“Thank you. I hope so. Talking with LaToya this morning was so upsetting. I tried to put myself in her shoes, not knowing where my child was for eleven years. She’s twenty-four now, if she’s still alive, and LaToya has had to miss her all that time and live with the not knowing. I’d go mad.”

“I don’t know how people handle some of the stuff life throws at them. The things we see on this job… It’s a lot sometimes.”

“It’s a lot all the time.”

“True,” he said with a laugh.

“People join our squad thinking it’s going to be so cool, and sometimes it is,” Jeannie said. “Working with Sam is amazing, especially now that she’s first lady and bringing all that glam to us. But most of the time, it’s heartbreak and drudge.”

“Yeah, but it’s also satisfying to get justice for our victims and their families.”

“It is, even if it doesn’t change the fact that the victims are still dead and their families changed forever. That’s one of the reasons why I was intrigued by the Deasly case. Maybe she’s still alive, and we can reunite her with her family. That’s not something we get to do very often as Homicide detectives.”

“What’s our plan for Richmond?”

“Before Christmas, I spoke to the ex-boyfriend of Daniella Brown, LaToya’s former friend. LaToya did a lot for Daniella, giving her a place to stay and paying for two trips to rehab with money she didn’t exactly have lying around while supporting three kids on her own. LaToya and Daniella’s ex confirm that Daniella was obsessed with Carisma and referred to her as her daughter.”

“And the mom didn’t say anything about that?”

“At the time, she let it slide, thinking Daniella loved Carisma, and so what if she called her a daughter? That didn’t change the truth about who her mother was.”

“I can see that.”

“Carisma looked up to Daniella, loved to talk fashion and movies and celebrities with her. As a working single mom, LaToya appreciated the attention Daniella gave to Carisma.”

“What about LaToya’s other kids? Did she have a rapport with them, too?”

“She did, but she was closest to Carisma. They were ‘special’ friends, is how LaToya put it.”

“Was she ever concerned about Daniella taking off with her?”

“Not for a second. It never occurred to her that something like that could happen, mostly because LaToya was basically supporting Daniella, too. Like, where was she going to go, you know?”

“Does LaToya think it’s at all possible that someone else took both of them?”