The caller hung up.
Lucas had no idea what to say.
Fortunately, Regan intervened. “The police are currently investigating the death of Taylor James. Preliminarily, as the newspaper said this morning, she died of a drug overdose, but they will conduct a thorough investigation to ensure that it was accidental. Sometimes a tainted drug hits the streets and they’ll want to track it to prevent more deaths. And we don’t know Ms. James’s state of mind. So that case needs to be left up to the authorities, as it’s an active investigation.
“But Candace Swain is a cold case. Cold cases are notorious in that the police don’t have the time and resources to continue an active investigation. Without evidence, the cases are put on the back burner, sometimes never solved. Sometimes a witness or piece of evidence surfaces, and an investigation finds new life. That’s what I hope will happen with this podcast. We already have four viable witness statements that have been turned over to the authorities. The authorities are paying attention to this podcast and will likely follow up. I know there are more people out there, people who saw or talked to Candace the week she was missing, people who might have talked to her before she went missing that have an idea about her state of mind. What do you think, Lucas?”
“I agree. But Lizzy informs me we have another caller. Hello, you’re on the air with Lucas Vega and Regan Merritt.”
“I knew Candace,” a voice said. The tone was disguised through a computer-generated program. Lucas glanced at the window at Lizzy, and she gave him a big grin and a thumbs-up.
This was Nicole Bergamo. He was positive.
“I have a question for Regan.”
“Ask away,” Regan said.
“You said the other day that if you don’t tell the police something you won’t get in trouble. I mean, if you’re never asked and don’t know that you might know something, right?”
“Yes, in most cases you’re correct. Sometimes a potential witness might not know what’s important to an investigation.”
“What about hearsay? When, you know, someone tells you something?”
“Again, it depends. Hypotheticals are difficult to answer.”
“I saw Candace on Tuesday morning. I mean, I thought I did, but when I mentioned it to someone, they said I had to be mistaken. And so…I just thought I was wrong.”
“When did you mention it to someone? Then or recently?”
“Then. It was early. Between eight and eight thirty in the morning. I had just left my dorm to go to class. I saw her driving on University Street, heading to the main road. And I did a double take because she was driving a truck, and I wondered why.”
“What kind of truck?”
“A truck truck. I don’t know.”
“Was it like a pickup truck? Small or large?”
“Yeah, a pickup, but not new. Kind of beat-up.”
“Do you remember the color?”
“White. But dirty white, ’cause it was beat-up and old.”
“Are you sure it was Candace driving?”
“I thought I was, then I was positive it wasn’t. But after listening to the podcast and you wanting to know of any possible sighting, I felt I should call.”
“Who did you mention it to three years ago?”
“I don’t want to say. I don’t want to get anyone in trouble.”
“No one is going to get in trouble,” Regan said.
Lucas wasn’t so certain about that, but he didn’t comment.
“Did you tell the police?” Regan asked.
“No, and no one asked me. And…well, I called in, and I really hope you find out what she was doing.”
“One more thing,” Regan said. “Was there anything about the truck itself that stood out? Such as was it a work truck or was there a logo on the side? Maybe a bumper sticker?”
“I don’t know. It was just a basic truck. I have to go.”
“Thank you for calling.”
Regan caught Lucas’s eye, and she nodded. She thought this was valuable, he did, too, but how could they prove it? No one had called saying they saw her after Tuesday…yet she was alive, somewhere, until Saturday night.
Lizzy was frantically waving her arms. Lucas grabbed the blinking light on the phone.
“Hello, caller—”
The caller interrupted him. “Lucas, this is Willa March. I know the truck the other caller mentioned. It belongs to Sunrise Center.”
Thirty-Four
Regan leaned forward as the director of Sunrise Center spoke.