Bess had left a note at the front desk of the hotel saying she and Lucas were still exploring the town and she would meet us at the hotel for dinner that evening. So George and I spent the rest of the day walking into every store and local office we could. Everyone seemed more than happy to point us in the direction of the museum or to answer our questions about the exhibit, but as soon as we mentioned the missing people, they suddenly had nothing more to say. Everyone seemed more closed off whenever we mentioned Beverly DeSantos especially, as if they did not like her, and I was beginning to understand how much of an outcast she was in this town.

Eventually, when it was starting to grow dark, we trudged back to the hotel. George was complaining about the pain her feet were in, and how tired she was, and how hungry she was, and I couldn’t say I disagreed. We’d been on our feet all day and had spoken to so many people that it was discouraging to head back to the hotel without any new leads or clues. It had also continued to rain off and on all day, and now George and I were both slightly damp and shivering from the cold.

We entered our hotel room to find the lights already on. “Hey, Bess!” I said as I stepped inside.

Bess was sitting on one of the beds with her legs delicately crossed. She had a pizza sitting next to her, and the smell of it was filling the entire room.

“Hey, guys!” she said. “I thought you might be hungry.”

“You thought right,” said George, collapsing onto the bed opposite Bess and grabbing a slice of pizza. “Thank you,” she mumbled after taking her first bite.

Bess didn’t wait a minute before she turned to me and said, “So what happened to you in the museum today?”

“Oh, right!” I said. I had forgotten how long it had been since I’d seen Bess. She didn’t even know about what had happened in the staff hallway between Beverly DeSantos and Susan yet. I quickly filled her in, and told her about our strange conversation with Emily. “George and I went around town after that to ask everyone some questions. But no one wanted to talk to us.”

“Why not?” asked Bess.

“I’m not sure,” I said. “Some people seemed a bit uncomfortable, especially when I brought up Beverly DeSantos. I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them believe she’s behind all this, and that she’s the one kidnapping people.”

“Well,” said Bess, “I might have some more information about her. Do you remember that interview Riley told us about?”

“The one where Beverly said she wished she had been born into a different family?” I asked.

“Exactly!” said Bess. “Well, Lucas told me that it was actually a really big deal when it came out. Beverly was only eighteen when she gave it, but Christopher DeSantos’s fans were all really upset. They’ve hated her ever since. Maybe she’s kidnapping her grandfather’s fans in order to destroy his latest exhibit. I mean, it would be pretty extreme, but apparently she has a major grudge against everyone involved.”