Page 55 of June's First Murder
Nana June immediately scooted her chair over, abandoning the microfiche. "What did you find?"
"Diana Rosetti," Sara Lee said quietly, turning the laptop so June could see the screen. "Arrested seven years ago. She was found guilty of embezzlement. She served three years. That would have put her in the system the same time that Helena was in jail for the two weeks before she was released."
"And what can you find on Diana Rosetti since she was released?" Nana June leaned closer to read.
"She did one year of parole, and then I can't find anything on her."
"When was that?"
"Three years ago." Sara Lee met her grandmother's eyes. "When Diane appeared and got a job as a library assistant here."
"Remember her address history," June said, her finger tracing down the page. "She lived in Richmond for six years before coming here. Before that..." She paused. "Nothing. No previous addresses listed."
"That's odd, isn't it?" Sara Lee asked. "Most people have a paper trail. Previous jobs, previous addresses."
"Very odd. And remember her references? All from the library in Richmond. All from people who'd known her recently." June made a note in her small notebook. "It's as if Diane didn't exist before then."
Sara Lee thought about the terror on Diane's face,the way she asked about murder, the way she fled down the sidewalk. "So Diana becomes Diane. Then moves here for a quieter life. Why?"
"Running from something," June murmured. "Or someone. And Raymond recognized her or knew about her new identity."
Sara Lee felt her stomach drop. Turning to Nana June, she asked, "What do we do?"
"We go talk to Diane."
24
JUNE
June and Sara Lee wove between the tables to the front of the library, where Diane was locking the door since the public hours were over. The late afternoon sun cast long shadows across the stacks of books. The library felt different when empty… larger somehow, the silence more complete without the usual rustle of pages and whispered conversations.
"Can we chat?" June asked gently when she reached the circulation desk.
Diane stood near the door, her hand still on the lock. She held their gaze for a moment, and June saw the war playing out behind her eyes, the desire to flee battling against something else. Resignation, perhaps. Or maybe relief that the waiting was finally over.
Then Diane smiled, though it didn't reach her eyes. "Of course."
She led them through the familiar halls to one of the small conference rooms June knew well from her decades working there. The space held a table, fourchairs, and filing cabinets lining one wall. A window overlooking the alley let in the late afternoon light, and June noticed how it illuminated the dust motes floating in the air, making them look like tiny stars suspended in space.
The three women settled into the chairs. Once seated, Diane folded her hands in her lap and asked with false brightness, "What can I do for you?"
June knew her granddaughter would let her lead. Sara Lee understood that sometimes the best support was simply presence, simply being there while difficult truths emerged.
"Diane," June began, her voice soft and steady. "We know about Diana Rosetti."
Of course, June had no idea if the two were the same person, but she needed to see Diane's reaction. Sometimes the truth revealed itself not in words but in the spaces between them, in the catch of breath or the widening of eyes.
And she wasn't disappointed.
A little gasp slipped out. Even though Diane tried to clear her expression, to smooth away the shock and return to that pleasant library assistant mask she wore so well, she wasn't able to maintain the look of innocence. Her shoulders sagged as if invisible strings holding her upright had been suddenly cut, and instantly she appeared as if the weight of the world was on her.
Diane nodded slowly, clasping her hands together so tightly her knuckles turned white against her skin. “I wondered when my past might come back to me.”
"What happened, my dear?" June asked, her voice soft and her expression empathetic. She really did want to know what had happened to cause this sweet woman to serve time in jail, change her identity, and move to live under a false name in a small town.
Diane looked up, her gaze landing first on June, then shifting to Sara Lee, then back to June. When she spoke, her voice was barely above a whisper, as if saying the words any louder might shatter something fragile in the room. "I was young... stupid... made a horrible decision."
June waited, letting the silence stretch between them. She'd learned long ago that people needed space to find their words, and that sometimes the most compassionate thing you could do was simply accept the quiet.
