Chapters (97)
- Cover
- Back Cover Text
- Praise
- Booklist
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Fifty-Seven
- Fifty-Eight
- Fifty-Nine
- Sixty
- Sixty-One
- Sixty-Two
- Sixty-Three
- Sixty-Four
- Sixty-Five
- Sixty-Six
- Sixty-Seven
- Sixty-Eight
- Sixty-Nine
- Seventy
- Seventy-One
- Seventy-Two
- Seventy-Three
- Seventy-Four
- Seventy-Five
- Seventy-Six
- Seventy-Seven
- Seventy-Eight
- Seventy-Nine
- Eighty
- Eighty-One
- Eighty-Two
- Eighty-Three
- Eighty-Four
- Eighty-Five
- Eighty-Six
- Eighty-Seven
- Eighty-Eight
- Eighty-Nine
- Acknowledgments & A Personal Note
- Excerpt
“Ben, do you know Rita Purvis of Lufkin, Texas?” Webb asked, cuing up her phone to show him a screen grab from the parking lot video. Then she played the video.
Staring at it, Ben battled not to let his face betray anything, his heart pounding, a drop of sweat trickling down his back. He shook his head. “No, I don’t know Rita Purvis. I’ve never met her.”
“How does your wife know her?” Garcia asked.
Ben shook his head. “I’m sorry. I just don’t feel comfortable with this because I don’t know anything. Maybe I should be getting a lawyer.”
“Why?” Garcia asked. “You know how that looks?”
“I don’t care. I know how things can be distorted, misinterpreted.”
“Where are you headed with this?” Garcia asked.
“Nowhere. I just got home. And I know my rights.”
Garcia leaned forward, closer to Ben, his face lifting into a small smile, warming a bit. “Look, no one’s under arrest, or under any suspicion,” he said. “Fact is we just received that video around the same time as the press. It was sent anonymously. We verified the time and location with security video from Trader Joe’s. I’m telling you this because that much is public. We have no control on how your colleagues in the media will ‘interpret’ things. You know that better than most people. We’re giving you the opportunity to help us.”
“Mr. Grant, all we want is to talk to Emma about it,” Webb said. “The video shows she was one of the last people to see Rita Purvis. We need to know the relationship between them, if there is one. Why they met there, what they talked about. We need her to help us with a timeline, movements, state of mind. Of all people, you know how this works.”
“I do, and I am cooperating as much as I can.”
“Will you let us look around? Volunteer your family’s electronic devices?” Webb asked.
Ben knew “look around” meant bringing in an evidence team to process the house, everything in it, and he wasn’t ready for that.
“No.”
“If need be, we’ll get warrants,” Garcia said.
“I expect you will. But I’m hopeful we can clear this up before that becomes necessary.”
The detectives looked at Ben for several moments. Then they nodded their thanks, shook his hand and left.
Alone in the house, Ben slammed his back against the wall to keep the room from spinning.
Garcia and Webb couldn’t know who Rita Purvis is. They couldn’t know about Emma’s past. Could they? Their records don’t exist. They were sealed by the court in Canada years ago. They can’t know. At least not yet. But what was Rita doing here in California? How did she find Emma? Or did Emma find her? Where are Emma and Kayla? Are they safe?