Page 19 of Little Child Gone

“He put a want ad in the newspaper.” Spencer smirked. “Didn’t tell my mom, who thought she was in charge by then. God, she was pissed.”

Stephanie Bancroft, the sibling who’d fought the will. “Why?”

“She said it was because this woman came out of nowhere, and Grandpa hired her without letting Mom do any kind of background check.” He shifted in his chair. “He and Mom butted heads a lot. She likes to be boss. He didn’t like to be bossed.”

“Sounds like most men,” Nikki said. “Did your grandpa have any sort of background check run on her?”

Spencer snickered. “He was very old school. He went by his guts. And he told Mom the idea that Ms. Smith could hurt him was just ignorant. They didn’t speak that whole summer.”

“Did she not have a first name?” Nikki asked.

“Not that I heard,” Spencer replied.

“Did your mom ever meet Ms. Smith for herself?”

“Not that I know of,” Spencer said. “I met her a few times. She seemed nice. Grandpa adored her kids. She had a toddler and a couple of older kids.”

“How old were they?” Nikki asked, thinking about her conversation with Blanchard this morning.

“Teenagers,” he said. “I think the boy was a freshman and the oldest girl was a senior. Her name was Rebecca. She told me they were homeschooled.”

A boy in his freshman year of high school could easily be the male remains. Blanchard hadn’t mentioned whether the adult female had given birth, so she could be Ms. Smith or her daughter Rebecca. If Spencer was right, where were the surviving family members? Where was the toddler?

“Did Ms. Smith tell your grandpa anything about her life before she came to work for him?” Nikki asked.

“Not that he told me,” Spencer said. “She was an incredible cook and doted on Grandpa. He bragged about how well she kept the house. She practically cleaned before it was dirty. And Rebecca played the piano. Grandpa let her play on his piano. That pissed my mom off. Me and my cousins could never touch the thing.” Spencer shrugged.

“Do you remember when Ms. Smith started working for him? You said summer but can you narrow down the date any?” Nikki asked, wondering if the neighbors had seen this woman or her children on the property.

“I know it was spring, because my mom said the kids not being in school was weird. That’s when Rebecca told me they were homeschooled.”

“Did you spend much time with Rebecca?” Nikki asked, noticing a change in his tone of voice.

He grinned. “She was beautiful. Thick, dark hair and these eyes that seemed to swallow a person whole. I know that sounds stupid.”

“No, it doesn’t,” Nikki said, realizing he had a crush on her. “So you liked her? Did you date her?”

Spencer blushed. “I wanted to date her. We actually went to a concert the weekend they disappeared. I never saw her after that night.”

“Can you tell us about it?” Miller asked.

Spencer looked at the floor for a few moments, rubbing a ring on a chain around his neck. “I invited Rebecca to see a concert with me in Rochester.” He looked at Matt. “I was driving that Nissan GT I told you about. That car floated. I miss that thing, but I’d probably be dead if I’d kept it. Too much power for me.” He shifted in the chair. “Grandpa had gone fishing at Big Marine Lake for the weekend.”

“What exactly were the living arrangements?” Miller asked.

“I believe she stayed in a bedroom down the hall from Grandpa with her youngest son, and Rebecca and her brother used the apartment. That’s how Rebecca was able to sneak out with me that night. Ms. Smith didn’t want her dating or leaving the property much.”

“She wanted Rebecca specifically not to go anywhere?”

“All of them,” Spencer said. “It was weird, but Ms. Smith took really good care of Grandpa and he was happy, so I didn’t really think about it. But I was kind of surprised Rebecca agreed to defy her mom and sneak out with me to go to the concert.”

“Do you remember what time you two got back here that night?” Nikki asked.

“God, after midnight, I’m sure. I know the show didn’t end until eleven p.m. or so and the drive back is over an hour. It might have been closer to one a.m.”

“Was your grandpa home at that time?”

Spencer nodded. “He never left for the lake until after sunrise. But he slept like the dead, so I wasn’t worried about him catching Rebecca.”

---