“I’ll pay you back.”
“You still owe me from February.”
She went quiet.
Then she said something I spent years regretting.
“You love me better when I’m a problem you can solve.”
I snapped.
“And you love me best when I don’t say no.”
She hung up.
Three days later, police contacted Mom.
A fire had destroyed a roadside motel where Rebecca had apparently been staying.
The woman registered in her room had been badly burned.
Her wallet contained Rebecca’s driver’s license.
A bracelet Mom recognized was found among the remains.
Dental identification was inconclusive because Rebecca’s childhood dental records had been destroyed when her dentist’s practice flooded.
DNA testing wasn’t routine in the way people imagine it is now, particularly when authorities believed they had identification, personal effects, witness statements, and a family confirming belongings.
Mom identified the bracelet.
I identified Rebecca’s overnight bag.
