The bartender reappeared carrying two giant oval diner-style plates loaded with food. Hers was especially mountainous. “That’s crazy,” she said.

“It’s a doozie. Occasionally someone will put down the whole thing, but it’s enough to feed three normal people.”

“The bottomless sandwich,” Lindsay muttered. When Hope told her that she was close to achieving “regular” status at one of the restaurant bars, she referred to a gigantic sandwich that she could buy and eat for another two meals.

“Yep. I’ve heard someone else call it that exactly.”

Lindsay fumbled in her purse for her phone and pulled up a picture of Hope. “Was it this woman, by any chance?”

“Yeah, that’s Hope. You know her? I’m Joe, by the way.”

“Lindsay. And Scott. Hope’s my best friend. No one’s heard from her for more than a week.”

Joe looked up at the ceiling before responding. “I saw her maybe two weeks ago. Definitely not last week. Come to think of it, that’s unusual for her. She’s usually here once or twice a week.”

“She was new in town, and I can’t get the police to give two shits about it.”

Joe sighed. “This is a place where people come and go like a turnstile, especially in the summer. But you know what?” he said, the breeziness leaving his tone, “she asked me to walk her to her car, now that I think about it. Usually she was an early bird, so this was a late dinner for her. It was quiet and she was doing a crossword puzzle, chilling out. I think she lost track of time because she was surprised when I told her I was ready to lock up. When I was walking her out, she said she thought someone had been following her. I wanted her to call the police, but she insisted it wasn’t necessary. She made it sound like it was probably her imagination, and she didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. I know my wife does that all the time. If the dogs bark when she’s home alone at night, she’s convinced someone must be breaking in, but not convinced enough to call nine-one-one. But, man—I really hope there wasn’t more to it.”

“Did she say who it was? Or when? Or how often?”

Joe shook his head. “No, that was the last time I saw her.”

Joe’s report lined up with Evan’s. But for some reason, Hope hadn’t mentioned any of this to Lindsay. She suddenly wasn’t interested in her sandwich.

Scott placed a palm on her knee. “You okay?”

“Just really confused.”

Her phone buzzed in her hand. Please stop looking for me. You’re putting me in danger.

The text was from an email address made up of seemingly random numbers and letters.