Chapter 6 MERCY

Chapter 6

MERCY

Later Mercy stood in the center of Paige's huge bedroom, disappointed by their lack of clues to the young woman's whereabouts. She and Evan had done a thorough bedroom search and were still waiting for Paige's friends to arrive.

After identifying the nail polish, Denise and Adam had been stunned to realize their daughter had hidden her disappearance from them. Denise fell into a bout of crying, upset about an argument she'd had with Paige two weeks ago. Adam had finally put his arms around his wife, reassuring her that Paige wouldn't leave because of a fight.

Mercy wasn't so sure.

Paige was seventeen. Mercy had witnessed the odd things teens did when upset. She lived with her nineteen-year-old niece and her husband's son, Ollie, who was twenty. Young people that age often didn't think logically.

And did irrational things as a result.

Adam had turned to Evan and Mercy as he held his wife and asked, "Does this mean she wasn't kidnapped?" His gaze had searched theirs.

"It's not ruled out yet," Mercy had said.

But why cover the cameras?

"She left her car," Mercy said quietly to Evan in the teenager's bedroom. "Unless she walked away, she was picked up in front of her home by someone she didn't want her parents to see." Her gaze went to the phone and computer on the bed. "But why leave those behind?"

Evan didn't have an answer.

Mercy entered Paige's walk-in closet again—it was the size of her niece's bedroom. She and Evan had checked all the clothing pockets and slid their hands into shoes, and then opened and searched the twenty-plus purses and bags. There were enough clothes in the closet to open a boutique. If Paige had taken clothing with her, it didn't show.

"We've been looking for evidence that might have been left behind, but what we need to know is what's missing," Mercy said, staring at the shelves of shoes.

"Paige's friends are here," announced Finn.

Mercy stepped out of the closet to see him at the bedroom doorway. He eyed the electronics on the bed. "Finn, could you look in Paige's closet with me for a moment?" She wasn't optimistic that the teen could help. She suspected teen boys paid no attention to an older sister's belongings.

Except their electronics.

Finn awkwardly stood by Mercy in the big closet and ran his hand through his shaggy hair. "Do you see anything missing?" Mercy asked.

The teen scanned the packed racks of clothing. "I wouldn't know."

I was right.

"But her suitcase is missing." Finn pointed at a corner under a shelf of bags where four shallow dents appeared in the carpet.

How did I miss the wheel dents?

"She packed stuff," Finn said to himself, and moved to riffle through some dresses.

Mercy stayed silent. The teen clearly had thought of something.

He finished the dresses, then moved to check the shoes, nodding to himself. "Her slut dress and shoes are gone."

Taken aback, Mercy couldn't speak for a moment. She finally blurted, "Slut dress?"

"Yeah. It's black and tight and too short. She looks stupid in it. I saw her try it on here a week ago. Told her it was slutty. The red shoes were stupid too. Heels so high she could barely walk." His voice cracked as he wiped his eyes.

His words were rude and sexist, but Mercy suspected they were a result of strong emotions about his sister's disappearance.

She'd ignore the offensive language. This time.

"Finn," said Evan from behind Mercy. "Would you tell Paige's friends we'll be out in a minute?"

The teen nodded and left.

Mercy studied Evan's stony expression. "What is it?"

He held out his hand. Paige's driver's license sat on his palm. "I took the case off her phone. This was inside."

"Kaylie does that too," said Mercy. "She never carries a purse." She paused, letting the implications sink in. "You heard what Finn said about the dress and suitcase?"

"Yes," he said grimly. "More evidence that she chose to leave." He looked down at the license. "But this doesn't make sense. Same with leaving her phone behind."

"Maybe her friends can shine a light on some things. The missing dress and heels point to a mystery man in her life. Friends usually have the inside scoop."

A few minutes later Mercy and Evan sat outside across from the two young women. They had long, loose curls that hung halfway down their backs, but one was blonde and the other brunette. Both wore crop tops and high-waisted shorts—the current uniform of their age group. Mercy had asked Paige's family to give them privacy for the initial interview.

"The last time I talked to Paige was the day before yesterday," Sophie was saying. "I'd commented on one of her Instagram photos, and she replied."

Mercy didn't think an Instagram comment qualified as "talked to." "How about when you last saw her in person?"

"The Basement club three nights ago," stated Jordyn, and Sophie nodded in agreement. "The three of us went together. We were out pretty late." She glanced at Sophie.

Mercy knew the local dance club didn't serve alcohol, and you had to be at least seventeen to enter. It was always packed on the weekends.

"I didn't get home until one," said Sophie. "But first I dropped off Paige. Jordyn drove herself."

"Was your last communication with her at the club too, Jordyn?" asked Evan.

Jordyn thought. "Let me look. I checked our texts and looked for her Snap location when Finn messaged me, but I forgot about Insta." She touched her phone screen a few times. Her brows came together, confusion filling her face. "I can't find her. Her Instagram account is completely gone."

"Let me look." Sophie studied her phone. "You're right."

"Her Snap is gone too," stated Jordyn, her eyes wide as she looked up at Mercy. "This morning I noticed that she wasn't on the map—which usually isn't a big deal because it's not very accurate—but deleting her accounts isn't a good sign."

Phone, laptop, and license left behind. Social media accounts deleted.

Mercy agreed with Jordyn. Not good signs.

"Her parents said she attends the OSU-Cascades campus in Bend," said Evan. "Do either of you go there?"

The girls exchanged a look and both seemed to deflate slightly.

"We just graduated high school. Paige got early admission to OSU—she started last fall—and skipped her senior year. She had the grades and credits to finish. But she dropped out of college this past spring," said Jordyn reluctantly. "She doesn't want her parents to know. Now I feel like they should be told."

"Definitely," agreed Mercy.

Kaylie would be in big trouble if she tried that on me.

"How can Paige pretend to be in school?" asked Mercy. "I know her parents check her location sometimes. Wouldn't they find it odd if she's not on campus? And what about tuition? I'd notice if a tuition bill didn't show up."

Sophie grimaced. "I think she told them most of the classes are online. I know she hangs out on campus like one day a week. She sits in the coffee shop and just plays on her phone in case they check."

"Her parents transfer money to her bank account for tuition," said Jordyn. "She told me she tells them the amount and they just do it, believing she'll make the actual payment."

"She pocketed her tuition money," stated Evan.

"And she got a partial refund from last spring after she dropped out," added Sophie.

Mercy eyed the large expanse of green grass and the two water features near the patio. A good acre of the property had been elaborately landscaped: trees, boulders, flowers.

Every element of this home was expensive. These were wealthy people.

Do the parents have enough money that they wouldn't keep track of a tuition payment?

"Roughly $3,000 for summer tuition at that campus," said Evan, looking at his phone. "Spring term was closer to $6,000." He looked at the young women. "How long was she in school this past spring?"

"Maybe a week or two?" Jordyn glanced at Sophie, who nodded.

Evan didn't say anything, but Mercy knew he was thinking that Paige had a good-size chunk of money in her pocket.

"Who's her boyfriend?" Mercy asked, her gaze going from one girl to the other.

Both shook their heads emphatically. "No one," said Jordyn as Sophie said, "She's not seeing anyone."

"Then she didn't tell you about him," said Mercy. "Is that the Paige you know? Would she keep secrets?"

The heads shook again. "Never," said Jordyn. "We tell each other everything."

Something flickered in Sophie's eyes and vanished.

Not everything.

Mercy wondered if she should interview Sophie alone.

"Why would she keep a guy secret from her friends?" Mercy asked, continuing to question them as if the mystery man existed. "Could she be seeing a married man?"

Jordyn's jaw dropped open and distaste crossed Sophie's face. "No," they said simultaneously.

"Surely she's talked to one of you about someone she's interested in or attracted to. Maybe someone at the college. That could be part of the reason she continues to go to campus."

Jordyn scowled but concern filled Sophie's eyes. "I think she's texting someone," Sophie admitted. "She was smiling at her phone when I was late to meet her at Starbucks a while back—a special smile, you know? I asked who it was, and she said ‘No one.' I didn't really believe her—it wasn't the first time she's recently sorta tipped her phone away after getting a text. I figured she'd just started talking to a guy, and she'd tell us once she got to know him better. It's like that sometimes." She turned to Jordyn. "I don't tell either of you about guys I've met until I think it could go somewhere."

Now we're getting some answers.

"Did she spend time with a particular guy when you went to the club recently? Did she seem especially interested in anyone?"

"No, we stuck together almost the entire time," said Sophie. "If she's met him in person, I don't know about it."

"What about new interests? Has she mentioned a new activity she hadn't done before?" asked Mercy. "Like suddenly taking up tennis or hiking."

The young women considered, but neither could think of anything.

Evan leaned toward Mercy. "Can I talk to you a minute?"

She stood. "I think we're done for now, girls. But I'd like both of you to stay longer in case we have more questions. Please don't talk about this to anyone until we say so, OK?"

The girls solemnly nodded in unison.

Mercy followed Evan out to the middle of the perfectly green lawn, approving that he wanted to talk away from the house. And away from the ten cameras.

He stopped and faced her, his brown eyes serious. "Paige definitely decided to leave."

"But not on her own," said Mercy. "I'm convinced someone was here. Someone she wanted to hide from her parents and everyone else, which is why she taped the cameras."

Evan was grim. "How much older do you think he is?"

"I don't want to guess—hopefully he's a seventeen-year-old she met at the club."

"Someone older could have manipulated her into leaving so they could get to the senator. I wouldn't be surprised if he got a ransom call."

"I'll get his office phones covered," said Mercy. "That would be the most likely place for a call. I'll take care of their cell phones too. Even Finn's. I don't want to leave anything uncovered."

"Paige could have been manipulated for the money," added Evan. "She has nearly ten thousand dollars. That could be his motivation."

"A lot of possibilities."

"Let's check in with the parents again," said Evan, turning back to the house.

Adam and Denise were on the patio, watching them. Adam had his arm around his wife's shoulders. From this distance, they appeared to be a happy couple. But as Mercy drew closer, the pain in their eyes and stiffness in their postures told a different story.

Those poor people.

We've got to find Paige.