Cate’s phone rang, and the cat lived up to his name, vanishing like a ghost under a shelf. The name of Cate’s ex-boss, Phillip, appeared on her screen.
Finally.
“Phillip?”
“Good to hear your voice, Cate. I knew you wouldn’t stay away from the FBI for long. I’m starting to think you have something internal that attracts our cases. They can’t resist the pull. And you can’t either.”
“I admit this case has stirred up some old feelings. It was always personal to me,” Cate said.
“That’s what made you a good agent,” Phillip said. “You had the right amount of heart. And this case definitely made a lasting impression on everyone who worked it.”
Images of Jade had been running through Cate’s mind. The three-year-old had wispy pale-red hair and startling blue eyes. Most of the case photos had shown her in perky high pigtails, flashing the widest grin that showed the tiny silver crowns. Cate had wanted more than anything to bring the child home to her mother.
Would Jade’s father have simply let her die?
“What’s the latest activity on her case?” Cate asked.
“There’s been one review since you left,” said Phillip. “During the review, several database searches were updated, looking for any sign of Rich Causey. A half dozen phone calls were made to people involved in the case to see if any new evidence had turned up or if there had been sightings of Rich or Jade Causey. A phone call was also made to Kori Causey, who refused to speak to the agent. There’s a notation here that she was upset that you weren’t the one calling.”
“Did a male agent call her?”
“Yes.”
“Kori doesn’t trust men and especially those in law enforcement. Please make a note that she needs to be contacted by a woman in the future. She was very angry that the county deputies didn’t take her seriously about Jade’s disappearance. And remember how controlling Rich Causey was? Even years after he vanished, she struggled to believe that not all men were like that.”
“I remember now,” said Phillip. “Didn’t he keep Kori from getting a driver’s license?”
“Yes, and wouldn’t let her have anything else in her name. He made her completely reliant on him. At the time, she didn’t understand that it wasn’t right. It took a few months after Jade’s disappearance before it sank in that she could go anywhere and do what she wanted.”
“I remember being stunned that it was that bad,” said Phillip. “I didn’t understand how someone could be so out of touch with how the world works. TV and the internet bring the world into the home—most people have that window, but I guess Rich controlled those too. He essentially kept Kori and Jade in a bubble.”
“Exactly.”
Phillip paused for a long moment. “I had an agent contact Kori an hour ago, and she told him she’d only speak to you. I don’t think it mattered who called this time. She’s stubbornly set on only talking to you.”
Cate didn’t know what to say.
“I personally called her parents after that, and her mother also insisted that Kori and the two of them would only talk to you.”
“I can try to convince them otherwise,” Cate told him. “I had a good rapport with her parents, even though I only met them in person once. I assume you didn’t tell them specifically about the mandible?”
“No. Only that we might have a new lead. Neither Kori or her parents expressed optimism.”
“They’ve had too many calls over the years about possible leads and sightings that went nowhere. They know not to get excited until something pans out.”