The letter was a clear explanation of what had happened the night Adele died. Candace asked for their forgiveness.

Steven read the letter twice and, after, seemed hardened.

Brian said, “Going back to Joseph Abernathy. I remember the BOLO at the time. There were—” he skimmed through a file “—six sightings of him on campus, and twice the police escorted him off.”

“Correct,” Steven said. “Sigma Rho wasn’t the only complaint. The cheerleading coach, another sorority, other students. At the Spring Fling, four different people stated that they saw Candace talking to Abernathy before the party began. Those statements are in the file. I also have statements from Taylor James and Kimberly Foster that Taylor had wanted to call the police that night but Candace didn’t. She wanted to handle it herself, fearing that Abernathy would be imprisoned for continuing to violate the order to stay off campus. That was consistent with other statements from her boyfriends and Willa March, the director of Sunrise Center.”

“And he was spotted at the homeless camp near the tracks, according to a caller on Vega’s podcast,” Brian said.

“I was not aware of that, though we regularly patrolled the camp looking for him.”

Regan said, “Willa March confirmed that one of her other clients contacted her about Joseph, and she went down to talk to him, but by the time she got there, he was gone.”

Steven said, “I worked with Ms. March during that time. She seemed to be forthcoming, and while she was protective of the people she helped, she also recognized that Abernathy wasn’t always aware of his actions and could lash out. It’s why he was no longer allowed shelter but could come for meals. I don’t know why she didn’t mention the sighting to me.”

“Maybe because he was no longer there,” Regan suggested.

“She should have come forward. Same with the information about her truck. She knew we were looking for Abernathy, the truck was missing, Candace was missing, and both of them knew the truck was available to use.”

It was a valid point, Regan thought. Perhaps Willa, in her desire to help those in her care, had let her ministry cloud her judgment.

“What about the witness who saw him boarding a freight train?” Regan asked.

“It fit with what we knew about him,” Steven said. “Abernathy was known to ride the rails, had been doing it for years. We knew which train, but by the time we were told and contacted the railroad, the train had made three stops. At the fourth, in Oklahoma, authorities searched all cars and didn’t find him. He could have gotten off anyplace in between here and there.”

Brian flipped to the next page. “Is this right? The witness was Nicole Bergamo, the same person who is in a coma now?”

Regan straightened. “Nicole saw Abernathy?”