Grace paused to take a breath. ‘Initially, Gabriel tended to agree with the authorities’ ruling and tried coaxing his potential client to either accept that or at least find someone more experienced in her type of case.’

Alyssa frowned. ‘Skipping out and cutting off all contact with your family to avoid taking responsibility seems a bit drastic, even for someone that young and possibly not thinking clearly,’ she argued.

Grace shook her head. ‘I agree, so I assume there must’ve been something else his client said that led him to agree with that finding. Regardless, he asked the woman how she’d feel if it turned out that her son’s father had really skipped out after all. She said it didn’t matter, that her son was at that age where he was beginning to notice he was the only one amongst his group of friends without a dad in the picture, and he was starting to demand answers. So, she wanted the father found, if for no other reason than to give her and her son some type of closure. And since she’d done her research, she knew Gabriel was the best private investigator in the state, and according to him, the woman was insistent on hiring him specifically for that reason.’ Again, her gaze met Alyssa’s. ‘What if he discovered something that got him killed?’

‘I’m curious or maybe just confused,’ Alyssa said, ‘about why Gabriel felt compelled to ask your advice. Was this something he normally did?’

Grace’s chin lifted proudly, and her eyes flashed in a way that hinted at the strong woman Alyssa knew her to be. ‘Because he knew there was a time I struggled whenever I had to explain the Kensingtons weren’t my birth parents. He was concerned about damaging the young boy for life with what he might uncover, and so he wanted to know what my reaction would’ve been to different scenarios. I explained that it was impossible to know since my situation was so different.’

Though it was in no way a secret, Alyssa knew Grace didn’t openly discuss that, at the age of ten, she’d been adopted by the Kensingtons after her parents and a much older sister died after contracting a deadly virus while serving overseas with Doctors Without Borders. Mary Kensington, Gabriel and Mack’s mother, was Grace’s school counselor at the time, and had taken her in, refusing to risk her falling through the cracks of an overworked foster system.

Alyssa’s earlier excitement at a possible lead deflated like a balloon pricked with a needle. She supposed it was possible Gabriel had been killed by a father who hadn’t wanted to be found. But a pissed-off baby daddy who’d never wanted to be located didn’t explain two missing teenage girls. Before she could voice her concerns out loud, Cord beat her to it.