“You had an argument?” I ask.

He sighs, nods. “I’m not sure what’s going on with her. We were talking about Phoenix. She got upset. Started to cry. Things escalated, so I sent her to her room to cool off.” He shrugs. “When I went to check on her later, she was gone.”

“How long ago?” Tomasetti asks.

“Twenty minutes.”

“Any idea where she is?” I ask. “Best friend’s house? Boyfriend’s place, maybe?”

“I don’t know.” He chokes out the words, his face crumbling. “I should know, but I don’t. What the hell kind of dad doesn’t know who his kid’s friends are?”

I touch his arm, not only to reassure, but to keep him focused. “What kind of vehicle does she drive?”

“A 2016 Mustang GT. Red. I bought it for her for her sixteenth birthday.”

I hit my lapel mike and put out a BOLO for Chloe and her car, with the added code for missing endangered. Then I turn my attention to Atherton. “You stated to the dispatcher that you believe Chloe may be a danger to herself?”

He stares at me, eyes wide and blinking, but his thoughts seem to turn inward. “She’s been … depressed recently. ained a lot of weight since her mom passed away. A couple weeks ago she actually said, ‘I wish I was dead.’” He rubs a hand over his face. “I thought she was just acting out. You know, the pressure related to the move to Phoenix. School. Grades. The usual stuff teenagers face. And I know she’s been missing her mom.”

“Her mother passed away?” Tomasetti asks.

“A year ago,” he says. “Breast cancer.” He looks down, then back at me. “I’ve been so tied up with work. So … damn blind. I should have seen this coming. I should have—” He bites off the word as if he doesn’t know how to finish.

“We’ve got a BOLO out for her. Agent Tomasetti and I are going to get out there, too, and look for her.” I pause. “Dr. Atherton, this may or may not be related, but it may help us find her and maybe fill in some of the blanks as far as her recent behavior, so I’m just going to lay it out for you. I’m not certain, but I have reason to believe Chloe may be the woman who abandoned Baby Doe.”

“Wh—what?” He chokes out a sound that’s part laugh, part sob. “But … that’s not possible. She hasn’t been dating regularly. How could she…? She doesn’t even have a boyfriend. For God’s sake—”

“Has she been wearing baggy clothes recently?” Tomasetti asks. “Oversize shirts?Anything like that?”

For an instant, I think Atherton is going to argue the point. At the same time, I see his mind working, a terrible realization entering his eyes. “My God, the weight gain. I didn’t…” He blinks as if waking from a nightmare. “She picked out an alpaca poncho when we were in Santa Fe a few months ago. Wears it all the time…”