Page 24 of Three Girls Gone (Detective Amanda Steele #14)
TWENTY
Amanda was finding it hard forging ahead after what Katherine disclosed. But on the chance Anne Harrington didn’t pan out, she and Trent needed to keep following other leads. That’s why she had Trent take them to Tiptoe Studio.
At nine o’clock, they pushed through the door and a bell chimed over their heads. A counter was right inside, backed by a wall with another door. It must have separated the studio from the public eye.
A woman in her twenties came through the door and was smiling broadly until she saw their badges. “Ms.Blackwell said I’m not supposed to talk to the police. I’ll go get her.”
“Thank you,” Amanda told her. Candace Blackwell was the studio owner and who they wanted to talk with anyway.
The twenty-something retreated through the door, and moments later, it opened again. This time a trim woman in her fifties with gray hair emerged. Before she or Trent could say a word, she spoke.
“I have nothing more to say to the police.”
“That may be, but we’re Detectives Steele, and Stenson and there are questions we need to ask you about Hailey Tanner,” Amanda said.
Candace let out a heaving breath. “You’re new to me. Major Crimes or Homicide?”
“Homicide,” Trent confirmed.
“I saw the news, but I still can’t believe it. Such a horrible shame. I’m not sure what else I can do. I answered all of Detective McGee’s questions when Hailey went missing. I never saw anyone suspicious hanging around that day, and neither did any of my staff.”
“That’s the thing,” Amanda began. “Recent evidence has led us to suspect the person who took Hailey may have been stalking her for months. So we’re interested in more than just last Friday when she was taken.”
Candace gripped the fabric of her shirt over her heart. “My answer doesn’t change. No one suspicious stood out to me.”
Before Amanda or Trent could say anything else, the front door opened and a woman in her thirties came inside.
Candace smiled at her and held the door. “Emily, please come through.”
The woman accepted the invitation, and Candace closed the door behind her. She leveled her gaze at Amanda and Trent. “Now is not a good time.”
“It hasn’t been a good time for Hailey’s family either,” Amanda said in a level tone, while fighting against anger and the unfairness of what happened to Hailey.
Candace’s face softened. “I can give you five minutes, but that’s all.”
“Thank you.” Amanda followed the woman, with Trent behind her, to the second floor. On the way, they passed three dance studios. One door was shut, but an upbeat tempo filtered into the hall.
“Please, sit. Make yourselves comfortable.” Candace stood at the door of a small meeting room and gestured for them to go inside first.
The three of them sat down, and Amanda got started. “So from our understanding, Hailey attended your five o’clock session this past Friday.”
“That’s right.”
“And class ended at what time?” Trent asked, pulling out his tablet.
“It was six. By the time Hailey changed into other clothes to leave, you could add twenty minutes to that. Little girls don’t move that fast unless they’re going for ice cream.” The tiniest of smiles twitched her lips before fading into oblivion.
“I can agree with that,” Amanda said. Lindsey and Zoe were the same way. “Did you help Hailey change and lock up her outfit at the end of class on Friday?”
“I did.”
Amanda nodded. “So you waited around, locked her locker, and saw her out?”
“Yes, to the first part. She walked downstairs and outside on her own.”
She was only six… Amanda kept the thought to herself. “We understand there are no security cameras inside or outside the building?”
“That’s correct, but it’s a safe neighborhood, a safe building.”
“That’s why you were comfortable letting Hailey wait for her ride home on the sidewalk? Even though she’s six years old?” Amanda couldn’t hold back any longer, and the enclosed accusation tumbled out.
“It’s not like we just tossed her out the door,” Candace rushed to defend herself. “Her nanny always picked her up at six thirty. We could see Hailey through the front window.”
“Then you saw who picked her up?” Trent asked.
Candace let out a deep sigh. “No, but Steph, that’s the girl who greeted you when you arrived, was working. She should have been posted there.”
This news hadn’t reached Detective McGee, or in the least hadn’t hit the investigation files. And if Steph routinely watched out for Hailey, wouldn’t she have seen that someone different had come for her? “All right. We’ll want to speak with her when we’re finished here.”
“That’s fine, if she agrees. I’m not going to make her. Tiptoe would never allow harm to come to that girl, but we don’t run a daycare either. It’s a dance studio.”
Amanda could point out that the parents probably saw things differently, how they entrusted their children to Candace’s care, but the combative spirit would shut down communication.
“Was Hailey the only one dropped off and picked up for lessons?” Trent asked.
“No, it’s what we recommend, so the students aren’t distracted. It’s never been a problem before. I inherited the studio from my parents, and it’s been here for fifty years.”
“Congratulations on such a milestone,” Amanda said.
“Thank you,” Candace responded, ice in her tone.
“Just a few more questions,” Amanda began. “Have you had any new hires in the last seven months?”
“No.”
“No one? Not even new cleaners?” Amanda figured this one area might be overlooked if someone else was contracted to do the work.
“No.”
“Do you handle the cleaning in-house or pay another company?” Amanda asked.
“We all pitch in.”
Amanda nodded, satisfied enough to move on. “What about dance competitions and public events Hailey took part in? Anyone new in that crowd, or a person who stands out to you?” She knew what Jean had told them, but wanted to hear from Candace.
“Most of our students enter competitions, but Hailey never did. That was a shame too. Hailey was an incredible dancer, a true natural.”
“Why didn’t she?” Trent asked, playing along.
“Her mother wouldn’t allow it. Teaching Hailey ballet wasn’t about glory or even for her future career.
She hoped that dance would challenge and stimulate her from an intellectual standpoint.
” Candace looked at Amanda. “If you have kids, please be sure to grab a brochure listing all our classes before you leave. I can’t recommend dancing lessons enough for young children. ”
It was distasteful that she’d worked in a sales pitch, but Amanda considered the offer anyhow. Zoe had lit up seeing figure skaters take to the ice near Christmas. She might like ballet. “I’ll consider it. I think that’s all we have for you, if you could get Stephanie for us?”
“Sure.” Candace rose from her chair with the grace of a dancer and left the room.
“I can’t believe they just let a six-year-old stand outside alone,” Trent said under his breath.
“Me either, even if there were eyes on Hailey. And if there were, I don’t understand how she just disappeared.”
“That makes two of us. I don’t remember seeing Stephanie’s name in McGee’s reports.”
“It wasn’t in there.”
The woman from the front desk entered the room and took the chair closest to the door.
“Stephanie?” Amanda asked.
“Yes. My last name is Welch.”
“Detectives Steele, and Stenson,” Amanda said. “We understand you were working last Friday night.”
“I was. ”
“And what is your job at the studio?” Trent asked.
“Reception and clerical. Basically everything administrative.”
“Did you see Hailey leave the studio to wait for her ride on Friday?” Amanda just wanted to get to the meat of it.
“I…” Stephanie closed her mouth and flicked her gaze back and forth between Amanda and Trent.
“You can tell us what you saw,” Amanda encouraged, sensing her trepidation.
“I never saw anything.” She tugged on the cuff of her sleeves and twisted the fabric.
Amanda pointed at her fidgeting. “It seems you did.”
“That’s the thing. I didn’t, but if this gets back to Ms.Blackwell, I’ll be in trouble.”
“Help us understand,” Amanda coached her.
“I’m supposed to be at the desk and watching any girls if they are outside waiting for their ride home.”
Amanda had a sour feeling starting in the pit of her gut. “But you didn’t last Friday?”
“Yes and no. My personal cell phone rang, and I’m supposed to have it off at work. It was in my purse under my desk, and I bent over to pick it up. I was fast, but by the time I sat back up, Hailey was gone.”
Amanda bristled at this revelation. It could have been a deliberate ploy used by Hailey’s abductor to distract the clerk’s attention. “Who called you?”
Stephanie bit her bottom lip. “This can’t get back to Ms.Blackwell. She’d fire me, but I’m looking for a new job. This was always supposed to be a temp thing for me, but with the current job market, it feels like I’m stuck here.”
“And this call was…?” Amanda would love it if she just came out with it.
“A call for an interview. It would have been great too, but it didn’t work out. ”
“Where was this?”
“A vet’s office in town.” She provided the name. “I love animals, and one day I’d love to go to school and become a vet.”
“And who was the interview with?” Amanda asked.
“Kim Booker.”
“Can I see your phone?” Amanda asked. “I’d like to verify that call.”
“Ah, sure.” Stephanie pulled it from her pocket.
So much for no personal calls on company time… The fact she had the device on her showed her rebellious streak and her desperation to find another job.
Stephanie unlocked her phone, tapped on the screen, and handed it to Amanda.
It didn’t take long to see the call from the veterinary clinic. “Would you mind if I called them?”
Stephanie shook her head, and Amanda pressed the Call button. An eager-sounding employee answered on the second ring. “Could I speak with Kim Booker, please?” When the woman came on the line, Amanda verified Stephanie’s story and thanked the woman.
“You really needed to check up on me?” Stephanie asked, her voice a touch shrill.