Page 26 of Not Our Daughter

This seemed to compel the boy in a positive way. He looked at his phone and used a finger to scroll. “Nine twenty-eight tonight. She texted me to tell me how much she liked my birthday present and enjoyed hanging out with me today. It’s her birthday, you know?”

“Yes, we do,” Burns said. “Was there any communication after that?”

Tyler shook his head. “I keep texting her, but she isn’t responding.”

“Is that unusual?” Davis questioned.

“Yeah, for sure. We usually text each other until one of us falls asleep. It’s been that way for the last two weeks straight. But not tonight. I knew something was wrong.”

“Do you mind if we take a look at your texts from tonight?” Burns asked.

“You want my phone?” Tyler said, clutching his phone tightly, as if they were asking him to donate a vital organ. Izzy acted the same way with her phone. Like handing it over for even a few seconds might cut off her oxygen.

“Yes,” Burns said. “We’ll give it right back.”

Tyler looked over at his dad for either rescue or reassurance, who told him to do it. So the kid hesitantly handed the phone over to Burns. Both he and Davis did a quick review. As the boy had mentioned, Jade had texted Tyler around nine thirty to thank him for the present. Then there were a half dozen follow-up texts from Tyler over the past hour and a half asking what she was doing and why she wasn’t responding. The timing made sense considering the police had arrived at the Shipleys’ house only ten minutes after her last text—finding them gone. The tone of her text to Tyler made Burns believe Jade did not know she was about to flee with her family. He did a quick scroll up and scanned other messages between them from the past couple of days. There were literally hundreds. Mostly emojis and abbreviated slang he would never understand. There was nothing that seemed relevant to the current situation. Just awkward teenage love banter. He’d read the same exact thing on Izzy’s phone while she was sleeping at his condo. Of course, his daughter didn’t know he had access. She’d probably never talk to him again if she did. But he couldn’t help himself. He wanted to know (and investigate) what boys she liked. So far, none of them had a juvenile record, at least.

He set the phone on the coffee table. “Was Jade acting unusual today?”

Tyler shook his head. “No, sir. She was really happy.”

“Was there any mention of her family going somewhere tonight?”

“Like where?”

“Out of town.”

“No, Jade would’ve told me. We’re supposed to hang out tomorrow.”

Davis said, “Has she ever mentioned anything to you about her parents having a second place somewhere? Like a condo? Or a cabin? A rental property? Anything like that?”

Tyler frowned. “No, sir. Her dad is only a schoolteacher. And her mom barely even works part-time. I don’t think they have much money. Jade actually told me they hadn’t gone on a real vacation in years because money was so tight. That’s also why she hasn’t been able to get the surgery she needs. It’s way too expensive.”

“What kind of surgery?” Burns asked.

“Spinal fusion surgery. She has severe scoliosis. This past year, she started dealing with a lot of pain and even had to stop cheering. But her dad told her today they were finally going to be able to do the surgery. She was so happy about it.”

Burns thought about the offshore account Cole had accessed this morning. It now made sense why he’d risked transferring the money out after letting it sit dormant for all these years. He was doing it for his daughter. That sat heavy with him for a second. He would’ve done the same thing for Izzy. But it would cost Cole his freedom.

“How well do you know her parents?” Burns asked.

The boy shrugged. “Her mom is pretty cool. We’ve spoken a couple of times. I haven’t met her dad yet. Jade keeps saying he’d freak out if he even knew we were hanging out.”

Burns grinned. “Girls’ dads can be like that sometimes.” He leaned forward, changed directions. “Jade ever tell you anything about her parents’ past?”

“What do you mean?” Tyler said.

“Like when they were younger. Or places they’ve lived before.”

“Not really. They used to live in Denver. That’s where Jade was born. I think her mom grew up somewhere in Arizona. Jade has pictures of her mom back when she was a high school cheerleader.”

Burns nodded. The first part was of course a lie—Jade had obviously not been born in Denver. But the second part, about Lisa Shipley once being a high school cheerleader in Arizona, was true. He’d been wondering all evening if Jade knew anything at all about their family’s real origin story. Had they kept everything about their past a secret from her?

“Is texting the way you two communicate?” he asked the boy.

“Yes, sir. I mean, we also talk on the phone sometimes. But we mainly text.”

Burns knew he could confiscate the boy’s phone as evidence, if he wanted. But he had other plans and needed to keep it in Tyler’s possession. Out of questions, he stood, thanked Tyler and his dad for their time, and then pulled two business cards from his wallet and handed them out. “If you hear from her, will you please call me and let me know? We want to keep her safe, Tyler. But we can only do that if we find her and her parents.”

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