Page 66 of In Her Bed
“That’s one hell of a leap,” Morgan said, shaking his head.“The employee specifically said she meant the house.”
“She interpreted,” Jenna corrected.“She didn’t know for certain.”
Colonel Spelling had been quiet, but now he studied Jenna with that penetrating gaze she’d come to recognize—the look that said he knew she wasn’t sharing everything but wasn’t going to press her on it.
“Diana Wells hasn’t been connected to that station in what, twenty-five years?”Morgan argued.“We have a concrete address and a pattern of behavior versus your...hunch.”
Jenna held her ground.“My professional assessment suggests we should check both locations.”
Morgan threw up his hands.“Fine.Spelling and I will check the address we actually have.You and your deputy can waste time at an abandoned factory if that’s how Genesius County wants to allocate its resources.”
He stalked back to his cruiser, leaving Colonel Spelling standing with Jenna and Jake.The Colonel’s expression remained impassive, but his eyes held a question.
“Graves,” he said quietly, “is there something specific pointing you toward that factory?”
Jenna met his gaze.“I have reason to believe I’m right.”
Spelling nodded, not asking for details she couldn’t provide.“You have my number.We’ll check the house, but I’m keeping a unit available.Call if you need backup.”
“Thank you, Colonel,” Jenna said.
As Spelling headed toward Morgan’s cruiser, Jake asked Jenna, “Alright, what am I missing?That had something to do with Sandra in the dream, didn’t it?”
“Sandra told me the killer talked about luring the Midnight Voice ‘to where it all started,’ “Jenna confirmed, as they walked quickly toward their vehicle.“The place where she ‘spoke to the world.’Those were her exact words.”
Jake opened the driver’s side door.“And you’re certain that means the radio station?”
“It makes more sense than her childhood home,” Jenna said, sliding into the passenger seat.“Think about it—Diana became the Midnight Voice at Astral Waves.That’s where she ‘spoke to the world.’Where it all started for her public persona.”
Jake started the engine.“Morgan’s going to be insufferable if we’re right.”
Jenna was already pulling up the location on her phone.The GPS map on her phone zoomed out to show the location of the abandoned Ozark Sole Works factory on the outskirts of Pinecrest.Jenna’s intuition hummed like a live wire.She was right about this—she had to be.
“There,” she said, holding up the phone for Jake to glance at.“Four miles northwest, just off Route 7.”
Jake pulled away from the curb, accelerating.Jenna stared ahead, hoping they weren’t already too late.
CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
The bus lurched to a stop, and Diana Wells steadied herself against the metal pole.Her heart quickened as she stepped down from the bus.The doors wheezed shut behind her, and the vehicle pulled away, leaving her alone on the empty street corner.Streetlights flickered erratically, some dead entirely, creating pools of darkness between islands of sickly yellow light.
Diana pulled her coat tighter.After decades of broadcasting the unseen, of channeling ethereal voices, she was finally about to meet her guardian spirit for the first time.
She wondered, what form would he take?
She walked the block toward the factory—three stories of weathered brick, most windows broken or boarded, smokestacks rising against the night sky.It had once bustled with workers crafting shoes that walked across America, but had fallen to economic change.
Then the old building had been the birthplace of Astral Waves, where Diana had transformed into the Midnight Voice.Now it stood as a hollow monument, no longer of use.
When she reached the heavy wooden entrance doors, she saw that boards blocking the way had been pried loose.One had fallen entirely, leaving a gap wide enough to slip through.She ducked through the opening into the dark interior.Dim light filtered through broken windows.Her eyes adjusted slowly, revealing the cavernous main floor of the factory.
She hadn’t spent much time on this floor much during her Astral Waves days.They had built the small broadcast tower on the roof, and Ray had kept their equipment hidden in the basement.
Diana moved deeper into the factory, toward the back stairwell they had always used.When she opened that door, she saw that the thin beams of light barely penetrated the first few steps.She would be descending into absolute darkness.
She placed one hand against the cold wall, using it as a guide.By the third step, the weak light from the factory floor no longer reached her.The darkness was absolute and disorienting.The fourth step.The fifth.How many were there?In her memory, a dozen or so, but memory was a tricky companion.
Halfway down, doubt crept in.What if she fell?What if this was a mistake?Then a sound came from below.
