I tucked in Noelle and turned off the overhead light. The reassuring fairy night-light came on. I wondered how long it would take the girls to fall asleep, and how soundly they would sleep once they did. Because with the help of the little fairy beaming light into their room, I was going to find Holly’s phone and see what was on it.

By ten o’clock I was still waiting for Holly to fall asleep so I could check her backpack. The little girl’s morning exhaustion might not be a mystery. If tonight was any example, once she was in bed my niece was routinely lying awake for hours. I wondered if she was worried about all the changes in her young life. There had been months in my own when every time I closed my eyes, I sank immediately into nightmares.

As I waited, I worked on the files I’d brought with me, gathering a list of questions for a call to Sophie about the cold cases they referenced. Of course the more important question was what we should do next about tracking my sister. If Sophie had found anything important, she would have called, but it was time to coordinate our strategies.

By now I was working from Wendy’s bedroom to keep better track of Holly’s tossing and turning. I reached for my cell phone and realized I’d left it on the kitchen counter. Since Wendy has a landline extension right beside the bed, I lifted the receiver and heard a series of beeps. I gave up my landline years ago, but I knew what that meant. Wendy had voice mail. And didn’t I wish I could log in and listen?

I punched in Sophie’s number and waited. She spoke the moment she picked up. “I was just getting ready to call you.”

“How’d you know it was me?”

“I made a note of your sister’s telephone number from the web.”

“Why?”

“To get a record of calls she made before she left.”

“Why didn’t I think of that?” I didn’t bother to slap my forehead. I’d be black-and-blue if I slapped myself every time Sophie thought of some stone I’d left unturned.

“Don’t get excited. Dead end. I could check the carrier’s website or call and ask for a list, but I’d have to have her password. Have you checked the town house phone menu to see if there’s a record of recent calls?”

“Another thing I didn’t think about.”

“Do it after we hang up, so you don’t disconnect me. Does it look like an old model?”

I held the phone away, and then put it back to my ear. “It looks familiar. Like maybe I grew up with it. My mother refuses to throw out anything that’s still working. That’s why she and Dad are so rich. She probably brought it over when Wendy moved in.”

“Earlier models were bare bones basic. Check, but you’re probably out of luck, unless you found a record of your sister’s passwords somewhere. Did you?”