Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 102280 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 511(@200wpm)___ 409(@250wpm)___ 341(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 102280 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 511(@200wpm)___ 409(@250wpm)___ 341(@300wpm)
“Morrison told him the photographs showed natural erosion and ordered him to stop spreading rumors that would upset Mrs. Morgan. Dennis backed down. He had a family to support, and Morrison made it clear that pursuing the issue would cost him his job with the town.” She met Brooks’s eyes. “But he kept his copies of everything. Just in case.”
“Are those photographs still here?”
“That’s what I’m trying to tell you. They’re gone. Whoever broke in took Dennis’s photographs of the cove and his notes about what he found there. They left everything else.”
Brooks examined the box more carefully. Whoever had searched it knew exactly what they wanted.
“Mrs. Zamil, I need to ask you about your witness statements from 1999. You gave two different descriptions of what Lily was wearing the day she went missing.”
The elderly woman’s face crumpled. “I’ve been waiting for someone to ask me that for twenty-five years.”
“You can tell me the truth now.”
“The first statement was accurate. I saw Lily wearing a red jacket and carrying a black camera bag. I remember because red was her favorite color.” Mrs. Zamil’s voice shook. “Two days later, Chief Morrison came to my house. He said I must have been confused, that other witnesses saw her in a blue sweater with no bag. He suggested I correct my statement before it caused problems for the investigation.”
“He pressured you to change your story.”
“He implied my memory was faulty. Made it clear that contradicting the official narrative would reflect poorly on me.” She looked at the scattered photographs. “I’ve regretted my cowardice every day since. If I’d stood firm, maybe the investigation would have followed different leads. Maybe they would have found her.”
Brooks made careful notes. “Mrs. Zamil, the break-in suggests someone is worried about what Dennis documented. I need to know everything he told you about that cove.”
“He said he found fresh tire tracks leading to the water’s edge. The sand showed signs of recent boat activity. And there were marks on the rock face that suggested someone had been climbing down to a lower area that wasn’t visible from above.” She hesitated. “Dennis thought there might be a cave or tunnel entrance down there. He wanted to investigate further, but Morrison forbade it.”
“Did Dennis ever go back?”
“Not that I know of. But he kept watching the area. He noticed boats coming and going at odd hours, always at night. He documented what he could from a distance.” Mrs. Zamil’s voice dropped to a whisper. “A week after Lily disappeared, Dennis told me he was going to contact the state police. He said the local investigation was compromised and someone outside Westerly Cove needed to know what he’d found.”
“What happened?”
“He died of a heart attack two days later. Fifty-three years old, no history of heart problems, perfectly healthy.” Her eyes filled with tears. “Just like Robert Morgan six months after that. Just like everyone who got too close to the truth.”
Brooks felt the pieces clicking into place. A coordinated effort to silence witnesses and eliminate evidence. Dennis Zamil had been another victim of the same operation that killed Lily Morgan and her father.
“Mrs. Zamil, I’m going to have the state crime scene techs process your shed for evidence. And I need you to think carefully about whether Dennis kept any other copies of his documentation. Hidden somewhere the person who broke in wouldn’t know to look.”
She considered this. “Dennis’s mother lived in the house on Elm Street until she passed in 2010. After she died, I cleared out her attic and found a box of Dennis’s things she’d been storing. I brought it home but never went through it properly.” She paused. “It’s in my basement. I’d forgotten about it until now.”
Twenty minutes later, Brooks carried the dusty box out to his car. Mrs. Zamil had insisted he take it immediately, her fear apparent. Someone had broken into her shed looking for evidence. If they realized Dennis had made additional copies, they might come back.
Back at the station, Brooks locked his office door and opened the box. Inside: more photographs, handwritten notes, and a manila envelope marked “FOR AUTHORITIES IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO ME.”
He opened the envelope carefully. Dennis Zamil’s notes detailed everything he’d observed at the hidden cove. The photographs showed tire tracks, disturbed sand, and most importantly, what appeared to be a concealed entrance in the rock face at the base of the cliff.
Dennis had documented dates and times of suspicious boat activity over several weeks following Lily’s disappearance. He’d noted vehicle descriptions and partial license plate numbers. He’d even managed to photograph two men loading wooden crates from a boat onto a truck at three in the morning.
The photographs were grainy and taken from a distance, but Brooks recognized the location. The same hidden cove where Vivienne’s vision had led them. The same cove that hadn’t been searched during the official investigation.