Cord produced a tissue from a packet he kept in his pocket and handed it to Stephanie when her nose began to drip. She thanked him and wiped her nose before answering. ‘We talked about how we’d wear our hair and then watched a couple YouTube videos to get some ideas.’ One shoulder lifted in a shrug as she whispered. ‘That’s all. She told me she’d text me tonight after she was finished helping her mom bake, and that was the last…’ Her words trailed off as another bout of frightened tears fell.

Alyssa gave her a minute before proceeding. ‘Stephanie, can you tell us the route Kate would normally take to get home?’

‘She usually cuts across the street to the park. Most of the time she takes the bike path, but if there’re too many people, she’ll walk down the arroyo, head up Eagle Rock to Ventura to Glendale.’

‘Does she ever go another way that you know of?’

‘Not when she’s just going home, which she was.’

‘Would she tell you if she was going to stop somewhere else?’

Stephanie’s head snapped back like she thought the question was absurd. ‘Of course.’

They asked a few more questions, verified what Katelyn had been wearing and that she had a pink bag with black polka dots, and then waited while Stephanie answered her mom’s call before leaving to retrace Katelyn’s steps. At the park, Alyssa parked next to the curb.

‘I’m going to update Hammond. Why don’t you get ahold of Tony and Joe, have them meet us here? They can start knocking on doors in the area while we search the park. It would be nice if the city could get closed-circuit cameras everywhere, but until then, maybe someone’s Ring doorbell or security camera captured something that’ll help.’

Calls made, Alyssa automatically checked the time. Eight-fifteen. The sun had set only moments ago, taking the last remnants of light and replacing it with deepening shadows. She reached over, unlocked her glove box, and retrieved two flashlights, handing one to Cord before closing it again.

The park was a narrow one with only a couple of trees, one picnic table, and a bike or walking path on one side. An arroyo snaked down the middle, and that’s where Alyssa headed first while Cord took the bike path. As she passed under one of the only trees, a reflection coming from above made her glance up, searching for whatever object had caught her attention. And when she saw it, the last hope she’d had that Katelyn had simply wandered off to another friend’s house vanished. Caught in the branches of the tree rested the pink and black polka-dotted bag Stephanie described, a mirror dangling from the zipper catching the moon’s reflection, which is what made Alyssa look up. A few feet away, near the stucco wall separating the park from the neighborhood, lay an abandoned phone, face up, a faint, flashing blue light beckoning her.

‘Cord,’ she yelled. ‘I’ve got something.’