U Is for Undertow

sister’s revelations. In that split second, I understood how completely my perception of Sutton had been tainted by what she’d told me. Even as I resisted the pull, my response to him was skewed by the notion of his tentative hold on the truth. She’d sworn he’d come around again and, sure enough, he had, offering me a new twist, the next installment in a drama that would otherwise be dead.
    “You’re overthinking this,” I said. “The guys were burying a dog.”
    “I know, but I went over the incident and I wondered if they might have switched the dog’s body for Mary Claire’s after I interrupted them.”
    “Switched bodies? And then what? I don’t understand where you’re going with this.”
    “Well, if I’m right and the guy saw me at the same time I saw him, wouldn’t he realize I was onto them? Why else would the cops suddenly be digging up the hill? He’d know the police were getting close and who else could have tipped ’em off but me?”
    I closed my eyes briefly, forcing down the irritation that was surging up my spine. “Sutton, honestly, you’ll have to forgive my reaction, but I think you’re beating this to death. You were six. That was twenty-one years ago and there’s no evidence whatever that the scene you stumbled on had anything to do with Mary Claire. It’s pure conjecture on your part. Why can’t you admit your mistake and let it go at that?”
    The color came up in his cheeks. “You think I’m wasting your time.” I don’t like being transparent so naturally I denied what he’d said. “I didn’t say you were wasting my time. I understand your concern, but I think it’s misplaced. You can’t be this paranoid.”
    He stared at the ground and then looked up again. “I wanted you to have the information in case something happens to me. I didn’t know who else to tell.”
    “Nothing’s going to happen to you.”
    “But in case it did. That’s all I’m trying to say. I’ve seen the guy somewhere, but it wasn’t recently.”
    “Fair enough,” I said. “I don’t believe you’re in any danger, but what do I know? If it makes you feel better, go ahead and tell me the rest. What did he look like?”
    “He was kind of light-haired and not too tall and he was wearing a suit.”
    “Can you be more specific? There were six or seven guys out there who fit that description.”
    “Not that many. I’d say three, not counting the officers.”
    “But it still doesn’t help. The information’s too sketchy and it does me no good,” I said. “I mean, I thought it was pure genius on my part that I found the burial spot based on the flimsy information you gave me the first time out, but I have my limitations . . .”
    I stopped. Sutton was watching me with a look of such mute pleading that I relented. “But enough about me,” I said. “What about his car? Did you see what he was driving?”
    He shook his head. “I wasn’t paying attention. I only noticed him when he’d already parked and he was standing by the road. Next thing I knew, he was gone again.”
    I stared at him.
    “Sorry,” he said, sheepishly. “I see what you mean. I haven’t given you much to go on.”
    “Would you recognize him if you saw him again?”
    “I think so. I’m pretty sure I would.” He hesitated. “If I do, what should I do? Should I, like, follow him or maybe get the number off his license plate?”
    “The plate number, sure, but I don’t want you tagging around after the guy. He’ll think you’re a stalker. In any event, the chances of your spotting him again seem remote.”
    “True. Anyway, I feel better now that I’ve told you.”
    “Good. Is there anything else?”
    He looked up, fixing me with those solemn brown doggie eyes. “I know my sister was there. I saw her talking to you.”
    “She’s a reporter. That’s what she does. She managed to buttonhole anyone who’d give her the time of day. So what?”
    I could see him arranging his words with care.
    Blinking, he said, “A long time ago, I caused big trouble in my family. Diana likes to tell people what I did because she’s still furious with me. She acts like she’s being a good citizen, warning people about the kind of person I am, but it’s really her way of sticking a knife in my gut.”
    “Sutton, it’s no big deal. You told me you were estranged so it’s not like you were hiding anything.”
    “In a way, I was. I should have filled in the rest.”
    “You don’t owe me an