rayleen’s?”
“No, she wouldn’t…Um. Maybe she doesn’t have one.”
Eve took the logical leap. “She gave it to you Thursday, when she came over. What did she tell you to do with it?”
“She just came over to play, that’s all. And to hang. We can’t go to school because Mr. Williams drowned in the pool.” Tears began to swim in Melodie’s eyes. “And everything’s totally base, and now Ray and I won’t even go to the same school anymore. She’s my best friend. Best friends stick together.”
“Melodie, do you know what a warrant is? I can get one,” Eve continued as Melodie just hunched up. “It’ll give me permission to search your room. I don’t want to do that.”
“Lieutenant,” Angela said, shocked. “My God, whatis this?”
“I need to see the diary, Melodie. I’ll search your room if I have to.”
“You won’t find it. You won’t! Because Ray-” She broke off, gripped her mother’s hand. “I promised. I promised. Mom. You’re not supposed to break a promise.”
“No, you’re not. It’s all right, baby.” She gathered Melodie up. “Is Rayleen in trouble?” she asked Eve.
“I’ll know more when I have the diary. This is in Melodie’s best interest.”
“Wait. Just wait.” Angela closed her eyes a moment, the struggle on her face obvious. Then she tipped Melodie’s face up to hers and spoke quietly. “Sweetie, you have to tell the police the truth. That’s important.”
“I promised!”
“The truth is as important as a promise. Tell me, sweetie, do you have Rayleen’s diary?”
“I don’t! I don’t! I took it back to her last night. I only had it for a little while, and I didn’t read it. It’s locked up, but I wouldn’t have read it even if it wasn’t. I swore anoath. ”
“Okay, baby, that’s okay. She doesn’t have it,” Angela said to Eve. “I won’t insist you get a warrant if you feel compelled to look for it. But I’m telling you, if she says she doesn’t have it, she doesn’t have it.”
“That won’t be necessary. Melodie, what did Rayleen tell you when she gave you the diary?”
“She said the police were going to come and go through all her things.”
“Oh, my God,” Angela murmured. “You searched the Straffos’ apartment? I didn’t know. I let Melodie go over there. I-”
“Nothing happened to Melodie, and nothing will,” Eve interrupted. “Go on, Melodie.”
“She just asked me to keep it, not to tell about what was going on, not to tellanyone that she gave it to me. It’s private, it’s a diary. It wouldn’t be right for strangers to read her private thoughts. She could trust me because we’re best friends. And I took it back to her last night, just like she asked. Now she’ll be mad at me because I told.”
“No, she won’t.” Angela said it absently, staring at Eve’s face. “It’s going to be all right, don’t worry.” She rose, standing Melodie on her feet. “I’m proud that you told the truth, because that was the right thing to do, and the hard thing to do. You go on, get yourself a cherry fizzy. I’ll be right there.”
“I’m sorry I’ve been mean to you.”
“I’m sorry, too, sweetie. Go get us both a big fizzy.”
Sniffling, Melodie nodded, and left the room, dragging her heels.
“I don’t know why you’d need a child’s diary. I don’t understand how that could possibly pertain to your investigation.”
“It’s an element that requires attention.”
“You’re not going to tell me what I need or want to know about this, and my daughter needsmy attention. But I want you to tell me if I should keep Melodie away from the Straffos. I want you to tell me if her being with Rayleen and the family is dangerous to her.”
“I don’t believe she’s in any danger, but you may feel more comfortable, for the time being, restricting that contact.” Better, all around, Eve thought, and made sure Angela understood it. “It’s important that neither you nor Melodie speak of this conversation or the diary to the Straffos, or to anyone else.”
“I think Melodie and I are going away for the rest of the weekend, maybe take a long weekend trip.” Angela let out an unsteady breath. “She can start school on Tuesday.”
“That sounds like a nice idea,” Eve said. “I’m no authority on kids, Ms. Miles-Branch, but my impression is you’ve got a good one there.”
“I’ve got a very good one there. Thank you.”
Eve gave Peabody a chance to speak as they rode down from the Miles-Branch apartment. When she remained silent, Eve waited until they were in the car.
“Thoughts? Comments? Questions?”
“I guess I’m compiling them.” Peabody puffed out her cheeks. “I have to say, on the surface, it seems pretty innocent, and fairly typical, for a kid to hide her diary, or ask a trusted friend to hold it for her if she’s afraid somebody-an adult, an authority figure-is going to put eyes on it. Girls, especially girls, are hypersensitive about that kind of thing.”
“And under the surface?”
“Which is where you’re looking, and I get that. From that point of view, the fact that there is a diary, that Rayleen went to some trouble to get it out of the house before we searched, adds a certain weight to your theory.”