“I don’t think they left, but the cops up in Kerr jerked my chain one time too many. They didn’t give a rat’s ass about what happened. They saw the picture of their Escalade crossing the border, wham, bam, thank you, ma’am. Jerks. I eventually had to put the case aside, though any time a John or Jane Doe was discovered in Texas or Mexico I had a look-see, to determine whether they were one of the Albright family. I saw the news report last night, read more this morning—it was your people who confirmed the bones uncovered were the Albrights, correct?”

“They were verified through DNA evidence. Glen, Denise, Tori, and Becky, but Ricky hasn’t been found yet. We would greatly appreciate if you could share with us what you learned.”

“Happy to, as long as you’re not going to drop the ball.”

“No, ma’am,” Lucy said. “This case is a priority for our office.”

“Hmm.”

Did she not believe it? Lucy was more curious now about what happened to turn Miranda King against the FBI. But she didn’t ask, and Miranda continued.

“First, Rico—my son—found the Escalade registered to Denise Albright in a chop shop in Matamoros. Already dismantled. He bribed the owner to let him confirm the VIN number. We gave that information to the police.”

“They could have sold the car or traded it,” Lucy said. “To avoid being detected.”

Miranda nodded. “Could have, didn’t. With some prompting, the owner admitted to Rico that he found the vehicle by the side of the road. Had some luggage in it, but the suitcases were mostly empty. He gave those to his sister to sell, which Rico confirmed. Though she didn’t have much of anything left—we tracked the car two weeks after their disappearance, which is when we were first hired—he believed her when she gave him a list of the items. A few shirts and toiletries, but no money, no supplies, no food, no water. A brand-new tent that couldn’t have fit five people. If I were going to disappear into Mexico for any length of time, you can be damn sure I’d have a car packed with necessary supplies to trade, sell, or use. And plenty of water.”

“There were indications that they left their house quickly.”