Chapter 42
CHAPTER
BY ONE IN THE MORNING the forensic team had finished their examination, and shiny fingerprint dust lingered on many surfaces around the house like glittery remnants from a birthday party.
Judith, wearing a terry cloth robe and sitting on the couch in the living room, stared at her bare, tanned feet.
Nash was perched beside her, his mind racing with mingled thoughts of his missing daughter and where his wife had been the night before, and whether there was a connection between the two.
The pair of detectives seated across from them looked like they had seen things most human beings would never encounter.
John Ramos was tall and stocky, and Nash had noted that he was methodical and deliberate in his movements and line of questioning.
The other, Carroll Summers, was small, wiry, and nimble.
Dressed in rumpled suits, with ties loosened, they now stared across the heft of a $2,000 coffee table at the devastated couple.
Summers had his notebook out and had been industriously scribbling in it, while Ramos leaned back, one thick leg crossed over the other, and apparently committed what he needed to memory.
Summers said, “So, Mrs. Nash, you saw your daughter last around midnight. How was she, her mood, attitude?”
Judith took a moment to clear her throat, draped the fold of her robe over her dimpled knees, and said, “Maggie seemed fine. Nothing out of the ordinary.”
“So she wasn’t upset about anything?”
This came from Ramos, whose eyes had been closed while Summers spoke but now they were open and staring fixedly at her.
“No,” said Judith. She glanced at Nash, as though for support. “It was just… normal.”
“You two were home together all evening?” asked Summers.
Judith broke off looking at her husband and said, “Yes.”
“Dinner together?”
“I, uh, wasn’t that hungry. I snacked. Maggie probably made something for herself.”
“What did you two talk about?” asked Ramos.
“I said it was just normal stuff,” said Judith, her voice raised.
“Be that as it may, sometimes a small detail becomes important,” noted Ramos, his voice low and calm. “We’re doing all we can to find your daughter. But we need your help.”
Nash said gently, “Whatever you can remember, honey, please.”
Judith closed her eyes and drew a deep breath. Then she took a sip of water from the glass in front of her and said, “She was talking about her influencer proposal.”
“Her what?” said Ramos.
“Our daughter wanted to be a social media influencer,” explained Nash. “She wanted funding from us and was working up a proposal.”
Summers looked around the room and said, “O-kay. What else?”
“She was asking me some questions about what she should put in it. You know, what would persuade you to fund her, Walter,” she added, speaking directly to him.
Summers said, “Did she mention any plans to travel somewhere? To meet some friends that night?”
“No,” Judith said forcefully. “She just went to her room. Okay? She went to her room and now she’s not there anymore.” She stared at the two policemen. “Find my daughter.”
Then Judith burst into tears and rushed from the room. The flap of her robe knocked over the glass, and water streamed out over the granite top of the coffee table.
Nash had risen to go after her but then decided that would be counterproductive. He sat down and watched the water pool on the granite after righting the glass.
“She’s upset,” he said unnecessarily.
“We understand, Mr. Nash,” said Summers. “So you were in New York?”
“Yes, on business. My plane landed at eight this morning. I went right to my office. I got home at seven, and that’s when we realized Maggie wasn’t here.”
“You hadn’t talked to her by phone during the day?”
“No. I don’t usually call her.”
“Text?”
“No. I had a busy day. And she didn’t text me, which is not unusual.”
“So you came home from work and what?”
“My wife was in the kitchen. I asked her about Maggie. She mentioned she hadn’t seen or talked to her.
I went up to her room and got no response.
Her car was in the garage. We got into her room and found it empty.
But she’d left her wallet, phone, and computer.
We called the police, and that’s when the officer found the back door had been forced. ”
“The alarm system had not been turned on. Is that usual?” asked Ramos.
“When I’m home I always turn it on. My wife is sometimes not as diligent.”
“I thought it would be the reverse. Women at home alone would want it on.”
“Well, Judith usually does, but I guess she must have forgotten.”
The detectives exchanged a glance that Nash tried and failed to read.
“You can think of no reason why your daughter might have gone off on her own?” asked Summers.
“No, none.”
“Were your relations with her good?”
“Yes. The same with her mother. We’re a happy family.”
“She’s nineteen, you said. Is she in college and off for the summer?”
“No, she… decided to take a gap year.”
“And is thinking of doing this influencer thing?” Ramos reminded him.
“Yes. I was helping her with it.”
“And you said you work at Sybaritic Investments?”
“Yes, I’m in charge of acquisitions.”
“Considering your… heightened financial position, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that you might receive a ransom demand,” said Summers.
Nash looked perplexed. “Kidnapping and ransom? Does that even happen anymore?”
Summers said, “Unfortunately, it does. Fortunately, not nearly as often. Although with electronic funds, crypto, whatnot, the kidnapper no longer has to worry about plucking a bag of cash out of a trash can or it being embedded with explosive dye.”
“Well, I’ve gotten no ransom demand.”
“Make sure you let us know if you do. If it is a kidnapping we’ll want to call in the FBI.”
At the mention of the Bureau’s name Nash felt his gut tighten.
“You okay, Mr. Nash?” asked Ramos, who, Nash had observed, did not miss much.
“I’m just trying to process this nightmare.”
“We understand, sir. We know it’s not easy and we’re doing all we can to get her back safe and sound. So if you receive any communication from anyone about your daughter let us know immediately.”
“What will you do now?”
“We’ll go over the forensics. We have officers canvassing the neighborhood, and we’ll speak to the list of her friends you provided.”
“Good, good,” Nash said absently.
“We’d like to get into her social media accounts.”
“She’s on Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok.”
“You wouldn’t happen to know her account info and passwords?” asked Ramos.
“No. She might have them on her phone but I can’t get into that, either.”
“We’ll need to get a warrant.”
“You do whatever you need to do to find my daughter.”