The bell above the door jangled, catching Belโs nerves.
She headed through the store, down the aisle of camping gear, past hockey, toward the break room door, ignoring theย Employees Onlyย sign, shoving it open.
Uncle Je๏ฌย was inside, making a cup of co๏ฌee, the machine sputtering.ย โBel,โย he said.ย โWhat are you doing? Youโre not allowed back here.โ โCame to talk to you.โย She set her jaw.
โUh-oh, am I in trouble?โย he asked, adding milk to his co๏ฌee.ย โYou tell me.โ
โIs it about Carter?โย He took a sip.ย โShe stayed with you last night, right? She and Sherry have beenโฆwell, you know teenage girls.โ
โWell, I am one,โย Bel said.ย โBut itโs not about Carter.โ
โYour dad?โย Je๏ฌย looked up, lines crinkling around his eyes.ย โI bet heโll be back tomorrow. That makes sense. Full week away to clear his head. Cops donโt seem worried.โ
โNot about Dad either,โย Bel said.ย โItโs Rachel.โ
Je๏ฌย took another sip, like it was on purpose, to give himself time.ย โWhat about her?โย he said.
Bel wasnโt sure how to best approach this: all guns blazing or only half, keep some back for later.
โI think you know something about her that youโre not saying.โ
His mouth opened and closed.ย โI know as much as you do,โย he said, ending in a cough, catching it and the lie in hisย ๏ฌst. Because Bel knew her uncle was lying to her, and she could prove it.
โLet me show you something.โย Bel gestured toward the table, where Je๏ฌโs phone was lying face up. She took a seat and pulled out her own phone, waited for him to take the chair opposite.ย โLast week, when we had the family dinner, you helped Grandpa into the car.โ
โYes,โย Je๏ฌย said, eyes up, co๏ฌee down.ย โAnd whatโโ
โYou were wearing a live microphone. It recorded everything you said.โ
Bel watched Je๏ฌย as he swallowed hard, one of his hands curling into aย ๏ฌst, the bony mountain range of his knuckles pushing through skin, giving him away.
โWould you like to hear it?โย She didnโt wait for the answer, scrolling to the audioย ๏ฌle and pressing play, turning the volume all the way up.
โAre you in, Dad?โย Je๏ฌโs voice from last week, metallic and tinny through her phone speakers.
Bel watched the uncle in front of her, as the one from last week spoke.
Heย ๏ฌdgeted, ran a hand around his neck.ย โLet me get the seat belt.โ
โIโI,โย Grandpa stuttered.
โDonโt worry, Iโll get that.โย Rustling. A click.
โDad.โย A pause.ย โI have to ask you something, and I need you to remember.โ
Je๏ฌย dropped his head into his hands, elbows propped on the table. The crackle of material rasping against the microphone.
โI donโt know who that is,โย Grandpa croaked in reply.
โYou do, Dad,โย Je๏ฌย insisted, the one from now still hiding his face.ย โYou do know. Where was she? Where did theyย ๏ฌnd her?โ
โI donโt know.โ
โDad, I need you to try. Itโs important.โ
She stopped the clip, the room too quiet. Bel used the thickening silence against Je๏ฌ, staring him down until his face emerged from his hands.
โBel, I can explain,โย he said, eyes wide in the headlights of her hard stare.
โCan you?โย She cleared her throat.ย โWhy do you think Grandpa knows where Rachel was? That he knows who found her, and when?โ
Je๏ฌย hesitated, a quick burst of blinks, muscles twitching around his mouth.
โUmโฆ,โย he said.ย โYeah, I asked him about Rachel. I donโt know anything, I swear. But Dad had mentioned something strange about her, so I was pushing for details. Now I think he was just confused.โ
Bel narrowed her eyes.ย โWe donโt hear Grandpa say anything about Rachel before you bring it up. Itโs all recorded.โ
โNo.โย Je๏ฌย shook his head, too long and too fast, obscuring his eyes.ย โNot then. A couple of days before, when I was at his house.โ
โWhat did he say?โย Bel pushed.
โI canโt remember exactly.โย Je๏ฌย coughed.ย โSomething about Rachel. About f-๏ฌnding her. Maybe he was recalling an older memory and it just sounded like it was about her reappearance. Heโs confused. We canโt trust his memories. But I wanted to check when I had him alone, after heโd seen her, see if it sparked anything. Obviously, he couldnโt remember. I shouldnโt have done that, not fair.โ
It felt like he was still lying to her, another cough to cover it, holding eye contact with his re๏ฌection in Belโs phone screen, but not with her.
โSo does Grandpa know something about Rachel or not?โย She hardened her voice, trying to catch his gaze.
โI donโt know. I donโt think so.โ
Bel dropped one hand to the table, a thud thatย ๏ฌnally drew his attention.ย โAnd you donโt know anything more about her disappearance or reappearance?โ
โNo, I donโt know anything,โย he said, and maybe he was lying or maybe not. Je๏ฌย didnโt like confrontation and Bel lived for it; they couldnโt be more di๏ฌerent. But she didnโt like the way heโd leaned on the wordย know,ย like
maybe he suspected something, or half believed another, and sheโd only chosen the wrong word.
โYou sure?โย She gave him another chance.ย โSure.โ
โDid Rachel ever have any reason to be afraid of you?โ
Je๏ฌโs face clouded over, eyebrows eclipsing the whites of his eyes.
โOf me? No,โย he said quietly.ย โWhy would you ask that? I always liked Rachel. She always liked me, I think.โ
โAnd now?โ
Je๏ฌย shrugged.ย โSheโs family, of course.โ
โFamilyย ๏ฌrst,โย Bel said, echoing Sherryโs words. But Rachel was less family than others, much less than Dad. And if Je๏ฌย knew anything that could help bring him homeโฆ
โDo you know where Dad is? Did he mention wanting to leave after Rachel came back?โ
Je๏ฌย shook his head.ย โI donโt know where he is, but I know heโll be back. Heโs the heart of this family. He never said anything, but you could see how overwhelmed heโโ
Je๏ฌย was cut o๏ฌย by his phone, vibrating against the table, rotating as it did, an angry bug on its back.
They both glanced at the screen. An incoming call fromย Bob.
Je๏ฌโs friend, who he always dropped into conversations even when he
didnโtย ๏ฌt.ย Bob from Vermont.
Belโs heart jumped to the base of her throat. Wait a fucking second.
Je๏ฌย moved to reject the call but Bel swatted his hand away.
โBob from Vermont,โย she said, voice urgent, grating in her throat.ย โIs his full name Robert Meyer?โ
Je๏ฌย narrowed his eyes.
Bel clapped her hands to shock him out of it.ย โYes.โ
โFuck!โย Bel grabbed the phone before her uncle could.
โHey, giveโโ
Bel swiped to accept the call, raised the phone to her ear. Je๏ฌย got to his feet and Bel jumped back from him.
โHello?โย a gru๏ฌย voice said down the line. Bob from Vermont, not just a name, but a voice too.ย โJe๏ฌ, I gotta tell you something.โ
โHi, Bob,โย Bel said, moving away from Je๏ฌ, a two-step dance, hand splayed to hold him back.
โThis isnโt Je๏ฌ.โ
Bob from Vermont was observant, she could give him that.ย โNo, itโs not,โย she said.ย โIโm Bel, his niece.โ
โCharlieโs kid?โ
โCharlieโs kid,โย she repeated.ย โNow that you mention him, I need to ask you something.โ
โI already know what youโre gonna say.โย A sigh that tickled the speaker.ย โYouโre the last person my dad called before he went missing,โย Bel
continued anyway, pushing through.ย โAt three in the morning last Saturday, the night he disappeared. What did he say, Bob? I really need to know,โย she added, voice tight and desperate, clinging to the walls of her throat.
Another sigh. Observant and a mouth-breather, Bob from Vermont. But he might be the only person who knew where Dad was.
โIโve been through this with the State Police. Just got back from an interview with them, thought Je๏ฌย should know.โ
Bel didnโt care about any of that.
โWhat did my dad say on the phone? Itโs important.โย Je๏ฌย had backed o๏ฌย now, listening, eyes rotating.
โHe didnโt say anything,โย Bob said, sharpening the consonants.ย โThe call only lasted a few seconds. I picked it up, saidย Hello, whoโs there,ย and no one answered. I could only hear the wind, like someone was there, just not talking. Thatโs it. I donโt know anything else, like I said to the police.โ
Bel held a breath, trapped it in her cheeks, thinking. If Dad didnโt talk, maybe he wasnโt the one making that call, it could have been Rachel using his phone. Or option three: Bob from Vermont was lying to her.
โWhatโs he saying?โย Je๏ฌย asked in a stage whisper.
She ignored him.
โMy dad made the call from Danville, Vermont. He must have been on the way to see you?โย Not a question, but Bel made it one.
โWell, he never turned up, and I never heard from him. And I donโt know why youโve got me messed up in your family stu๏ฌ. Now I got cops asking me all kinds of shit.โ
โWhat kinds of shit?โย Bel looked at Je๏ฌ, trying to remember all the scraps heโd dropped in about Bob over the years. Hadnโt he said something about the dark web?
โJust because I choose to live o๏ฌย the grid,โย Bob was rattling on.
โWhat about yourย online activities?โย Bel asked, phrasing it as nicely as she could.
โNow you sound like one of them cops,โย Bob sco๏ฌed.ย โAnd no, before you ask me too, I did not sell your dad a fake identity. I never saw him, you have my word.โ
Bel paused. She might have Bobโs word, but she had something else too, something much more valuable.
โYou sell fake identities?โย she asked, grasping at the thread heโd left. A pause.
โNoโฆI do not.โ
โOK, but if you did know about that kind of thing, how much would it cost someone to buy themselves a whole new identity? Passport? Driverโs license?โ
โIโm telling you, I donโt know anything about thatย kind of thing,โย Bob replied, way too strong in his denial.
โWhat if you had three thousand dollars?โย Bel said, chancing it.ย โWould that be enough?โ
Bob breathed out, the line crackled.
โI think that would be more than enough,โย he said, carefully. Belโs stomachย ๏ฌipped, the knot landing heavy with it.
Her dad hadnโt gone to Bob from Vermont, Bel had his word. But someone else might have.
She chanced again, nothing to lose, even though Uncle Je๏ฌย was right here.ย โSixteen years ago, did Rachel Price come to you to buy a new identity? She would have had the cash to pay you.โ
A shadow crossed Je๏ฌโs eyes, waiting for the answer to play out on Belโs face.
Bob coughed, and Bel couldnโt help thinking that a lie would follow, if he was anything like Je๏ฌ.
She waited.
โNo, she did not,โย Bob said, slowly, clearly.ย โIโve never met Rachel Price. You donโt think I would have told Je๏ฌย if she had? Saved your family all that pain, all these years? She never came to me, you have my word on that too. Neither of your parents, so I donโt know why your dad called me and dragged me into all this. But I want to be kept out of it, you hear?โ
Bel de๏ฌated. Could he be lying about one and not the other? She either trusted his answers or she didnโt.
โLoud and clear, Bob from Vermont,โย she said. The line beeped, went dead.
โHeโs cheerful.โย Bel chucked the phone back to her uncle.
He fumbled, catching it against his chest.ย โWhat did he say?โ
โA lot of nothing.โย Bel sni๏ฌed.ย โDad called him that night, but he didnโt say anything, apparently. Bob never saw him.โ
Je๏ฌย nodded.ย โI trust everything Bob says. He wouldnโt lie.โ
โCourse not. Dark-web criminals are as honest as they come, Uncle Je๏ฌ.โ
He hesitated, one slow blink.ย โWhy do you think your mom is lying about her disappearance?โ
โI donโt.โย Bel shrugged, feigning surprise.ย โDo you?โย Threw it back at him.
โNoโฆโย Je๏ฌโs voice trailed away from him.ย โGood, glad we agree.โ
Je๏ฌย coughed into his closedย ๏ฌst.
โDonโt tell Rachel about that call,โย Bel said, grabbing her abandoned phone.ย โOr Iโll tell her you think you know where she really disappeared to.โ
Je๏ฌย shifted uncomfortably, shoulders rising to his ears.ย โDeal,โย he said, speaking to theย ๏ฌoor.
โGood.โย Bel pushed the door open with her heels, setting Je๏ฌย free. She gave him a pointed thumbs-up.ย โFamilyย ๏ฌrst.โ
Each giving up a little more of Rachel, bit by bit. And even more of themselves.
Familyย ๏ฌrst, and Grandpa was next.
