Page 20 of Little Child Gone

“How did you discover they’d gone?” Nikki asked.

“He called me on that Sunday night, upset. He couldn’t find any sign of them.” He looked at Matt. “Honest to God, I thought he’d had a stroke and didn’t know what was going on. I fully expected to see Ms. Smith when I got here, because it made no sense.”

Nikki leaned forward. “Did you search the house and apartment?”

“Yes,” Spencer said. “I do remember smelling bleach here and there in the apartment, but Ms. Smith cleaned with it. I never even considered anything bad.”

“How did the bedroom look?” Miller asked.

“Fine,” Spencer said. “It was clean. She’d even set the two twin mattresses up against the closet and swept the floors. You don’t think my grandpa could have done this, do you? He wasn’t a violent man.”

Nikki nodded. “How long after that did your grandpa go to the nursing home?”

“A few years,” Spencer answered, seeming more panicked. “He was devastated. I tried to spend as much time with him as I could, but I’d started taking classes by then.”

“You never noticed a smell coming from the apartment?” Matt said.

“Lime,” Nikki reminded him. “Courtney said the carpet was covered with lime. It was inside the trunk, too. Did you ever go back into the apartment?”

“No,” he said. “Grandpa boarded up both doors and wouldn’t let anyone inside it.”

“Why did you decide they’d left on their own?” Miller asked.

“All of their things were gone,” he answered. “The cash he kept in his nightstand was gone, along with the Swedish silver tea set that my great-great-grandpa brought from Sweden. Grandpa was devastated. He locked the apartment that day. I don’t think he was hiding anything, I just think he was heartbroken and could barely stand walking by it.”

“Did he report the theft?” Miller asked.

“No, he was embarrassed. I didn’t tell Mom until after he died because he made me promise not to. We just told her Ms. Smith moved on. I did check pawnshops for a while, but the tea set never came up. Thankfully my mom already had Grandma’s jewels.”

Nikki looked at Miller. “Tea set would be valuable but difficult.”

“Needs the right buyer,” he answered. “Were there any other valuables taken?”

“I never heard of any. I remember being surprised she didn’t take my great-grandpa’s Rolex or pocket watch. They were both insured for a high cash value. But the Rolex has a serial number, so we figured that’s why she didn’t take it.”

“Ms. Smith knew about the Rolex?”

“I’m not sure,” Spencer admitted. “Grandpa kept it and the pocket watch in the closet in his bathroom. It wasn’t locked. I’d guess she did from cleaning.”

Nikki knew Miller was thinking the same thing. She didn’t run away. She didn’t steal anything. Either Ms. Smith or Rebecca was likely the female in the trunk.

“Do you remember exactly what weekend this was?” Nikki asked.

Spencer thought about it. “Not exactly, but I bet I can search for the band’s concert schedule.” He pulled out his phone. “There are archives online with all that stuff now.” He scrolled for a few moments. “The third weekend in August.”

“Is there anything else you can think of that might help us figure out what happened?” Nikki asked.

“No,” Spencer said. “Although every time he talked about it after, Grandpa would say he should have known, because Ms. Smith never really unpacked, even though the bedroom had a chest of drawers and closet.”

“What did Ms. Smith look like?” Nikki asked, thinking of Blanchard’s information. “Tall? Short? Dark hair, light?”

“Small,” Spencer said. “She and Rebecca looked a lot alike. They both had dark hair and eyes, real curvy figures, but Rebecca said she got her height from her dad.” He grinned. “Rebecca thought being a few inches taller than her mom made her officially tall.”

“Did your grandfather ever mention her after the first couple of weeks?”

“No, he never mentioned them again. At least, not until he added her to the will.” Spencer smirked.

Nikki and Miller looked at each other in confusion. “Wait,” Nikki said. “Was the amendment about Ms. Smith?”

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