HAUNTED BY THE PAST, PART SEVEN

"The letter came from a UPS office in New York, " Josie told the family, "They deal with hundreds of packages a day, so at first the clerks didn't remember anything about it, but the FBI got them to watch the security camera tapes, and one of them thinks a guy with dreadlocks is the one who handed it in. She remembers him because he looked like a street person, but he paid with a hundred dollar bill."

"How many street people are there in the Big Apple?" said Cameron, "How are the Feds gonna find one guy?"

"That's where we got lucky." said Josie, "There were fingerprints on the envelope, belonging to a small time drug dealer named Delroy Upjohn. They've got an APB on him."

"I hope they find him soon." said Paulina.

****

Rachel sat at the dressing table and considered the lipstick she held in her hand. It would make a handy tool for writing a message to whoever came to clean her rooms. She could write on the wall, or the mirror - but if she did, she couldn't be sure that Stark wouldn't see it. So far, he hadn't entered the bedroom or the bathroom, but that was no guarantee that he wouldn't. Rachel needed to leave the message where the cleaner would find it, but no one else.

An idea came to her: she took one of the pillows from the bed, holding the pillowslip so that the material was taut, and wrote HELP ME on it. Then she put it back on the bed, lipstick side down. She just hoped the bedlinen would be changed soon.

****

"The FBI found Delroy Upjohn." said Josie, "I'm afraid it was a dead end, though. He says 'a guy' paid him to take the envelope to UPS. The only description he gave is that he 'thinks' the man was wearing a dark overcoat."

"Yeah, well, it turns out Upjohn isn't just a drug dealer - he's his own best customer. 'The guy' told him to keep the change from the hundred dollars, and he spent it all on crack. They've got him in custody until he comes down, but I wouldn't get your hopes up. He probably won't be able to tell them much more than he already has."

"So it's hopeless!" said Amanda, "You'll never find Mother!"

"Stop talking like that, Amanda!" said Paulina, "I'm not giving up! Rachel won't give up!"

****

Allowed out into the garden again, Rachel couldn't help glancing up at the windows of her room, hoping to see a face. Would the cleaner find her message? If so, would she (or he - why assume that only women do housework?) take it straight to Jordan Stark? Fearing that Stark would notice her sudden interest in the cleaning staff, Rachel decided to distract him.

"You know, if you let me spend more time here - if you let me come and go - I could get started weeding this garden." she said, " It's a shame to let it go to ruin like this."

"I don't think that would be wise." said Stark.

" Oh come on!" said Rachel, "The walls must be ten feet high, and I'm scarcely going to escape by climbing down the cliff! Don't you want the garden to be beautiful again?"

"Of course I do, but - "

"Then, leave my door and the outside door unlocked, so I can come downstairs! What harm can it do?"

"Very well, Amalie."