Page 44 of Three Girls Gone
“We work with what we know.” It surprised Amanda that she came to McGee’s defense. “You wouldn’t have this guy’s phone number, would you?”
“Actually, I might. I did save him in my contacts.”
“We’ll take that number if you still have it,” Trent stepped in.
Mara reached for her phone from the side table and thumbed through it. Soon after, she was rattling off the digits, and Trent was pecking them into the notes app.
“Just one more thing before we leave. Did the Tanners employ anyone to work around the house? Or did anyone come to the door seeking employment?” They had what Vincent Tanner told them, but as per his admission, Mara would be the best person to ask since she was home most of the time.
“Nothing inside the home.”
Amanda perked up at that. Vincent made it sound like no work had been done. “Outside then?” It could still have been a way for Hailey’s killer to ingratiate himself with the girl, worm his way into the home.
“They hire a company to do the outdoor Christmas decorations every year, but that’s nothing new.”
That might be one reason Vincent never thought to mention them. “Do they come into the home? Maybe to use the washroom?”
“No, never. And they’d never have met Hailey. The decorating was done while she was at school, so she could come home to the house all lit up. She loved it.” Mara closed her eyes, likely revisiting the memory, and seemed to retreat into it.
“All right. Thank you.” Amanda got up, and after tucking his tablet away, Trent followed.
Back in the car, she turned to him. “We need to look further into this Wilson guy. Let’s look up his number in the system. See if we get an address.”
Trent took out his tablet, brought up his notes, and logged on to the onboard computer. He pecked the digits into the system, and got no hits at all. “Could be a prepaid number,” he said as he pulled his phone. “I’m going to try calling.” A second later, he was pressing his lips and shaking his head. “Out of service.”
“Just like the number used to pose as Jean Tanner. That’s probably not a coincidence.”
“Even less so if we confirm this number is also attached to Universal Mobile.”
“Uh-huh. I’ll have Detective Briggs see if he can track who the service provider is for this number.” She called Briggs to ask him to look into that and to expect a call from Katherine.
“Where to next?” Trent asked when she’d hung up.
“Well, the dance studio will be long closed, as will Hailey’sschool. I guess we’re at a standstill until morning.” She hated this admission, but it always felt like there was something more she could do.
“Not bad. It’s only nine thirty. I might actually get some beauty sleep tonight.”
She smiled at him. “Enjoy it, because we don’t know where tomorrow will take us.”
He turned to her and angled his head. “Let’s try to stay positive.”
“Yeah, it suits you better than me.”
EIGHTEEN
Amanda had considered swinging past Libby’s and grabbing Zoe on the way home last night, but it had been nine thirty, and Zoe would have been sound asleep. Waking her up just to squeeze her would have been selfish. But at least Amanda had the option to consider, unlike the Gilberts and Tanners. It didn’t matter how much they wanted to hold their daughters. It would never happen again.
This morning, Amanda stirred awake before the sun and got an early start on the day. She stopped in at Hannah’s Diner on the way to Central and got herself an extra-large coffee. May wasn’t in, not that Amanda expected she would be. Since she’d hired more staff, she started after the sun came up.
Amanda reached her cubicle at seven thirty but found her desk occupied. “Katherine?”
“Oh, hi.” Katherine pried her gaze from the screen of her laptop.
“You’re in early.” Amanda stayed in the opening because there was no room for her. Katherine had made herself at home. Papers were spread across every surface, includingthe floor. If that wasn’t enough, the space felt more cramped since Katherine was an Amazon at six feet tall.
“I couldn’t sleep.” Katherine swiveled toward Amanda. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her cheeks were blotchy. “Any time I shut my eyes… Well, let’s just say the images are worse than when they’re open. Smart choice in coffee, by the way.” She pointed at the Hannah’s Diner cup in Amanda’s hand.
“It’s thebestchoice around here. I would have picked you one up if I’d known you were here.”
