The first link happened to be to the website for the local Black Hills paper. Following it brought her to the electronic archives for the paper, but it needed a log-in for access. Deciding to come back to that, she tried a few more links.
The local paper for a small town in Pennsylvania wasn't password protected. Sadie was able to learn the name of Zach's friend who died, read the basics of his death and see pictures of him, his fellow soldiers and his grief-stricken family.
Sad. Very sad.
As if that wasn't heartbreaking enough, there were excerpts from Zach's speech at his friend's memorial service, held after the soldiers made their final trip home. But it was a random sentence, late in the article, that told her she had to search further. As commanding officer, Zach had faced an inquiry into his friend's death. No results were mentioned there, or in any other articles she read.
Frustrated, Sadie dropped back against her chair with a short sigh. What should she do now?
"Are you finding everything you need, ma'am?"
No. Sadie looked up into the face of a young woman who had a library volunteer tag on her shirt. No one had bothered her here in the corner, and Sadie had been grateful for the privacy. But maybe this young woman would know...
"Does the library have access to the local newspaper's archives?"
The woman smiled. "We have the oldest editions on microfiche, but we have a subscription to the modern edition that's available online."
Well, wasn't that handy. Sadie might have been happy if this wasn't such an awful thing to be doing.
The young lady got her logged in and showed her how to search the archives.
"So I can just put in a date range, like this?" Sadie asked, typing in the dates for the two months after the incident.
"Yes," the volunteer answered. "When you do that, it comes up in this neat preview version." The screen filled with rows of little preview boxes, each with a thumbnail picture inside and a date directly below it.
"Cool," Sadie said, scanning the pictures.
"You're the photographer lady, right?"
Startled, Sadie looked up at the girl. Cautiously, she nodded, but the other woman didn't seem to notice her sudden reticence. What if she started blabbing about Sadie's search?
"I thought so," the young woman went on. "I saw you at the mill one day when I was there to take my dad some medicine while he was working on the cleanup. I heard some of the workmen talking about you." She reached across to take control of the mouse so she could choose one selection pretty close to the middle. "You might find this interesting, since I heard you were spending a lot of time with Zach Gatlin."
Sure enough, the preview had a photo of half of Zach's face on one side, something that Sadie hadn't had time to scan down to see yet. When the woman clicked, the front page of the paper loaded, including a story with the headline Hometown Hero Returns After Tragic Ending to Tour.
Sadie sat frozen, unwilling to believe the woman had picked out the very story she needed to read.
"It was the talk of the town, even before he came home," she went on. "He was lucky to even be alive. I just happened to be in Lola's when KC brought him home from the airport. I'll never forget his mama's face."
Having met Zach's mom and seen how much she loved her son, Sadie could very much imagine.
The young lady looked up as another employee appeared on the other side of the computer terminals and said, "Sweetie, Miss Jane needs a bit of a hand with story time, if you don't mind."
"Sure," the volunteer said with an eager smile, then turned to Sadie. "Hope that helps. If you need anything else, just flag one of us down." Sadie was grateful for her eagerness to help, but she needed to be alone...now.
"Will do." But Sadie sincerely hoped this was her last avenue of investigation.
It wasn't until the women walked away that Sadie read through the story. It looked as though Zach's involvement had indeed been questioned. But right below the picture of him and his sister embracing at the airport, it stated that he'd been found not guilty of any wrongdoing.
Sadie searched through nearly a month's worth of articles until she finally found the most in-depth account she could have gotten. It was obvious from the cautious tone of the article that the author didn't yet know the outcome of the inquiry.
According to the author's source, there were accusations of inadequate planning and reconnaissance, which could have meant anything, since the military was unlikely to release every detail that was being questioned. Zach was being held responsible in his friend's death, since he was the highest-ranking member of the team and had given the orders during the mission.
After reading all the way through, then one more time for good measure, Sadie cleared her browser history and closed the window. She leaned back, then looked up at the ceiling, as if the answer to her question could be found there. Even without her bias toward Zach, Sadie could tell this was just an instance of wrong place, wrong time. Zach had gotten off without even a reprimand, as far as she could tell.
But that didn't stop him from searching for what he could have done differently to save his friend. The nightmares were his mind's way of playing out his questions and his guilt. They were lessening with time, but would probably never go away.
That was punishment enough.
Now Sadie knew the truth. Her own search was over-her own guilt just beginning.
Fourteen
Sadie was once more wearing her fancy blue dress from the Blackstones' party, hoping those who had seen it before would understand she was from out of town and hadn't traveled with a steamer trunk full of formal gowns.
Her heart pounded as she waited for Zach, nausea welling up inside her. He'd paused to talk with the country club valet, whom he knew from working at the mill. If she could just stand here and watch him forever, she'd be so happy.
But deep down, she knew she had to end this tonight. Somehow she would find the courage to tell him the truth. He deserved to know how to claim his inheritance, and she'd decided he should hear it from her.
But first, just one more night together. One last memory.
Finally he headed her way, his dark good looks set off by the black suit and tie. She savored the way his gaze traced her body. No other man would make her feel as wanted as Zach did. She knew that beyond a doubt.
They joined the Blackstones at their table. Sadie realized she must be getting used to attending these events with Zach, because that feeling of unreality she usually experienced had disappeared. Too bad this wouldn't last. As soon as she returned to Dallas, she'd be extra busy looking for a new position. Hopefully in the same social circles her former boss had enjoyed, so she could continue to keep their heads above water as best she could.
Victor had continued to pay her regular salary, in addition to all of her travel expenses, as if she were on a regular business trip, instead of seeking to ruin a man's reputation. But when she came back empty-handed, all of that income would end.
She had some contacts within those social circles, so that might help. But her foremost concern was that her sister needed to remain close to the hospital and doctors who currently treated her. Sadie would hate to be separated from her family, but without the bonus from Victor, for finding dirt to disqualify Zach from his inheritance, finding work would be essential.
Wherever she could find it.
Christina sat opposite Sadie. The tired cast to her face prompted Sadie's concern. The poor thing must be exhausted after handling her mother-in-law's death, plus her own grief and her pregnancy, too. "How are you, Christina?" Sadie asked quietly, not wanting to draw undue attention.
The other woman's smile seemed bittersweet. "I'm managing. Just trying to focus on what's right in front of us, you know?"
Sadie didn't, but she could imagine, so she nodded.
Before she could respond further, Aiden rose from his chair to look over the table. Everyone's attention turned to him. He appeared comfortable in his role as head of the family. His normally tough gaze as he took in those around him seemed to soften and glow. "Thank you for being here tonight. We wanted our family and closest friends here to celebrate the joy that is coming to our family-our newest baby, who will be joining us soon, along with the return of our brother Luke and his engagement to one of Black Hills's own treasures, Avery Prescott."
Quiet applause and smiles erupted. Sadie glanced down the length of the table, noting the people she recognized. Luke Blackstone and his fiancée were new to her, along with an older couple someone had mentioned were a doctor and his wife, friends of both the Blackstones and Prescotts, and mentors of Avery Prescott. Zach and Bateman and his family were there from the mill. She was impressed to see both Nolen and Marie present, along with a younger woman Marie had introduced to Sadie as her niece, Nicole. There was a mix of ages, stations in life and connections, but Sadie had found that the Blackstones embraced others based on their presence in their lives, not what they were capable of doing for them.