“His parents, Lynda and Chris, have been cleared. They’re distraught parents. There’s no faking that,” Black said. “So have the grandparents.”
I reached for my sweatpants on the floor and pulled them on, no longer comfortable being without pants near the two men.
This didn’t seem like the type of thing to be so flippant about.
Those poor parents.
That poor little boy.
“He was playing in his yard, right? When he went missing?” Gentry asked as he poured himself a cup of coffee and took a seat next to Black. He pulled the case file over to himself and started to flip through it.
“Yes,” Black answered as he flipped open another case file. “This is Monty. Two and a half. Playing in his backyard with his dog, Reno. Just poof. Gone. Jackson and Melinda Cross have also been cleared of any wrongdoing. They don’t have any family, though. Been missing for four weeks.”
“How many in total?” Gentry asked as he looked through the next case file.
“Four. All same MO. Two and a half. Playing outside in the backyards. Then they’re gone. No sign of a struggle. No scream. No nothing. It seems like whoever took them knew the child. I could see one kid going without a fight, but not all four of them. Kids are usually hesitant around strangers at that age.”
A thought occurred to me, and I blurted it out without thinking first. “Do they all have the same caregiver? Like a babysitter?”
Black and Gentry both looked at me in surprise.
“If you think that they knew their kidnapper, that might be an explanation. Or a Sunday school teacher. Or a daycare worker.”
“Two went to church. So that might be the case for two. But not the other two. None of them went to daycare. But the babysitter theory…” Black stole one of the case files back. “A babysitter isn’t mentioned, but I’ll ask.”
I took a sip of the coffee and walked to the sliding glass door that overlooked Gentry’s backyard where the RV was parked.
As I stared at the camper, I realized you could see straight into it through the windows.
My cheeks heated.
Could he see me?
“This one mentions a babysitter,” Gentry said. “Thursday nights. From seven to ten. Parents are gone at…”
“SAR meetings.” I looked over my shoulder.
“Yes,” Gentry confirmed. “You’re aware of those?”
“A friend, Mable, encouraged me to start going. When Neo was missing. To give me something to focus on outside of wondering where he was,” I admitted. “There’s a couple that hasn’t been there in a while. The others were talking about it. I’m assuming that’s why. Their son was kidnapped.”
“Yes,” Black said. “What else you got, darlin’?”
I smiled, though it didn’t reach my eyes. “Not much,” I admitted. “Unless you want me to scour their social media and their babysitter’s. I’m pretty darn good at that.”
Black frowned. “Actually, that would be great.”
My brows rose. “Are you serious?”
He nodded. “I am. I usually have Kelly do it. But you have good instincts.”
I sat down. “Give me a list of names.”
Twelve
Two wrongs don’t make a right, but a left hook certainly makes a point.
—Gentry’s everyday thought
