Page 94 of State of Alert

She scurried from the room.

“She’s my girlfriend.”

Sam was glad she’d left without her having to ask. “We’re very sorry about your sister.”

“Thank you. It’s hard to believe this could happen again.”

“We heard about your sister Sarah being murdered and were wondering if you could tell us more about that case.”

“It was a long time ago,” he said with a sigh. “A lifetime ago.”

“Whatever you can tell us about what happened then might help us to solve Elaine’s case.”

He gasped in shock. “You’re not suggesting they’re related, are you?”

“We’re not suggesting anything. We’re looking for information from someone with ties to both cases. Can you tell us what happened to Sarah?”

He leaned forward, elbows on knees. “I can’t believe how hard it is to talk about her, even after all this time. She was the sweetest girl. We all adored her.”

“You were older?”

Nodding, he said, “Five years older than Elaine and eight years older than Sarah. She’d gone to hang out at a friend’s house down the street. She was only, like, six blocks from home. It was spring, and the sun was setting later. My mom told her to be home by eight, before it got dark. Eight came and went. Sarah was known for being a bit absent-minded at times, so we didn’t think anything of it. Mom sent me to get her at her friend’s house. I was about halfway there when I saw herbackpack on the sidewalk. I’m not sure how I knew not to touch it, but I backed away from it and started screaming for help. One of the neighbors came out, and I think she’s the one who called the police.”

“You would’ve been twenty-five then?”

“Yes, I’d gotten home a few days earlier after getting my master’s degree in Ohio.”

“What happened after the police arrived?”

“I told them what I knew, which wasn’t much except for where she’d been and how I’d found her backpack on the sidewalk. I ran home to get my parents, and we searched for her all night while the police went to the friend’s house. The friend’s mother reported that Sarah had left about half an hour before I spotted the backpack.”

“Did the police ever suspect the friend and her family of involvement?”

“God, no, never. They were as distraught as we were.”

“Were there any suspects?”

“Not that we ever heard. The police worked the case hard from the beginning and are still on it. The detective in charge refuses to retire as long as Sarah’s case is active.”

“His name?”

“William Truehart. The name says it all. He’s remained faithful to Sarah and our family for all these years. Since my parents passed away, he still checks in with me and with Elaine monthly to keep us abreast of any developments, not that there have been many. But he’s never forgotten us or her.”

“She was later found, correct?”

“Yes,” he said with another sigh. “About six weeks later, naked in a ravine out by Clifton, about ten miles from our house. The autopsy showed that she’d only been dead a short time when she was found.”

The implications of the kidnapper abusing her for six weeks were horrific to imagine.

“I’m very sorry for the terrible ordeal your family has endured and that you’ve now lost Elaine, too.”

“I can’t believe it. I’ve been in complete shock since Frank called yesterday.”

“Were you close to her?”

“I mean… We had our own lives, but we stayed in touch. Talked every couple of weeks. Had dinner a few times a year. Even though we didn’t see each other often, it was a comfort to me to know she was there, and I think she felt the same about me. When you go through something like we did with Sarah… It forms a bond, but it’s also painful to be together when there’s always someone missing.”

“Did you know of any problems she was having?”

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