Page 24 of Little Buried Secrets

“I can’t.”

“You can, and you will,” I said.

“You don’t understand.”

I understood a lot more than he realized.

“You mind telling me why you’re out here, walking around with a woman’s shoe in your hand?” I asked. “Looks to me like it’s the same shoe Margot was wearing the day she went missing.”

“I found it,” he said.

“Where?”

“I didn’t find anything else, if you’re wondering. Just the shoe.”

“Where?” I asked.

“I’ll show you. It won’t matter. Like I said, there’s nothing else to see.”

“When did you find it?”

“Maybe an hour before the sun came up.”

“It wasn’t light yet,” I said. “It’s possible you missed something.”

“I searched the entire area with my headlamp. I was worried, you know? Worried I might find her right by where I was …”

He tried to finish the sentence, but his emotions got the better of him, and he choked on his words.

I gave him a moment to collect himself and then pointed at the shoe. “Do you recognize it?”

He nodded.

“Is it Margot’s?”

He nodded.

“Are you sure?” I asked.

“We … ahh, we were hanging out at the mall one day about a month after we started dating. She saw a pair of tennis shoes she wanted in the store window. She was going to save up until she could buy them. After I dropped her off at home that night, I went back to the mall and bought the shoes as a surprise. She wore them almost every day, even after we broke up.”

I bent down, inspecting the shoe.

“It has no laces,” I said. “Looks like it could slip right off her foot.”

“It happened sometimes. She didn’t care. She loved ’em.”

“You said you search for Margot at night, while your parents are in bed, but they’ll be awake by now. They must know you’re not at home.”

“Every night before this, I’ve made sure to get back before the sun came up. After I found the shoe this morning, I didn’t want to stop looking.”

“Have you spoken to your parents yet?” I asked. “Do they know you’re here and what you’ve found?”

“They know I’m here. My mom has been texting me, wanting to know updates and when I’m coming home.”

“What did you tell her?”

“I said I’d be back soon.”

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