Her father handed her the JD over ice. “Maybe. You know how these things work.”
“After three years it seems the police are stuck. Maybe this podcast can jump-start the investigation and solve Candace’s murder, give closure to the family. Her sister is cooperating.”
Her dad didn’t comment. He wouldn’t be easily swayed, but he was a fair man.
“Ready for the cobbler? It’s good,” he said.
“I can get it.”
“No, go ahead, start the next episode, I’ll dish you up a bowl.”
He sounded like he wasn’t interested, but she knew her dad well enough to know if he didn’t want to do something, he wouldn’t do it. He just wasn’t ready to admit the case intrigued him.
She started the second episode. After the music, Lucas gave a brief summary of the first episode and reminded his listeners that the podcast was live and if anyone had information about the case, and in particular Candace’s whereabouts during the days she had been missing, they were encouraged to call in. He gave the studio number, his website, and his email.
“Remember,” he said, “Candace was missing for over a week—but she was alive. We know this from the autopsy report, which indicates that she was murdered between ten in the evening and one in the morning the Saturday night before her body was found in the lake. Where was she all that time? Someone knows. Even if you only saw her in passing, anything you know will help us piece together her last days, and maybe together, we can solve this horrific crime.”
Her father settled back into his chair after handing Regan a bowl of cobbler. It was amazing, just like he said. He was having a bowl himself.
On the podcast, Lucas talked about how the missing-person case was handled before it turned into a murder investigation. He frequently paused, likely hoping for a call—but still no calls came in.
Lucas was right about one thing: the delay in reporting first to campus police, then to Flagstaff police, was problematic. Officer Carroll came on to explain how missing persons were handled by NAUPD. “There is no one standard protocol because each case is unique, but the first thing we do, in the absence of any indication of foul play, is to call the individual’s family, contact their friends both on campus and at home, and talk to their professors. Usually when a student is reported missing, it’s because they didn’t check in with someone when they were expected. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, the individual is fine. But it is better to be embarrassed than to have something happen and no one look for you.
“For Candace Swain, we alerted all local law enforcement Wednesday, after we first contacted family and close friends, just in case she was with one of them and not really missing. We reached out to her parents and talked to the girls at the sorority and her professors. Her vehicle was on campus, which led us to believe that she may have walked off or called a ride. We checked with her off-campus boyfriend, the app-based rideshare companies, and taxis with the assistance of Flagstaff PD. Once we exhausted standard avenues, Flagstaff PD took over the investigation.”
Lucas said, “No one came forward to tell authorities that they saw Candace, which is unusual. Where was she? Did she leave town? Why? If you know anything about Candace Swain’s whereabouts during the time she was missing, please call in. Together, we can put together a time frame and re-create her final days.”
He paused. “My producer, Lizzy Choi, has a call holding for us. The caller wishes to remain anonymous.”
He sounded very excited as he took the call.
“Hi, caller. You’re on the air live with Lucas Vega. You told Lizzy, my producer, that you think you saw Candace on Sunday afternoon, after the party. Can you explain?”
“Well, I really don’t know, but you said even if I think I saw her, to call in.” The caller was female, sounded nervous.
“That’s right.”
“And I went to your website and saw a picture of Candace and a picture of her car, and that’s when I thought maybe I had really seen her.”
“Great. When and where?”
“I, um, I’m only going by my memory, which is three years old. I only remember the day because I was driving back to campus on April 12 from Las Vegas, where my family lives. It was my sister’s sixteenth birthday that weekend, so I went home Friday, drove back Sunday afternoon. I stopped in Kingman for gas, then drove through Starbucks. I saw Candace Swain. Or I think I did. The only reason I noticed was because she was in a blue VW convertible Bug, and I loved the color. Then when I saw an NAU sticker on the window, I did a double take because, you know, I was a student. She was sitting in the driver’s seat in the parking lot of Starbucks. I think she might have been on the phone, but I just looked for a second. Maybe I’m wrong, but I really think it was her because of the car.”