“Why do you have to make me love you?” he had yelled often.

She didn’t know how to answer that, and all she could do was cry. She had gotten no further in planning her escape. She was still strapped to the bed, only untied when she was eating, and going to the bathroom. She couldn’t even examine the door to see if there was any way of opening it from the inside. And even if she did succeed, and made it to the outside, then there were the dogs she had to worry about. She had never seen them, but pictured them sitting out there, in front of the door, waiting for her, drooling, showing their sharp teeth as they growled at the door.

It was terrifying.

A shadowy figure appeared in the doorway. Kitty gasped lightly, thinking it was him again, that he was coming for her, and then instantly wondering what mood he would be in. Usually, she could tell by the look in his eyes the moment he stepped inside. But much to her surprise, this wasn’t him.

It was his wife.

Linda stepped inside, carrying a tray with a glass of chocolate milk and a pink teddy bear sitting next to it, leaning on its side. Kitty recognized her from the first day she had come to the house, and she braced herself for the worst. Why was she here? What did she want? Had she come to hurt her?

But instead of aggression, the woman looked sad.

She sat down on the edge of the bed, like Damian usually did. She put the tray down and untied Kitty’s hands, then handed her the glass of chocolate milk. Kitty grabbed it and drank it greedily. She was enjoying something she hadn’t had in a long time. So far, she had been living off nothing but burgers and fries and sodas, and barely enough of it to keep her alive.

She was constantly starving.

Linda sighed and sat with her hands folded in her lap.

“I’m sorry we are doing this to you,” she said softly. “Believe me it doesn’t make me feel very good.”

Kitty stared at her. Officer Damian had said the same thing several times before as well. How sorry he was for doing this to her. He had even cried once and she’d had to comfort him and tell him it was okay, that he was just doing it out of love, and for her own good. That’s what he had told her at least, and over the weeks she had started to believe him. He wasn’t a bad man, and his wife wasn’t bad either. They meant well. They wanted her to be safe.

Linda reached over and stroked her hair gently.

“It’s not fair to you,” she continued, almost breaking into tears. “I feel awful. I feel so, so terrible.”

Kitty couldn’t stop looking at her. She had tears in her eyes. Kitty felt sad now too. Maybe they didn’t mean so bad? After all, they did treat her okay. She was getting food and stuff, and now a teddy bear?

Kitty stared at it. It was pink and fluffy and had a rainbow on the front. It reminded her of her favorite teddy bear from home, only this one was newer and had bigger eyes.

Linda saw her looking at it. She took it and lifted it up. “Do you like it? You want it?”

Kitty nodded eagerly. She loved teddy bears more than anything. Maybe even more than her Barbie and Ken dolls. Maybe. It was hard to say in this moment because any toy would make her happy, anything that could help her pass these long, lonely hours alone in the shed, anything that could make her feel safe. She had longed for something to hold when sleeping. Something soft to make her feel good.

Linda handed it to her. “Here. I brought it for you. Hoping it might cheer you up a little.”

Kitty’s face lit up. She grabbed the teddy bear with both hands and hugged it, feeling happy for the first time since she got there.

“Thank you, thank you,” she said.

“How about we let your hands be free from now on, huh?” she said. “So, you can hug the bear while sleeping? I’m sure Damian won’t mind if I ask him.”

Kitty felt such deep relief. For some reason she really wanted this woman to like her.

“Would you, please?”

“Of course. There’s no need to have you tied up. The door is bolted shut anyway from the outside.”

“Thank you. Thank you.”

Linda smiled gently. “I can see why my husband loves you so much. I have to admit it makes me jealous from time to time. Some days I have been wanting to come over here and hurt you, because of it. She paused and Kitty stared at her, mouth open. Then the woman smiled and tilted her head.

“But of course, I won’t. Don’t be scared.”

Kitty stared at her, hugging the teddy bear a little too tight. She didn’t know if she was supposed to feel sorry for the woman or fear her.

Maybe it was a little of both.

Linda averted her eyes and grabbed the tray. “My husband loves you. I can see it in his eyes. He’s never looked at me that way.”

Kitty was too stunned to speak, and she just nodded in response. Linda gave her one last regretful look before turning and walking to the door. With one hand on the door handle, she said, “I’m sorry. I just wanted you to know.”

Then the door closed, and the silence returned.

FORTY-TWOBILLIE ANN

Pete Perez was already seated in the room when Big Tom and I walked in. He was a small man, with a face lined by age and worry, but his eyes still held traces of the young, carefree man he had once been. He was nervous and fidgety, shifting position constantly as we sat down, and twirling a ring around on his finger, as if he were trying to distract himself from some invisible pain.

“Mr. Perez?” I said.

He looked up and our eyes met. I could tell he was anxious. “Yes?”

“We have called you in today to ask you a few questions.”

He nodded. “Of course. Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing is wrong, Mr. Perez. Just routine.”

He nodded. “Oh, okay. ’Cause I already told you; I was away on a business trip when Cassandra was murdered. I know you always look at the close relatives first when investigating a murder. And I have an alibi. I have hotel receipts and airline tickets to prove it.”

I smiled again. “We know. We have everything on file.”

He sniffled. “That’s good. That’s good.”

He sipped the water I had given him in a small plastic cup.

“Mr. Perez, what is the nature of your relationship with Marissa Clemens?” Big Tom asked.

He lifted his glare and met Tom’s. “I already told you I didn’t know much about the woman living across the street. I never even saw her child. I’ve told you this.”

“But that’s what I don’t understand. Your daughter babysat her daughter?” I said. “How can you not know her? Your wife told us that you helped her get that job.”

“She did? Yeah, well, I guess I did. Technically. I didn’t do a lot though. I just met the woman in the street one day and she mentioned that she needed a babysitter, and asked if I knew anyone I could recommend. I just told Cassandra about it and asked her to go over there and talk to her. Cassandra did it by herself really. She had so many babysitting jobs around the neighborhood; she was very popular.”

I leaned forward folding my hands on the table. “Mr. Perez. This would be way easier if you could just tell us the truth.”

He looked startled. “What do you mean? I am telling the truth. I maybe have spoken to her a few times in the street, but that’s…”