Page 135 of State of Grace (First Family 2)

“She goes to Burke,” he said with a deep sigh. “She’s a senior.”

“Are your other children there, too?”

He nodded and ran a trembling hand through his hair. “Aidan is also a senior. We held him back a year for football.”

Sam stood and turned for the door.

“So that’s it? You’re going to go there and bother her at school?”

She looked back over her shoulder. “That’s exactly what we’re going to do, and if you tip her off that we’re coming, we’ll be back to arrest you. Any other questions?”

His dark scowl spoke for him.

They walked past Ouellette’s shocked staff and stepped out into frigid air that was a welcome relief from the stuffy office.

“How happy am I that Grace Ouellette is eighteen, and I don’t need her parents’ permission or involvement in any of this?”

“We’re both very happy about that. Grace, on the other hand, is not going to be so happy.”

Sam snorted out a laugh at his witty comeback. “What do we know about the school?”

“It’s a really swank place. Some friends of mine from church went there.” He tapped around on his phone. “Like 44K a year per kid.”

Sam blew out a low whistle. “Is there that much money in insurance?”

“I wouldn’t have thought so, but he’s paying nearly two hundred grand a year to send four kids to school. And he’s still got to put them through college.”

“Where do the Tappen kids go?”

A minute later, he said, “Coolidge.”

“Interesting. Ouellettes are private, and Tappens are public. Ask Cam and Matt to do a deep dive on the Ouellettes and their finances.”

“Texted and Cam said okay.”

“Call Archie and ask where we are with the expanded search of the film from the area where Pam lives and where the minivan was found,” Sam said, buzzing from the adrenaline that came with a possible break in a complex, baffling case.

While Freddie put through the call, Sam drove toward the campus of Edmund Burke School on Connecticut Avenue.

“He says nothing yet, but they’re working two miles out from both locations.”

“Tell him thanks and let us know.”

When Freddie ended the call with Archie, Sam said, “Call Burke to let them know we’re coming to speak with Grace Ouellette, and we’d appreciate their cooperation.”

While he made the call, Sam looked for a parking spot in the vicinity of the school. She ended up double-parking and leaving her hazard lights on while they made their way toward the leafy brick-fronted school with the huge BURKE sign out front. Because they’d called ahead, a school staffer met them at the main door and escorted them to a conference room in the office.

Sam appreciated that sort of cooperation and wished it happened more often on the job. “I like this place,” she said after the staffer had left them to wait for Grace to join them.

“I knew you were going to say that.”

“Cooperation is such a rare and special gift.”

“That it is.”

The same staffer escorted Grace Ouellette into the room five minutes later.

At first glance, Sam noticed the girl was stunning. She wore all black, her hair was dyed jet black, and her eyes were rimmed with heavy black makeup. A backpack hung from her shoulder.

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