Page 24

Julia

Julia spun on her heels, but wasn’t quick enough to stop Taylor, who fled out the door. In a flash, her daughter was gone.

At least David’s massive windows were useful for something. She could watch her daughter’s rapid retreat back to the house.

Everyone was understandably surprised about the Lucas and Fiona bombshell, but why would Taylor care who Lucas was kissing?

If anyone should be in a tizzy, it would be Erika, who just found out her child (still technically a teenager) was locking lips with a much older woman. And who knows what else they did?

Julia knew of no romantic history between Taylor and Lucas.

So why was her daughter acting like a jilted lover?

When the answer finally came to Julia, it was so obvious that she felt foolish and, even worse, like a bad mother.

She had it all wrong from the start. Taylor didn’t reject Lucas—it must have been the other way around.

She’d been so self-absorbed, the endless heap of financial worries piling up like snow in a blizzard, that she’d overlooked what would have been apparent to anybody with a drip of common sense. Taylor and Lucas had a secret romance, and her daughter got burned. That had to be it.

Did this romance blossom on the college tour? Was there a big fight? Something else?

Julia let the thoughts go as Erika strode across the room, her footsteps heavy, and an accusatory finger aimed at the nanny.

The young nanny’s complexion was dead white.

Erika leaned forward, closing in fast. “What did you say? You saw them doing what?”

In a voice abuzz with anxiety, Izzy repeated her confession. “I went onto the deck to get some fresh air and saw them below. Lucas was playing guitar on your patio, and Fiona came over to him… and well, yeah, they kissed. I saw it.”

Erika’s attention swiveled to David. “Did you put her up to this? Ask her to lie for you to make my son look bad?”

“Ask Izzy to lie? Are you out of your mind?” David came out from his corner like a fighter hearing the bell. The detective held up her hand, halting his advance.

“I did no such thing,” he went on, while keeping his distance. “Tell her, Izzy.” His tone was firm. “Tell her I didn’t ask you to lie for me.”

“Oh, like that’s not intimidating,” Erika shot back.

“Whoa, whoa,” said Baker. “Let’s all take a deep breath and relax.”

David did the opposite. His shallow breaths were ragged and quick. “And why would I want Izzy to concoct some wild scenario in which I end up being painted as the jealous boyfriend?” he wanted to know. “If anything, I’d want less suspicion put on me, not more.”

And here it was again, David’s temper catching like a match to a pile of dry kindling.

His face flushed, his top lip curled into a snarl, his eyes narrowed to slits.

This was the Jekyll and Hyde metamorphosis that had always thrown Julia for a loop.

He could be like a Doberman in that way—placid one second, ferocious the next, triggered by the slightest sound.

In this case, Erika was blowing the dog whistle.

To her credit, Erika held her ground. “The opposite is true as well,” she said firmly. “If you did something to Fiona, you’d want someone else to look suspicious. And who better to target than an innocent high school boy?”

“Oh, spare me, Erika,” David scoffed. “How innocent can he be after locking lips with a thirty-year-old woman who was drunk out of her mind? I have no reason to think Izzy would lie, and every reason to think it’s true—or did you forget the lap dance Fiona gave your husband?

I haven’t seen a smile on Rick’s face that wide since your wedding day. ”

Julia bristled. Leave it to David to cut deep. Unfortunately for Erika, he wasn’t done.

“And thanks for basically accusing me of some kind of foul play—in front of the police, no less. Is that what you really think of me, after all these years?”

“I think we’re all jumping to conclusions,” said Baker. “I’m not suspecting anyone of anything right now. All I know is that an adult woman has been reported missing for a handful of hours. I’m just gathering basic information. We’ll have a search team head out shortly, and we’ll go from there.”

“What if she doesn’t turn up?” Julia asked. “What then?”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Most of the time, these things get resolved on their own.”

David puffed up with obnoxious vindication.

“That’s exactly what I’ve been saying,” he declared, directing his retort to Julia.

He hadn’t wanted the police involved, and now that they were, he made it clear where he cast the blame.

“This is all going to resolve itself, and we’ll have wasted everyone’s time and resources. ”

“It’s not a waste,” said Baker. “I’m just doing my job, and I’ve got one last question for Izzy. Did you happen to see Lucas acting aggressively toward Fiona? Was there any physical force? Did you hear any threats, coercion, that sort of thing?”

Izzy shook her head decisively, but her eyes drifted over to David as though afraid of his reaction.

Baker put David on the spot. “So, David, were you the last person to see Fiona? She did come back to the house with you after the fight?”

“Yeah, we went to bed together. And the ‘fight’ you keep talking about was just a little disagreement.”

“And what time did you go to bed? And when did you notice she was missing?”

David appeared to calculate in his head. “It was probably after midnight. And then it wasn’t until I got back from my run, maybe around eight o’clock this morning, that I realized she wasn’t here.”

“Was she in bed with you when you got up?” Baker asked.

“I thought so, but I was trying to be quiet and not wake her. I assumed she was there.”

Baker nodded, but Julia could see doubt percolating in her eyes. “And the girl who ran out of here? Who was that?”

Julia spoke up. “That was my daughter, Taylor. But I don’t know what upset her so much.”

Baker nodded again, but this time, she conveyed compassion. “Young love,” she said. “I remember it well… sort of.”

Julia tried to get Erika’s attention, but her friend wouldn’t look her way.

What was that all about? Did she have something to hide?

Perhaps she was nervous that Lucas had lied to them, claiming he had never even spoken to Fiona.

In fairness, it’s hard to chat when your lips are locked together.

But did Erika know more than she was letting on?

If so, Julia couldn’t fathom why she was keeping secrets.

Julia let her ruminations go, refocusing on her priority—protecting her daughter above all else. “I’ll talk to Taylor and let you know if there’s anything important to share.”

“I’d appreciate that,” said Baker. “Depending on how this goes, I may need to talk to all of you later, including Lucas. Here, take my card.” Julia accepted the business card Baker removed from her wallet. “And what’s your name?” Baker asked.

Julia gave the detective her information. Baker jotted it down and asked, “Anything else to add? Did you see anything out of the ordinary?”

Julia shook her head. “No, nothing really,” she said. “You mentioned David and Fiona’s argument, so I guess you already know about that. I only overheard some of it.”

Erika wouldn’t let an opportunity to deflect attention away from Lucas pass her by. “Oh, and don’t believe David, that was hardly a little fight,” she said to Baker.

Wisely, the nanny stayed in the kitchen as she stole glances up the stairs, likely wondering how the kids were faring without her.

Julia occasionally heard the stomp of little feet and soft giggles emanating from one of the rooms above.

Luckily, the children seemed unbothered by the morning’s events.

“Did you happen to hear the argument?” Baker asked Erika.

“Parts of it. And it was pretty intense,” Erika said.

“Any idea what it was about? Oh, and your name, please.”

“I’m Erika Sullivan. My husband is Rick Sullivan, and Lucas is my son. And David and Fiona had a big blowout about David sleeping with the nanny.”

“Not me!” Izzy exclaimed as heads turned in her direction. “He slept with the other nanny—or not, because I don’t know for sure. I don’t know who he’s slept with. I’m new here.”

Poor thing is nervous as a fawn, thought Julia.

Baker tapped her pencil against her notebook. She gave David an assessing stare. “That sounds like an argument I’d remember,” she said. “Now, I’m assuming the fight happened after the kiss, right?”

“Yes,” Izzy said with confidence.

“And the boy who kissed Fiona, he’s your son?” Baker asked Erika. “And he’s how old?”

“He’s eighteen and allegedly kissed,” Erika clarified.

“Right, allegedly kissed,” Baker corrected herself.

David strode into the center of the group.

“Couples fight. People kiss. Sometimes people take off and then return, especially after a night like Fiona’s.

So like you said, Detective, unless the person vanished under suspicious circumstances, or you find her body in the water, God forbid, there’s not much to do but wait this out. ”

Baker put her notebook away, preparing to leave. She paused to check out David’s new digs once more. Julia could imagine what she was thinking. This modern, gleaming, glass-faced edifice looked entirely out of place compared with the neighboring homes.

“You sure do have a fancy place, Mr. Dunne. I assume you have a security system.”

With that, David’s whole face lit up. “I’m not thinking straight,” he said, admonishing himself.

“I’ve been so stressed I forgot the obvious.

I guess I’m not used to the house yet, but yes, I have a brand-new security system with cameras, all connected to an app.

I can see precisely when Fiona left, down to the second. ”

David took out his phone and got to work. Everything was online these days. Erika even bragged that her new smart fridge had a camera that allowed her to peek inside from the grocery store to see what produce was rotting.

Judging by David’s sour expression, something other than fruit had gone bad.

He stood stock-still, gaping at his phone. He practically vibrated with unease.

The phone fell away from his face, his expression bemused. “It’s gone,” he said, almost to himself.

“What is?” asked Baker.

“The security camera footage—it’s blank.” He held up the phone, showing a square aperture—a video playback window which was entirely black. “It didn’t record anything. Since midnight last night, the whole system has been out of commission. I just restarted it.”

“Why would that be?” Baker wanted to know.

“I dunno,” said David, his voice almost a whisper. “Maybe the internet was out, or it could have been a system malfunction.”

“Yeah, a very convenient one,” said Erika, echoing Julia’s thoughts exactly.