Alison’s eyes got wet. “That’s Kathrine. Not very recent, though. It’s about a year old. Kathrine’s hair was long back then. She cut it very short after Bertram left.”
“Her rebellion,” Guy said.
“She was in mourning, Guy.” A look to Decker. “And this photograph was found at the nurse’s house?”
“Yes.”
“And she’s missing? The nurse?”
“Yes.”
“What is her role in all of this?”
“I don’t know.”
McAdams said, “You haven’t had any communication with your daughter in the last couple of days?”
“No, but that’s not unusual,” Alison said. “We don’t call her every day. Her wishes.”
“Nothing like a ransom note?”
“A ransom note?” Guy was stunned. “You think she was kidnapped for money?”
“Unfortunately, that’s usually the motive behind kidnappings.”
“But look at how we live!” He shook his head. “I’m a retired college professor. My wife works in a flower shop. Do we look like the ransom type?”
“Guy, they don’t know that.”
“Excuse my asking,” McAdams said. “But how do you afford to send her to a residential facility?”
“There are government programs that help out,” Guy said. “And Kathrine was provided for in my mother’s will. She adored her.”
“We manage.” Alison looked at the detectives. “Doesn’t Bertram come from money?”
“He does,” Decker said.
“Did you ask Bertram’s parents about a ransom note?”
“We haven’t been able to get hold of them.”
“You can’t get hold of them?” Guy was aghast. “Do they know that their son is missing?”
“I’ve called them, the director of the residence has called them. According to their private secretary, the parents are not available.”
“What!” Guy was outraged. “I can’t believe that.”
“I can.” When the detectives looked at Alison, she said, “When this romance started up between our children, I tried calling them. I wanted to hear their opinion, ask them did they have any insight they’d like to share. I, also, got a secretary, who said they’d call me back. They never did. For all I know, they’re just names. Maybe they’re not even real people.”
“Mila and Kurt Lanz are real people.” Decker looked at McAdams. “Did we ever do a background check on Bertram’s parents?”
“Yes, I did a search on the internet. They’re private people. Anything made public has to do with Kurt’s professional accomplishments.”
“Let’s do a little more digging.” Decker’s brain was whirling. “See what you can find out about the family. It’s always possible that Bertram went back to Germany with Kathrine.” A pause. “Would you know if she had a passport?”
“She does,” Alison said.
“We took a trip to Europe three years ago,” Guy chimed in. “Kathrine loved it. We had such a great time.”
Decker said, “Would you know if the passport is still current?”
“We got a new one for the trip,” Guy said. “I think they’re good for ten years.”
“And she’s in possession of it?” McAdams asked.
“She asked for it a while back,” Guy said. “For ID purposes.”
McAdams said, “Is there anyone else that Kathrine felt close to at her residence?”
“No one she mentioned.” Alison’s eyes leaked tears. “She and Bertram wanted to get married.” She looked at her husband. “In retrospect, maybe that would have been for the best.”
Guy said quietly, “At the time we did the best we could.”
Alison regarded Decker. “Do you think that the nurse took them both away?”
“It’s a possibility,” Decker said. “What I’ve been told, she appeared to like Bertram very much. And then we found this photo in her house. Maybe she thought it was the right thing—for them to be together—and she facilitated that.”
“Let’s hope that’s the case.” Alison nodded. “At least that way they’re both safe.”
“Does Kathrine have a phone or an email address that we might be able to tap into?”
“We’ve called her phone over a dozen times,” Guy said. “It goes straight to voice mail.”
“Same as Bertram Lanz,” Decker said. “Their phones are probably off. But we can get a lot of information from the phone company and her ISP server. It takes time to process things so if we could get the paperwork started, that would be helpful.”
“I understand.” Alison supplied him with the information.
Decker said, “And you will tell us if you hear from Kathrine.”
“Of course. Right away.”
“We just want to make sure she’s safe. If you hear from her, tell us. Even if she asks you not to tell us. You don’t want to waste police time.”
“I understand,” Guy said.
But Decker knew that if Kathrine asked them not to talk to the police, they probably wouldn’t say anything. Parents are parents first. Good citizenship was way overrated. He said, “I really hate to ask you this, but do you have an old toothbrush or hairbrush of Kathrine’s?”
“DNA,” Guy said.
“We’ve done the same for Bertram—and for the nurse we’re looking for. We have to be prepared for anything.”
Silence in the room.
“I haven’t given up. I’m still assuming that they’re very much alive. Right now, I’m trying to piece together a timeline. I’m sorry I can’t be more specific, but as the facts come in, I’ll let you know.”
“I appreciate your honesty,” Guy said. “A rare thing in this day and age.”
Decker nodded. “Thank you. I’ve always found that honesty works well. To me, lying is hard work.”
Chapter 11
It was close to eleven in the morning by the time they were on the highway to Mangrove, Connecticut—approximately an hour and change away. McAdams could feel his stomach rumbling. He reached over into the backseat and retrieved a paper bag inside a cooler. “There’s tuna or what is this . . .” He stared at a wrapped sandwich. “I think this is egg salad.”
“Go for it,” Decker said.
“Thanks.” McAdams tried the egg salad. “Like the dill mayo. Good touch.”
“I’ll tell Rina.”
“Renee Forrester crapped out,” McAdams said. “Wasn’t she supposed to meet us at the Taylors’ house?”
“She said she’d try.”
“A resident is missing. You’d think she’d do more than try.”
“You’d think.”
“You’re a man of few words.”
“Just thinking. If you’re bothering to kidnap someone whose parents have money, why take along another person to worry about? The only thing I can come up with is maybe Elsie figured that having Kathrine along would make Bertram more cooperative and more willing to deal with his parents.”