Lake of Tears by Mary Logue Page B

back and slugged Andrew in the chest.
    Andrew doubled over and staggered, trying not to fall. His breath came in wheezes. “What?”
    “Where’s Tammy Lee?” Terry yelled at him.
    Two deputies who had been walking out of the county offices came running up and grabbed Terry’s arms, holding him back.
    “What’re you talking about?” Andrew gasped out, straightening up and breathing deep. “What about Tammy?”
    “She was supposed to see you, and then she went missing.”
    Andrew shook his head. “She never showed up. I didn’t think anything of it. It’s so like her.”
    “Well, she’s been gone for over two days now, and you might be the last person she talked to.”
    “She’s missing?”
    “Yeah, like you don’t know. You don’t fool me.” Terry tried to shake free of the deputies. “Whatever happened to her is all your fault. You just wouldn’t leave her alone.”
    “What’re you talking about?”
    “Even after she broke up with you, you kept bothering her.”
    Andrew shook his head. He wasn’t going to argue with Terry. He obviously had concocted his own vision of the world, or Tammy Lee had lied to him. “Terry, I’m sure she’ll show up. She always does.”
    Terry stepped back, but kept his guard up. “If she doesn’t show up, I know where you are. I know you’re the one responsible.”

    “This isn’t the first time she’s done this.” Mrs. Johansen stood at her kitchen counter, smoking a cigarette.
    Amy was standing in their living room. There had been no offer of coffee, not even the offer of a chair.
    “So you’re not worried about your daughter?”
    “Naw, she’s been mighty prickly lately. The wedding’s got her all in a fluster. She’ll be back in her own good time. For a few years, she lived in Minneapolis. She’s probably up there now, staying with some friends. I’m sure she’ll be back in time for work.”
    “Her fiancé Terry seems pretty upset.”
    “He’s an excitable guy. He better get used to Tammy’s ways or he’s going to have a rough ride.”
    “When is the wedding?”
    “Right before Thanksgiving. It’s coming up quick. Tammy’s been saving up money so she could have the kind of wedding she’s always dreamed of—you know, the big white dress, the five bridesmaids, the whole nine yards. We can’t help her out much, so she’s saving her own money.”
    “When did you last see her?”
    “Had to be Friday. I mean, she’s twenty-six years old, for God’s sake. I don’t keep track of her. She works odd hours, she stays at Terry’s most of the time.”
    “Since a missing persons report has been filed, I need to follow up on this. I’d like to ask you some questions.”
    “Who filed the report?”
    “Terry, her fiancé.”
    “Oh, like I said, he’s just a little nervous. He’s always checking up on her. Tammy’ll be back.”
    “Well, I do need to finish filling the report out. I have some questions I’d like to ask you. May I sit down?”
    “It’s a free country.”
    Sometimes Amy wondered if it was. She sat down on a stool at the counter and pulled out the missing persons report that Terry had filled out. “What was she wearing when you saw her last?”
    “Jeans. Can’t really remember. Some kind of shirt. It’s been so warm. Probably a T-shirt. Nothing special.”
    “Any distinctive jewelry?”
    “She would be wearing the engagement ring that Terry got her—you know, the usual … a small diamond, think she said it was half a carat. Probably some earrings, hoops.”
    “I’d like to talk to her sister. Could you give me her phone number?”
    Mrs. Johansen rattled the number off. “Yeah, talk to Bria. She might know more than me. They’re real close.”
    “I knew Bria.”
    “Yeah.”
    “She went to school with me.”
    “I thought you looked familiar.”
    “Where’s she living now?”
    “Hastings. She’s teaching school there.”
    “Good for her.”
    “Yeah, Bria was always the studious one. Not like Tammy. Tammy