Page 39 of Little Child Gone

“It’s more their mom. Taylor doesn’t talk much about his dad, at least he doesn’t complain about him. But he and his mom fight a lot.”

“What do they fight about?”

“Everything,” Neena answered. “Stupid daily stuff. She tells him to do something, and he doesn’t want to, that sort of thing.”

“He’s just that way with Christy?” Nikki clarified. “Did he ever say why?”

“Not really,” she answered. “Just that she was a mess until she met Jared. I think he’s got some bad memories from when he was little. He doesn’t like to talk about it.”

“Has he talked about running away? Maybe going back to Indianapolis to be with friends?”

“No,” Neena said. “He likes this school and band, and like I said, he would never leave his siblings. He and Amelia are only eleven months apart, and Caden’s not that much younger. And he adores little Penny.”

“He and Jared seem close, though, right?” Nikki had to consider the Halls as suspects as well. Nine times out of ten, missing kids were taken by someone close to them.

“I didn’t know Jared wasn’t his real dad until he told me,” Neena answered. “Jared bought his first set of drums. He plays, too.”

“I’m sure it’s noisy when they’re together.” Nikki smiled. “Have you spent much time at his house?”

“Yeah, me and Logan have been over there plenty of times. His mom always makes a fuss. She’s nice.”

Nikki caught the note in her voice. “But?”

“I don’t know,” Neena said. “She just tries so hard, you know? Like, she’ll make cookies or cupcakes for us, but she doesn’t let them get snacks out of the cupboard, and they have to drink water or milk. She’s always cooking, the house is always perfect. It’s like she’s afraid we won’t like her or something. I think she’s trying to make up for the bad times. Amelia told me her mom can’t forgive herself for stuff. Taylor never wanted to talk about that sort of thing, though.”

Nikki asked her a few more questions about the rest of Taylor’s friends, making sure she had all their names. Neena backed up the family’s claim that his circle was small and while he was friendly with other kids in the band, he only spent time outside of school with Neena and Logan. “Thanks for not texting Logan.”

“Yeah, but I bet he knows by now. The drumline has a group text chat.”

“That reminds me, Taylor’s iPhone is older and doesn’t have GPS capability if it’s not on.”

Neena snickered. “I know, we tease him all the time.”

Nikki glanced at Holly, who’d been listening intently without interrupting. “Listen, Neena. I know every kid has secrets. I don’t care if Taylor has things he hides from his parents. I’m not going to rat him out if he does, but is there any chance he could have another phone? Maybe one that he paid for himself that his parents don’t know about?”

Neena seemed genuinely surprised at the question. “I’ve never seen him with any other one.”

“What about social media?”

“His parents are kind of strict about that. They’re allowed to have Instagram, but Taylor had to beg them for Snapchat.”

Snapchat’s biggest draw was that it never saved any photos. The user had to take a screenshot, and the app informed the other person when the shot was taken. Nikki assumed the initial goal had been an effort to protect the user’s privacy, but it also created a swamp for predators. “How did he convince them?”

“That’s where all of the band group chats are, because everyone else has Snapchat. Me and Logan showed Jared the group chats and explained, and he finally agreed. He already does random phone checks to make sure there’s nothing shady. My mom does the same thing.”

Snapchat would be useless in determining the phone’s location. “I’m going to talk to Mr. Cohen and anyone else you think I should, and then I’ll head to Logan’s. Where does he live?”

“Over by Bayport nature preserve.”

First period had started by the time Nikki wrapped up her interview with Neena, so Holly escorted her back to gather her things and fetch Mr. Cohen.

“Please come back for me after I’ve finished with Mr. Cohen,” Nikki told Holly. “I’ll need to talk to Adrian Lynch.”

Holly nodded. “I assumed you would. I’ll send Tom right down.”

TWELVE

Mr. Cohen joined her in the practice room after Holly had returned Neena to class. He sat down across from Nikki, red splotches across his fair cheeks. A thin line of sweat beaded his forehead, his blond hair standing on end. He crossed his legs, tapping his penny loafers against the floor. He fanned the collar of his button-down shirt. “Why did I wear wool today?”

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