Untitled, part 6

When Tessa woke up the next morning, her clock read 7:35. She had last looked at it at 3:10. She was exhausted, but she had found that all the women had one more thing in common: they all had one child, and each child was under five years of age. It seemed vague, but Tessa was willing to bet it had something to do with the case. She just didn’t know what. The fourth woman to be killed was named Martha Harshore. She was a single mother who worked for her brother’s travel agency. Her brother’s name was Jack Harshore. Tessa decided she would talk to Jack to see if he knew anything about his sister that might be helpful. She almost called Clives, but decided to continue the case on her own. She knew this was a risk, but it was one she would have to take if she was going to find anything out. It would also be very easy to talk to Mr. Harshore discreetly because his agency was located in her home town. Tessa phoned Agent Roderick’s office to tell him she was going to visit her aunt. Roderick told her that was fine, but not to get distracted. Tessa assured him that she would continue to work on the case, and the two said good-bye. Tessa could not believe that Roderick had not even asked her why she was visiting. She had even been planning to tell him that her aunt was sick and needed care. But he had just let her go. She decided to dismiss his carelessness as simple trust, and then she started planning what she would ask Mr. Harshore. If he and his sister had been close it would be much easier to find things out. On the other hand, he might be more protective of her privacy. Tessa decided to be somewhat vague at first to see how he would handle her questions. Her first question would obviously be how well the two knew each other, and she would see where to go from there. She only hoped he would be willing to talk at all.

Well, chalk one up to novocaine. When I got home today, my mouth was completely numb. You all should have been there, I could barely talk. anyway, the left side of my mouth continued to be numb far longer than the right, and the tip of my tongue couldn't taste a thing. I can feel everything now, but my cheeks still are swollen, making me look like a squirrel impersonator. And, for those of you who were wondering, they pulled 5 of the 6 wisdom teeth. Figures that the first stitches I ever get would be in my mouth. As Yzma would say, "It's called a cruel irony."