LIVING ON THE EDGE

CHAPTER: 24

Sharon had not been to Maury County for quite some time, but she remembered the area well. She had been placed there when she was fresh out of the police academy, and quickly learned that it was a great place to disappear or die. Graduating high school was virtually unheard of, and finishing college was a miracle in Maury County. Seemed like an odd place for someone like Melanie to grow up. 

"When did you move from 6th Avenue?" Sharon asked her.

In the mid-nineties," Melanie replied.

"Where did you move after that?" Sharon asked.

"When I was eighteen, I moved to the University of Texas," Melanie replied.

"Nice. How long were you there?" Sharon asked.

"A few years. Then I transferred later to Huntsville."

"Huntsville is a great place to live in. Do you ever go back to Texas to visit?" Sharon questioned her. 

"Sometimes... Not as often as I would like, but a couple of times every year," Melanie replied.

"I spent some time in Texas after I graduated from college; a great place to visit," Sharon said. 

Melanie nodded. The interview was starting to ebb. Sharon decided to ask a few more questions and then wrap things up.

"Adriana was into yoga, but she pretty much seemed like a soccer mom in practice. She was a homemaker, red meat eater, Nashville township address... seems like her life was totally different from yours. What was the connection?" Sharon asked her.

Melanie reflected on the question for a moment and smiled. It was the first time her lips had curled into an attitude of patronizing superiority. "It just so happens that different people who live different lifestyles can be friends, Mrs. Stone. How long were you married?"

It was an odd question to swerve onto the end of her statement. Sharon hesitated before responding. "Not long enough." The struggle to keep the pain out of her voice failed.

"Ah. For that, I am very sorry, Mrs. Stone." This time Melanie was sincere and concerned; the counselor in her peeping out.

"I met Daniel Stone when I was five years old. We married in our mid-twenties, and Daniel died a few months after his thirtieth birthday."

"Your one true love..." Melanie asked.

"Correct," Sharon replied. An awkward pause hung in the air. Her thoughts drifted away from the interview.

"I have a class in ten minutes; I must prepare," Melanie said, pulling a business card off the desk.

"Thanks for your time," Sharon said.

"I know I have not been terribly helpful, but if you need to speak to me again, feel free to call or email." Melanie then stood up and handed her the card. She was so small, but there was a certain sense of power emitting from her. Sharon could not put her finger on what it was.

"Thank you again, Melanie." Sharon shook her tiny hand and smiled, catching a nervous smirk on Melanie's lips, before she turned to leave.

"I hope you find out what happened to Adriana. She was a good person and Chase deserves to know," Melanie said as she headed for the front door. Sharon noticed that her warm, calm tone had returned.

                                                                         ***********

Melanie Jackson was difficult to read, but the fact that she had lived in Maury County meant that she had ties to the area where Adriana had been murdered. Even though almost two decades separated her residency in the neighborhood and Adriana's demise, it was quite a coincidence. There had also been some hesitation in telling Sharon where she had grown up. Melanie said she had met Adriana when they were living a 'different kind of life.' She had never mentioned where they had met, but she had known her since high school. But if they met around Spring High School, they were probably somewhere in Central Maury County.

Various scenarios ran through her head as Sharon crept along the narrow dirt road. Adriana Reed was killed in an alley in Maury County. It meant that the alley she was dumped in was one street over from where Melanie Jackson had lived on Cedar Street and 6th Avenue. It was the alley behind Shop No: 96. Of course, Melanie had moved away from Maury County sometime during the mid-nineties, and Adriana's body was found in 2019. Well over two-decade had elapsed between when Melanie lived in Maury County and when Adriana's body was found. What was the connection?

Melanie Jackson knew more than she was saying. She had also been a little cagey about her life. Sharon made a mental note to find out more about her when she reached home. She glanced at the time on her wristwatch. It was 11:00 a.m. She was not meeting Nicholas Davies until 4:30 p.m. that afternoon, which meant she could swing by Maury County. 

There were not many restaurants in Maury County, but if Adriana had spent time with a friend, or anyone else, they would have probably stopped by Catfish Campus at 2509 Keith Drive, serving the best fish and chips. It had been in the neighborhood for decades. Sharon stopped at the place, it had simple wooden chairs and cafeteria-style tables that lined the restaurant. The walls were covered in fishing and shipping equipment. Sharon took in the sights and waited patiently to talk with the cashier.

The woman at the counter wore an unremarkable ponytail that reached up to her waist. Her face was devoid of make-up but was pretty. 

"How are things in Maury County these days?" Sharon asked.

"Just the same," the middle-aged woman at the counter said without looking up from the register. She pointed Sharon in the direction of the table at the corner.

Sharon sat down and surveyed the room, taking note of the seven other patrons. None of them looked like residents of the neighborhood, that lined Maury County. The place was filled with professionals and elderly couples crowded around tables. This was a place out of time. After cashing out several patrons, the woman from the cash register came to her table, with a pen and pad in hand.

"Have you ever seen this lady?" Sharon pulled out Adriana's picture and put it on the tabletop.

"Yeah, she has been in here with another lady," The woman answered.

"Was she here more than once?" Sharon asked.

"Yeah, a couple of times. May I know who is asking?"

"Sharon Stone. I am investigating her murder," Sharon replied.

The cashier looked up; her eyes wide with alarm. "Oh, that is the lady, isn't it? The one that was having an affair and got killed? Probably she was involved with a criminal gang. She should have known better..."

"What can you tell me about the two women?" Sharon asked.

"Nothing special... They just seemed like two friends. They laughed, ate lunch, and talked," The cashier replied.

"What did the other woman look like?" Sharon asked.

"Short, tiny actually, with black hair in a bun. Pretty."

Melanie Jackson? It should be. But why were they coming here so many times? Neither of them lived here in the neighborhood, Sharon was lost in her thoughts.