“How long ago was that?”

“Three years or so.”

“Does he have any close friends—someone who might be willing to throw in with him to do something to Sandy?”

“Not that I know of, except… well, Tate Bolger.”

“Sheriff Bolger?”

“He and Reed go way back. There was something that happened when they were younger.” Lyle rubbed his forehead as if trying to loosen up a memory. “They were seniors in high school. A waitress died… They found her body floating in the Tioga Mine Pit. She was married, but there were rumors that she and Tate stepped out now and again. Reed was Tate’s alibi. Said they were hunting.”

“And you hired them both as deputies?”

Lyle’s head sank. “It can be hard to get deputies up here—at least ones who want to stay in the North Country. So many of ’em just want a couple years under their belts before they head south to the Twin Cities. I hired Tate first. He wasn’t bad as deputies go—showed up on time, took overnights without complaining. I gave him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe that was a mistake.”

“And Reed?”

“Bolger talked me into hiring Reed. I was against it from the get-go. Reed was a hothead, and that was the last thing I wanted on my team—but Bolger vouched for him. Looking back, I wonder if Bolger wasn’t repaying some debt.”

“You think that Bolger might still be repaying that debt?”

“I don’t know. So my question is, what do you think?”

“I think Occam’s razor fits here: The simplest answer is usually the correct one.”

“So, you think she ran away?” Lyle said.

“But…” Max paused as he pieced together his thought. “When I was at the sheriff’s office today, there was this one small detail that… well, it stuck in my craw.”

“What was that?”

“Did you get a look at that video from the bank?”

Lyle nodded. “Bolger showed me. He made a point of how calm Sandy was.”

“What about the car in the parking lot?”

“Well… I saw her get out of it, but…” Lyle studied Max’s face, as if looking for clues as to where this was leading. “What did you see?”

“It’s not what I saw; it’s what I didn’t see. The car was empty.”

Lyle didn’t make the connection at first, but then his eyes widened. “Pip.”

“Exactly. Where was Pip?”

“Sandy would never leave him home alone.”

“That doesn’t seem likely. And his regular babysitter said she didn’t see him that day.”

“So where was he?” Lyle pondered.

“All I’m saying is that something’s out of place here. Pip might have been home alone or maybe Sandy left him with someone else. It’s also possible that… Now, don’t get upset, but it’s possible that Sandy had another boyfriend waiting with Pip at the house.”

Lyle opened his mouth as if to object, but closed it again. “I suppose I should be hoping that Bolger’s right about all this, because if he’s not…”