For a few minutes, Joanna and Eva Lou sat together in silence. "How's your mother doing?" Eva Lou asked finally. "I've barely seen her these past few weeks. She must be awfully busy."

"She's been busy all right," Joanna returned dryly. "She's married."

Eva Lou put down her coffee cup. "She's what?"

"Married," Joanna repeated. "She and George Winfield eloped when they went to Vegas."

"Why forevermore!" Eva Lou Brady said wonderingly. "Good for her. Good for both of them. What wonderful news!"

In the face of her mother-in-law's evident enthusiasm, Joanna had the good sense and grace to stifle any further negative comments of her own. Besides, just then Jim Bob called to his wife from the living room.

"Hey, Eva Lou, the last commercial just ended. Come on now or you'll miss it."

Eva Lou excused herself and went to join her husband in front of the blaring television set. Left on her own in the kitchen, Joanna dialed Frank Montoya's number, alerting him to the Brianna O'Brien situation and bringing him up to speed as much as possible. Then she tried dialing her own number, hoping to use her answering machine's remote feature to retrieve her own messages. Nothing happened. The phone rang and rang, but the answering machine wouldn't pick up.

Frustrated and unwilling to go into the living room to watch TV, Joanna picked up the yellow pad Jim Bob and Eva Lou kept on the kitchen table next to the phone. Since she was just passing time, why not write today's letter?

Dear Jenny,

For a long, long time, "Dear Jenny" were the only words that appeared on the paper. Where should I start? Joanna wondered. How should I begin?

This afternoon's storm was a real corker. The washes are running at home, so I'm writing this from Grandma and Grandpa Brady's house. I tried calling for messages a little while ago, but the answering machine isn't working, so maybe our phone is out of order as well. I hope the storm didn't catch you out somewhere on a hike. If it did, you probably got soaked.

You've only been gone for a day and a half; but it feels much longer. And it turns out that there's all kinds of news. The most important of which has to do with Grandma Lathrop.

As you know, she's been going out with that Dr. Winfield. Well, you'll never guess what happened! It turns out that they've been doing a little more than just "going out." Dr. Winfield and I were working on a case together today and he told me that they're married. He said they eloped last month when they took that trip up to Las Vegas. They're planning on a honeymoon cruise sometime in August. So, not only do you have a new grandfather, I have a new stepfather as well.

Joanna paused long enough to reread what she had written, hoping that it sounded breezy enough-breezy and nonjudgmental. After all, she didn't know how George Winfield would measure up in the stepfather department, but he might be perfectly fine as a grandfather. Joanna didn't want to write anything that would prejudice Jenny against him.

The animals are all fine. At least, they were fine when 1 left the house this morning, and I'm sure they still are. I've been off investigating a crime scene most of the day. The storm that blew through late this afternoon didn't make things any easier.

Oh, I almost forgot. Search and Rescue had to be called out today to look for Angie Kellogg. She and a friend went bird-watching up in Skeleton Canyon. They got separated, somehow, and Angie was lost for several hours. She found her way out, however. Dispatch just told me that Marianne found her and brought her home safe and sound.

The telephone rang. "I'll get it," Joanna said before Jim Bob made it out of his easy chair. "That's all right," he said. "It's probably for you anyway."

And it was. "Sheriff Brady?" Ernie Carpenter asked. "What big ears?"

"Frankie Stoddard and her police scanner."

"That's right," he said. "I forgot all about her. It's a good thing I'm calling on a phone then."

"Why? What's happening?"

"Jaime and I just made arrangements for a deputy to come pick up Ignacio Ybarra and bring him in for questioning. I'll ride back to the department in the patrol car with them while Jaime drives the van."

Joanna was stunned. "Brianna's boyfriend? You think he had something to do with what happened to her?"

"Wait until you see him," Ernie said grimly. "He looks like hell. Claims somebody beat him up, but he won't tell us who it was or where it happened."

"If you're bringing him to the department, I'll meet you there."

Joanna put down the phone.

Oops, I've gotta go. I'll have to mail this tomorrow along with Saturday's letter as well. You'll probably get them both on the same day-Tuesday, I hope.

Love, Mom

Joanna didn't even bother trying to go home a second time. Once her clothes finished drying, she dressed, said her goodbyes and thank-yous to her in-laws, and drove straight to the department. Jaime Carbajal wasn't there with the van yet, and neither was Ernie Carpenter. Waiting in her office, Joanna decided to give Angie Kellogg a call and see how she was doing. To her surprise, there was no answer at Angie's house in Galena.

That's odd, she thought. Maybe she's working.

Except, when Joanna dialed the Blue Moon, no one answered there, either.

Concerned, Joanna finally tried calling Jeff and Marianne's parsonage up Tombstone Canyon. Marianne herself answered.

"Mari," Joanna said, "it's me. I'm looking for Angie. I just wanted to make sure she's all right, but I can't find her. She isn't at home and she isn't at work, either."

"You've called the right place," Marianne Maculyea said cheerfully. "She's here all right, but she's in the tub right now, trying to soap her troubles away."

"She's okay, I hope," Joanna said. "She's not still upset about Dennis Hacker laughing at her, is she?"

"No," Marianne said. "I'd say Mr. Hacker is pretty far down the list of concerns at the moment. She's a lot more upset about her car.

"Her car!" Joanna exclaimed. "What happened to that?"

"When she and Dennis Hacker went birding this morning, he lacked her up at work. She left her Omega parked in Brewery Gulch, sitting out in front of the Blue Moon. This afternoon, when a four-foot wall of water came pouring down the gulch, not only did it shut down all the telephone service in Brewery Gulch, it also picked up Angie's car and carried it right along with it. Washed it down into the storm drain under Main Street."

"Oh, no," Joanna murmured.

"Oh, yes," Marianne continued. "With the fire department's help, a tow truck finally managed to pull it out, but I'm worried that it's wrecked for good. The engine was completely under water. Not only that, it went nosefirst down into the drain. The whole front end is bashed in-the grill, the hood, and both front fenders. Angie's just sick about it."

So was Joanna. From what Marianne was saying, the Omega would probably end up being totaled. Although Angie had been extraordinarily proud of her little Omega, it was, nevertheless, a seventeen-year-old vehicle. As an inexperienced driver who had never before carried auto insurance, Angie Kellogg was in a high-risk/high-premium group. She carried the state-mandated coverages, especially liability, but her policy included nothing that would repair the physical damage.

"She's staying with us for tonight, at least," Marianne continued. "Jeff and I didn't think she should be alone after all she's been through today. As for tomorrow, I don't know. It's too far for her to walk from her house back and forth to work. We'll have to work something out."

"Other than her car, though, she's all right?" Joanna asked.

She had heard Dennis Hacker's lame version of what had gone on in Skeleton Canyon earlier that morning. But all day long, whenever she had thought about Angie Kellogg, Joanna had worried and wondered if that was all there was to it, or had there been something more? Dennis Hacker might have looked like the boy next door, but then so had Ted Bundy.

"She's fine," Marianne said. "She was wet to the bone, chilled, and hungry when I picked her up. Jeff gave her a little shot of medicinal brandy when I got her home and then he fed her some supper. He also administered a brotherly talk about some men being such incredible bums that women shouldn't waste a minute of their time on them. By the time Jeff finished with her, I think she was feeling better. Once she's 'hone soaking in the tub, she'll probably be ready to go night-night right along with the girls."