Page 23 of No Mistake

Ryan interjected. “Burner phones are very difficult to trace. You know how I had Chloe’s phone pinged? You can't do that with a burner. There are no contracts, nothing.”

“And you think whoever called her, took her?” She swallowed the lump in her throat facing the agents.

“It’s a possibility. We’re still gathering all the evidence,” Adams said.

“I’m guessing people that have burner phones are not good people. They don’t want to be found.”

Sophie looked between the three of them, but no one said anything, which was confirmation enough. How had Chloe got caught up with someone like that? Perhaps it was one of her former boyfriends.

The door opened and a young man entered, leaning over to whisper in Agent Adam’s ear. She got up abruptly. “We’ll be right back.” She motioned for Lopez to follow. When the door closed behind them, she turned to Ryan.

“The phone, it’s not good is it? I don’t understand, Ryan. We had such a great week. If she was in any trouble, I would have noticed.”

“I know. Did you notice anyone following you while you were there?”

She shook her head, fighting back tears.

Ryan slid an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into him. Taking comfort in the feel of his warm body, she gathered herself together. The door opened and the agents stepped back in.

“The camera at Chloe’s apartment picked up these.” Adams laid out two photos. Leaning forward, Ryan and Sophie studied them. The black and white photos were grainy, the images not too clear. One showed a man entering the building, his back to the camera. Another showed what appeared to be the same man with a hand on a woman’s elbow as if guiding her. You still couldn't see the man’s face, but the woman’s head was turned slightly, and you could just make out a side profile.

“That’s her, that’s Chloe.” Sophie looked between Ryan and the agents.

“Are you sure?” Ryan asked softly.

“Yes. I’m sure.”

Adams nodded. “We’re looking at other cameras in the area, to see if we can pick them up anywhere else.”

Sophie studied the photos. The man, there was something about him. His hair, the jacket.

“Sophie? What is it? Do you recognize him?” Ryan asked her.

“I don’t know, there’s just something familiar...” She trailed off, focusing on the image. “Oh God, I think it’s the man from the club.”

“What man?” Ryan frowned.

“The night before I left, we went dancing. There was this guy. He was all over Chloe, but then he took a call and had to leave. Chloe gave him her number, but there was something off with him.”

“Off, how?” Adams asked.

“He was just, I don’t know, cold. He was into Chloe, yet, every time I looked at him he was staring at me. It was just weird, kind of creepy. I’m not the best at reading men, but he unnerved me. So much so that I begged Chloe not to see him. And she promised she wouldn’t.” Sophie glanced at Ryan, his face was grim, his jaw tense.

“What was the name of the club?” Lopez stood up.

“Mahtay.”

Lopez left the room.

“Can you tell us anything else about this man? Height, hair color, what he was wearing?” Adams started taking notes.

“He was a little taller than Chloe, so about six feet. His hair was black. I think he was wearing the same jacket as in the picture. A black blazer. Ricardo, I think that was his name.”

“This is great Sophie. Anything else?”

Sophie thought back to that night. “Yes. He had an accent. I’m not sure what it was. It was so loud in there. Spanish, maybe? He was older than her, looked mid-thirties. Oh, and he had a tattoo on the inside of his wrist. I saw it when he took the phone call.”

“Did you see what it was?”

---