HOUSTON – Enjoy these clear skies now, because it won’t last much the rest of this week in some parts of southeast Texas.

Thursday’s Forecast:

Thursday will bring more heat and a summer feel with highs in the mid-90s.

Rainfall Forecast:

Rain chances return Friday (20%) and ramp up Saturday (40%). The rain chances are mainly for locations along and south of I-10. If you are north of I-10 you likely will remain dry.

Where is Fall?

Unfortunately, a good chunk of the United States is still experiencing way above average temperatures for the rest of this week and honestly, most of next week as well! We’re still seeing 90s here across Texas and 80s for areas that usually don’t see temps this warm this late into summer/early fall.

Tracking the tropics:

The Caribbean and The Gulf of Mexico are quiet for now, but there is a 40% chance a tropical system develops in the Gulf over the next seven days.

By this weekend, the tropical cluster will be entering the Gulf of Mexico and may get better organized. We’ll keep you updated daily on how this system is coming along. Regardless, we’ll likely see some showers and thunderstorms from some of the tropical moisture moving across the area this weekend.

10-day Forecast:

Our next small chance of rain is Friday, lasting through the weekend. A cold front moves through on Monday that will drop our highs to the 80s and lows into the lower-60s. No major cold front coming anytime soon, but we’re always watching out for it!

HOUSTON – A few mysteries are as chilling and unresolved as the Texas Killing Fields. A desolate field off Calder Road in League City, Texas, became the burial ground for four women between 1984 and 1991. Audrey Cook, Donna Prudhomme, Laura Miller, and Hiede Villareal Fye were all found in an abandoned oil field off Calder Road in League City, Tx.

In part-two of four, KPRC 2 Investigates nationally recognized show ‘The Evidence Room,’ takes you into ‘The Texas Killing Fields.’ Forty years later, the pain and fight for answers live on in the voices of the victims’ families.

“September 10, 1984,” Laura’s father Tim Miller begins, his voice heavy from dealing with decades of grief. “I’ll never, ever forget that day.”

“I did everything I knew how to do to keep her alive, but somebody else was determined to take her life,” Miller shares.

For years Miller returned to the cross marking Laura’s final resting place.

“I used to walk up to this cross, and I’d look at Laura’s picture and say, ‘Laura, please don’t’ hate your daddy, I can’t come out here anymore. I have to put my life back together.’ But every time, I’d hear a little voice say, ‘Dad, don’t quit.’ It was like, ‘Damn you, Laura, what are you talking about?”

Miller’s agony didn’t end with the discovery of Laura’s body. Instead, it deepened, when Laura’s remains were finally recovered on February 2, 1986. The family was told they couldn’t bury her right away. The medical examiner needed more time to determine the cause of death.

“60 days came and went. Six months. One year. Two Years. Three years and nine months later, we finally got to get Laura’s remains. Three years and nine months,” Miller bitterly recounted.

A search for answers, and lost faith in the system

The pain of the delay was compounded by the shocking discoveries about how Laura’s remains had been treated.

“I lost faith in the police department,” Miller while anger began to build inside him. “I thought at that time, that if they were to listen to me. If they would have came out here and searched, they would have found her body. She would have been dead, but there may have been some damn evidence.”

In March of 1992, there was another grim discovery. Laura’s remains were sent in a FedEx box to a college for research, even though she was buried in 1989.

“Remember, there 212 bones in a human body. Guess how many there were, 28 bones.” Miller said.

Once Laura’s remains were returned, Miller learned some of Audrey Cook’s remains had been mixed in with his daughter’s remains.

Audrey was found the same day that they found Laura. They weren’t found in the same spot. They were found 60-ft away from each other.

“The fingernails were clipped. They’re not to be found. That’s frustrating because of the DNA that we can have now,” said Audrey Lee Cooke’s sister in law Shirley Love.

The Suspects

Robert Abel, a former NASA engineer, owned property near ‘The Texas Killing Fields,’ and was one of the primary suspects. A League City police warrant, based in part on an FBI profile, named Abel as a suspect. However, after extensive searches of his property and years of questions, Abel was never charged with a single crime. Miller, fueled by anger and grief, confronted Abel.

“I put a gun to that man’s head,” Miller admits.

Despite this, Miller later asked for Abel’s forgiveness when he said he realized he was not responsible for the murders.

In July of 2005, Robert Abel drove his golf cart on to a set of railroad tracks in Bellville, Texas, and was hit by a train. According to Justice of the Peace, Richard Yancey, Abel’s death was ruled accidental. Miller believes Abel committed suicide.

Another suspect in Laura’s case is Clyde Edwin Hedrick.

“I just got to call, to let you know, Galveston County comes SWAT into my house this morning, and I’m over here in Galveston County Jail for that Calder Road stuff and all of them dead girls,” Hedrick was recorded telling someone on his phone after he was brought in for questioning in the death of Ellen Rae Beason.

Don’t miss Part 2 of KPRC 2′s Investigation into the Texas Killing Fields, airing Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. on KPRC 2+.