Hiding In The Dark. Sava Mathou

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СКАЧАТЬ she would need the upper hand with this girl, but she also wanted to build a level of trust.

      “I am not sure I have anything that can help you out with Shelby’s disappearance,” the girl said rather quickly.

      “First, let’s get to know one another. Then we can get into all that. Are there any questions that you would like to ask of me?” She had heard the girl say Shelby’s disappearance and began to wonder why she used that term. It was an odd and interesting way to start a conversation. Most people thought Shelby’s was probably murdered, but this girl specifically said disappearance.

      “Not really. You just don’t look or act the way you see private detectives on TV.”

      “Well, that’s probably true. I think I am going to take that as a compliment!” she said with her best grandmotherly smile. She could see the girl begin to relax in the chair. It was amazing what a simple smile could do.

      “How did you end up doing this?” Stacey asked, relaxing further back into her chair.

      “Boredom, my dear. My life was at a crossroads, and I needed some excitement added to my life,” she answered simply and honestly, hoping to further the trust.

      “Cool,” the girl said with little enthusiasm.

      “How long have you known Shelby?” Simple questions first.

      “We have been best friends since second grade.”

      “That’s a long time.” She could see Stacy smile at the thought of their friendship and the compliment.

      Ellie decided to start her questions. “Can you tell me about that night and what you girls decided to do and did?”

      “Not much. We drove around for bit, then ended up down at the ball field at the school.”

      “Where did you all drive around?”

      “Let’s see. We mostly drove around up at the lake and the campgrounds. We were wanting to see if any cute guys were camping up at the lake.” A blush filled her cheeks on her last statement.

      “Did you find any? Cute guys, that is.”

      “No. Just a couple of high school kids with their parents. We stopped and swam for a bit down at Log Gulch Campground. They have a nice sandy beach there, and more people tend to come down and swim there. It’s not so rocky on the beach like at the other campground.”

      “Did Shelby talk to anyone, or seem to argue with anyone while you were there?” Ellie was trying to move the conversation along.

      “No. We were all together. Steve drove by with his friends, and they stopped by for a minute. But there wasn’t an argument with anyone.”

      “Okay. So there were no arguments. Are you talking about Steve Elliott? Didn’t he and Shelby just recently break up, or quit seeing each other? How was their conversation at the beach?” There his name again. The man keeps popping up everywhere.

      “They didn’t argue, but Shelby tried to end the conversation quickly.” A nervous edge back in her voice.

      “Why did she try to end the conversation so quickly?” Now I am getting to the meat of the matter.

      “Shelby didn’t want to see Steve anymore. He kept coming around, and she had been trying to avoid him.”

      “Why was she trying to avoid him?” Odd. Maybe it was just a young lover’s thing?

      “Shelby said that sometimes Steve was too intense. When he got that way, it made her nervous. Shelby wanted to have fun, and Steve would get in one of his moods and ruin her fun times.” Stacy sounded like she was avoiding the answer.

      “What specifically made her nervous?”

      “Well. Shelby said he would get jealous of other guys when she talked to them. He started wanting to know where she was at and what she was doing all the time. Sometimes she felt like he was keeping too much of an eye on her.”

      “Do you think he was stalking her?” Right to the heart of the matter.

      “I wouldn’t say that, but he did show up at strange times. But then it’s a small town, so you’re bound to run into one another sooner or later.”

      “Was this while they were dating, or after they broke it off?” Ellie was beginning to get the sinking feeling that somehow this Elliott character was involved in this whole thing. Her gut feeling was telling her to look more closely at their relationship.

      “Both,” Stacy said too quickly.

      “Sounds like Shelby was becoming afraid of Steve? Do you think Shelby would take off on her own to get away from Steve?”

      The girl’s mouth suddenly fell open as though maybe she had said too much. Stacey didn’t say anything, so Ellie continued.

      “I think you know more than what you’re telling me. You need to trust me that I am here to help Shelby and not get her into trouble. If Shelby is in trouble in some way, then you need to let me know. I can help her and have friends who can help her and keep her safe. If Steve is the reason that she is hiding, then I need to know.” Ellie laid it all out on the table.

      The girl bounded from her chair, saying, “I am sorry that I can’t help you anymore.” It was obvious the conversation was over. Ellie handed the girl her card and walked out the front door and back to the car. She was about to turn around to say goodbye when the door closed quickly behind her.

      Once in her car, Ellie backed out of the driveway. It had been an interesting conversation. She knew now that the girl was not missing but in hiding. That had become obvious. Ellie drove and wondered if she jumped too quickly at the end of their conversation. It was obvious the girl wasn’t ready to say more, yet she hoped that by giving her the business card that she would use it. Something definitely had to have happened for the girl to feel she needed to hide.

      When Ellie arrived at Shelby’s friend Lynn’s house. It was abundantly clear that the girl no longer had anything to say to her. In the time it took to drive from Stacy’s parents place on Holter Lake and reach Lynn’s house over on Highway 434, the phone lines must have been burning. Lynn wouldn’t even come to the door. Her mother answered the door, saying that her daughter was terribly upset and now was not a good time to talk. Ellie barely had time to give the mother her business card before the door was closed in her face.

      Ellie said loudly through the door, “I am here to help the girls. I know that something bad is going on. I can’t help if the girls don’t talk to me. My number is on the card. Please get your daughter to use it. I really want to help them out and bring Shelby home!” She could hear the footsteps move away from the door, hoping that her plea had not fallen on deaf ears and that the mother would talk some sense into the girl.

      *****

      Getting back to her office, Ellie stretched out on her comfy sofa and tried to piece the afternoon’s events out in her mind. First, she found it odd that Stacy had specifically used the word disappearance. There were so many other words that the girl could have used to explain what she thought had happened. But she had started off the conversation with that word. Second, when she mentioned quite by chance if there was a reason for Shelby to hide from Steve, the girl suddenly СКАЧАТЬ