Page 27 of Another Girl Lost

“We believe we’ve found Sandra Taylor’s body.”

Mike’s lips flattened as he shook his head. “I’m sorry to hear that. You think Tanner did it?”

“I can’t prove it. Just following up old leads. When did you see Tiffany last?”

“A couple of months ago, maybe last year. She hasn’t worked here in years but still stops by.”

“Do you have a number where I can reach Tiffany? She’s not answering her cell.”

Mike pulled out his phone and opened his contacts. He showed Dawson Tiffany’s information. “That’s my most recent update.”

“That matches what I have.”

Mike shifted. “I need to get back to work. Any other questions?”

“Did Sandra or Tiffany ever talk about Scarlett Crosby, the girl in the van?”

“Tiffany said she calls her when she needs money. Why she’d call Scarlett of all people, I don’t know.” Mike leaned forward. “I hear that Scarlett girl had that syndrome that makes victims attach to the kidnapper.”

“Stockholm syndrome. Scarlett’s actions don’t match the definition.” Dawson didn’t doubt that Scarlett had suffered while she wasTanner’s captive. She’d been grossly underweight, malnourished, and badly battered when she’d arrived at the emergency room. But in all her interviews, she’d never expressed empathy for her captor or his goals.

“What about Della? You ever meet anyone by that name?”

“That’s the make-believe girl, right?”

“So far.”

According to multiple police interviews, Scarlett had asked repeatedly about Della on the way to the hospital. She’d never mentioned Sandra.

By the time the cops had located Tanner’s home via a title search, they’d discovered the house had burned to the ground. Witnesses reported hearing explosions before the fire. If there’d been any evidence of other girls, it had been incinerated.

Ultimately, there’d been no missing persons reports matching Della’s description. Social workers had decided that Della was a figment of Scarlett’s imagination. Her eighty-eight-day imprisonment and torture had been too much for her to endure and she’d created Della as a coping mechanism.

It struck him as odd that after a decade, Scarlett still clung to Della. “Right. Thanks for your time.” He handed Mike a business card.

Mike flicked the edge with a calloused thumb. “I’ll call if I hear from Tiffany.”

“Thanks.”

As Dawson left the busy diner, it occurred to him that the day Tiffany and Scarlett had first collided had been a warm day like this. Summer might have been winding down, but the air had been hot and sunny.

The bells on the front door jingled, and he looked up to see a couple of young girls enter and move toward the bar. No one else looked toward the door or the girls, just as they hadn’t when Scarlett first entered.

Outside, he walked down the side walkway toward the back alley. It was long and wide enough for one vehicle at a time. The walloverlooking the area behind the diner was windowless. There was a security camera, but it looked new. According to the reports, there’d been no back lot cameras ten years ago. A regular like Tanner would have known that. He’d been here enough because he was scoping out the location.

Dawson crossed cracked asphalt that fed into a parking lot, stood at the edge, and tried to visualize Tanner speeding away. When dispatch had issued a BOLO on the van, he’d been close enough and had caught the call. Lights on, he’d jammed his foot on the accelerator. He’d caught sight of the van when it suddenly veered off the road and crashed. Tanner had stumbled free of the wreckage, gun drawn. Dawson fired. Suspect down. And the broken girl in the back of the van had been found.

Weary of chasing ghosts, he got in his vehicle and drove back to the station. Out of his car, he was looking at his phone, lost in the puzzle of Sandra Taylor, when he walked straight into a woman. She stumbled back and tried to resettle her balance.

He reached out to steady her. A rich perfume wrapped around him. His gaze skimmed full breasts. He grew hard. Margo Larsen.

“Sorry,” he said, releasing her and sliding his hand into his pocket.

“Deep in thought, Dawson?”

“Yeah, sorry.”

A faint smile tipped the edges of her lips. Green eyes softened with amusement as she took in his befuddled reaction. “No worries. What has you so deep in thought?”

---