Reed turned out to be a pretty convincing actor. People went out of their way to comfort him in those first few days, patting him on the back or putting an extra buck in his tip jar. He wallowed in false sadness as he let folks know that he wasn’t all that surprised that Sandy hit the road—that she’d often complained about living in Grand Rapids. He kept it subtle, letting people read what they wanted to into his words.

Of course, none of it compared to that performance he gave when Tate Bolger had shown up at his house to interview him.

“When’s the last time you saw Sandy?” Bolger had asked at his door.

“Are you talking, like, seeing her around town?”

“Anything.”

Reed pretended to think. “I saw her… had to be about a month ago. I was walking out of Target and she was walking in with that guy she’s been living with.”

“Did you talk to her?”

“No, why?”

“Do you remember the date?”

Reed paused for effect. “It was a Sunday. I remember because the Vikings were playing the Packers that day. I went to Target to pick up some chips for the game, around ten in the morning. Target might still have it on tape if you want to check.”

“And you haven’t seen her since?”

“No, why? Is something wrong?”

The look on Bolger’s face when he broke the news told Reed all he needed to know. Bolger had shrugged his shoulders and used the word gone as opposed to missing. Bolger had bought Reed’s narrative. And why wouldn’t he?

Still, Reed’s reaction to the news was crucial. He had to look confused—stunned. He had practiced his reaction in the mirror. Reed paused as though processing what Bolger had said, then replied, “What?”

Bolger repeated his news, again using the word gone.

“What do you mean, ‘gone’?”

Bolger didn’t have to give Reed details. In fact, if Bolger thought that there might be foul play, he surely wouldn’t have laid the evidence out the way he had. Bolger told Reed about the empty bank account and the clothes.

That’s when Reed interrupted him. “What about… my son?”

When Bolger told Reed that Pip was also gone, Reed sought out a chair to sit on.

The interview lasted a half hour and included a cursory search of the house. Reed, for his part, asked a lot of questions, most of which Tate answered even though he probably shouldn’t have. They had been friends since high school. They had been deputies together. They had history, and at the end of the interview, Bolger put his hand on Reed’s shoulder and said, “Wherever Sandy ran off to, keep in mind that she’s a good mother. She’ll take care of Pip.”

“You’re gonna keep looking, though, aren’t you?” Reed said. “You gotta find Pip.”

It was the exact opposite of what Reed wanted Tate to do, but he had to play the part.

“She’ll turn up. Her folks live up in Ely. I expect she’ll be in touch with Lyle inside of a month. When that happens, I’ll let you know.”