Page 71 of Three Girls Gone

He held up his hands in surrender.

“All we can say with confidence is the investigation into your daughter’s disappearance is just beginning,” Amanda said.

“You’re covering something up.” Krista crossed her arms and thrust out her chin.

“I can appreciate you want answers, that you want your daughter back.” Amanda was quick to amend her statement. “And we will do all we can to bring her home to you.”

“And if you can’t? This Katherine lady needs to pay.” Krista smacked her mouth shut when her husband rubbed her arm.

Amanda appreciated that grief and anger looked for an outlet, someone to blame, a way to find relief, but Katherine was the wrong person for them to focus their energy on. “The only person responsible for your daughter’s welfare right now is the person who took her. Do either of you know the Tanner family?”

“No,” Damon said. “We told Detective McGee that.”

Speaking of the man, he is taking his sweet time returning…

“What do you do for work, Mr.Maynard?” Trent asked Damon.

“I’m an electrician for LiveWire. They’re a local company.”

Amanda nodded, having heard of it. A job in the trades was a far different world to the Tanners’ one in investments. Their paths were unlikely to have crossed. Had the killer targeted Eloise at random? There didn’t seem to have been time for them to stalk the girl for any length of time. “What did Eloise do yesterday?”

“She went to school,” Krista said.

“Which one does she attend?”

Krista told her the name of a different school than the one Hailey had attended. Detective McGee returned and sat down.

“You mentioned it was Eloise’s birthday,” Trent said. “Did you do anything special for her after school?”

“We had a small party at the Scoop. It’s an ice cream parlor,” Krista told them.

Amanda had taken Zoe there, and Lindsey before her. The place had been in business for a long time. “Sounds like that would have been fun for her.” Amanda was endeavoring to relax the mother some.

“It was.”

“We’re going to need the names of all the kids there, any parents that tagged along,” Trent said.

“I can get that for you,” Krista said.

“Does Eloise love the spotlight? Maybe she has dance lessons or performs in competitions, pageants?” Amanda asked.

“Oh, she loves being the center of attention, but nothing like what you mentioned. She is obsessed with princesses, though, and insisted on wearing her pink gown and tiara to her party.”

Amanda said nothing to the Maynards, but she slipped a subtle side-glance at Trent. Again, it would seem, their killer had a type. And given what they’d just heard, it sounded like little Eloise was targeted on the spur of the moment. The killer was getting careless.

TWENTY-NINE

Amanda was grappling with frustration at how she went from waking up that morning with a prime suspect in custody to no one. At least no one tangible. The closest they had for a lead was Wilson M-Something, the nanny’s onetime date, but that might be a stretch at this point. There was more digging left for the Tanner case, but the clock was ticking on this new one. And they had a chance to save Eloise.

“Did you notice anyone lingering around, watching the party?” Trent asked, beating Amanda to a similar question.

Krista shook her head. “I was paying attention to Ellie, making sure my baby was happy.”

Damon took his arm from around his wife and took her hand into his instead. “Krista’s a good mom.”

“No one is saying otherwise,” Amanda assured him. “We just need to ask these questions. Do you remember any other customers who dined inside?”

“A few, but their faces…” She flung her hand. “They’re all a blur.”