Beeeeeeeep! Someone in the car behind him was leaning on his horn, jolting him back to the present. Phillip’s dry voice was droning on. “I’d be more inclined to believe Sarah was indeed alive if she had withdrawn funds from your joint account. Has she?”

Kevin fed his parking ticket into the machine, and the traffic arm lifted. “No,” he said as he pulled into traffic.

“Any charges on the credit cards?”

“No.”

“Any activity on her cell phone—”

“As I told you during our last meeting, she left her phone and credit cards behind.” Kevin kept his voice level, the impatience out, but he could feel tension building. Needed to remove his hand from the steering wheel, crack his neck to disperse it. “However, a woman on the run—”

“And again, we circle back to my original question. Why would she be on the run?”

“I wish I knew,” Kevin replied, keeping a tight leash on his fraying patience. “I’ve been so damned worried. I can’t imagine how Sarah’s coping. She’s always been so fragile, prone to tears and bouts of depression.”

“I never noticed any signs of depression.”

“Of course you didn’t. She’s a very proud woman, didn’t want family and friends to worry, but behind closed doors . . .” Kevin sighed heavily. “I should have known. She’d been acting strangely for several months before she disappeared. Must have had a psychotic break of some kind.” Some jackass was traveling forty miles an hour in the fast lane. “Idiot,” he muttered, swerving around the slowpoke and continuing on his way.

“I beg your pardon?” Clarke’s voice grew even chillier.

“Not you.” Kevin managed to squeak out a laugh. “A crappy driver on the road.” It was an effort to eradicate any telltale trace of anger in his voice. “Look, Phillip. I don’t know why Sarah took off, but I plan to find out. It breaks my heart to think of her out there, defenseless and vulnerable in this crazy-assed world. Look what happened with that madman on that yacht. I left a copy of the articles with your secretary. You read them, yes?” Phillip didn’t respond. Didn’t need to. They both knew he had pored over them just like Kevin had. “Sarah needs to come home, where she will be loved and protected. I won’t rest until she is. The trip to Solace Island was fruitful. Apparently, she’d gotten herself a vehicle. The apartment manager had the license plate number in his files. I’ll be back on the job Thursday, will put in a BOLO then.”

“A BOLO?”