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Leanne went very still. What little color there was in her face faded away.
“I also talked to Simon,” Matthew said, carefully. “He said that Nina broke up with him to be with another guy. Someone she’d been seeing secretly for some time. He said that after the breakup, he left the house, and Nina stayed behind. She said that she’d arrange for a friend to pick her up the next day.”
“Bullshit,” Leanne said. Her voice was a hoarse whisper. “Nina wasn’t seeing anyone else. She’s in love with him.”
“She never mentioned anyone else to you?”
“I’m telling you. Nina isn’t a cheater. That’s just not in her character. And she talks about Simon all the time. Arranges her whole life around him. Between school and work and Simon, Nina wouldn’t have had time to cheat, even if she wanted to.”
Matthew opened his mouth to speak, but she cut across him.
“He said she stayed in the house after he left? That doesn’t even make any sense. She would have called me or Andy and we would have picked her up right away.”
“And she definitely didn’t call you? You had no missed calls?”
Leanne flushed, a sudden dash of pink to her otherwise pale cheeks.
“Last week, yes. I was angry with her for blowing off work at the inn, and I didn’t answer. But nothing on Friday night.” She took a breath, and her eyes met his. “Look, I found her stuff at the house. That officer took it. Her eye drops, and her hiking jacket and her day pack and some of her laundry. It was all there. Her gear was expensive. She saved up to pay for it. Nina wouldn’t leave it behind.”
“She might have forgotten it. If she was upset, or in a hurry.”
“No. She wouldn’t forget her jacket. It’s cold out. She would have worn it.”
“I’m told that the eye drops were in the fridge. And the jacket was downstairs. So out of sight, out of mind. If Nina had a breakup, if she was upset, it’s possible that she forgot her meds, that she forgot that she’d left her gear downstairs. Or maybe she didn’t think she’d be needing it anytime soon. Or maybe she thought she’d patch things up with Simon and she’d be back. There are a lot of possible explanations.”
She hesitated, seemingly torn between an urge to accept the comfort his words offered and her instinct, which was telling her that something was very wrong. Instinct won.
“You don’t believe any of that.”
She was right. He didn’t believe it. There was something about Simon Jordan he didn’t like. Simon had been convincing when he’d delivered his story—in their postmortem after the interview, Sarah Jane had admitted that she’d believed him—but to Matthew, something had jarred. And good detectives do not rely on instinct alone. The complete lack of activity on Nina’s phone and credit card was a major problem, but it didn’t tell him anything that helped. He needed facts. He needed evidence. He needed not to jump to conclusions.
“I called the Jordans,” Matthew said. “They’ve confirmed that they won’t press charges for the breaking and entering. Given the circumstances, I don’t think it’s in anyone’s interest to try to take this further.”
“I... thank you.” She rubbed at her forehead like she was trying to ease a headache.
Matthew tapped on the desk. It was a nervous habit he had.
“We’re arranging a press conference for tomorrow,” he said. “It would be very helpful if you could talk to the media. You and Andy.”
“A press conference. You want me to talk to the press.” She looked horrified at the idea.
“You don’t need to be nervous. I’ll be there. And Andy, I hope. We don’t need you to answer questions, if that’s too difficult. Just to give a statement.”
“It’s not that.” She passed her hand in front of her mouth, like she’d just tasted something sour. “But you said... you said that Nina is an adult. You said that she’s probably with friends. That she’ll be home in a few days. It’s too soon to do this, right?”
It was a complete reversal. A moment ago she’d been pressing for him to take things more seriously.
“Nina was due home on Saturday. Tomorrow’s Tuesday. If we don’t hear from her in the morning she’ll have been missing for three days.” Not to mention the fact that her phone was dead and her credit cards hadn’t been used. “It’s time. We need to get the word out. Get Nina’s image out there. Maybe it’s not necessary. Maybe she is at a friend’s house. Maybe she’ll see the interview and she’ll come home. It happens, and if it does, great. But just in case, let’s get the word out, okay? The department will organize everything. Tomorrow afternoon, in Waitsfield.”
“Will you go back to Stowe and search for her? Not just the house. They have all that land.”
“We don’t have a reason to. Not yet, in any case.” His words hung in the air. “Can you send me some photographs of Nina? We need some for the press conference tomorrow.” Nina was a pretty girl. Pictures of her would get the media interested. They would have to use that. They’d have to use whatever would help.
“Okay. Yes. I can do that.”
Matthew had an officer drive her back to her car. He went back to his desk, where Sarah Jane was waiting.
“How did it go?”
