"what about where she's living? Has she mentioned a long ride to town, how beautiful the view is in the country? Do you have her phone number?"
"She's never talked much about herself, now that I think about it. We've always talked about me or Darius or the battered women cases and never about her. I don't think I ever asked her where she lives. The one time I asked for her phone number, she said she would call me, and I didn't press her. I do remember that she paid for the lunch with cash. I don't think I've ever seen a piece of i.d."
"Okay. Let's hit this from another angle. Darius chose an isolated farmhouse so no one would see him bringing the women there and to cut the chances that anyone would stumble onto the women while he was away.
Sloane doesn't have the problem of a wife and job, she could stay with the women most of the time, but she came to court when Darius had appearances and she met with you a number of times. I'm betting she's living in a rural area that's near enough to Portland so she can come to town, then get back, easily. The house probably has a basement so she can keep her prisoners out of sight.
She'd -also have to have electricity "I asked if she'd let Kathy phone me. She said she wouldn't because she was worried I might trace her calls.
She must have a phone," Betsy said.
"Good. That's the way to think. Utilities, a phone, garbage service. And she's a single woman. I have contacts at Portland General Electric and the phone company who can check to see if a Nora Sloane or Samantha Reardon started phone service or electricity around the time Reardon came to Portland. I've got a buddy at the Motor Vehicle Division who can run her names to see if we can get her address off a license application.
"She probably rented the house. I bet she set everything up the first time she was in Portland, so it would be ready when she moved back, but she probably didn't start the services until she came here the second time.
"I'll call Reardon's landlady in Hunter's Point and try to get the exact date she followed Oberhurst and the date she returned to Portland. Then I'll check real estate listings for rural houses with basements for rent in the TRICOUNTY area for the first time she was in Portland. I'll see how many were rented by a single woman "Why not purchased? It would be safer. She wouldn't have to worry about the owner coming to the house to collect the rent or check on its condition."
"Yeah. She'd think of that. But I had the impression she didn't have a lot of money. She was renting in Hunter's Point and she had a low-paying job. I'm guessing she's renting. I'll cross-check what we find about the utilities with the rentals."
"How long will that take?"
The look of excitement on Stewart's face faded.
"That's the problem with using me instead of the police, Betsy. It's going to take a while. We can hire people to do some of the work, like checking the real estate ads, then I can follow up, but this is all very time-consuming and we could miss her altogether. She may have said she was married and her husband was coming later.
She may have found a house in the city that suited her purposes. She may have rented one name and taken the phone and utilities another. Fake i.d. is pretty easy to come by.
"Even if I've doped this out correctly, it's a weekend. I don't know bow many of my contacts I can get through to and when they can get into their offices to do the work."
Betsy looked defeated. "We don't have a lot of time.
I don't know bow well she's taking care of Kathy or what Reardon will do to her, if she decides she doesn't need me.
"Maybe you should reconsider. The police and the FBI can be discreet."
"No," Betsy said emphatically. "She said Kathy would die if I told them.
There would be too many people involved. There's no way I could be certain she wouldn't learn about the investigation. Besides, in her twisted way, I think Reardon likes me. As long as she doesn't see me as an enemy, there's always the hope she won't harm Kathy."
The rest of the day was so bad, Betsy had no idea how she would get through a second one. It was hard to believe that only a few hours had passed since Samantha Reardon's visit. Betsy wandered into Kathy's room and sat on her bed. The Wizard of Oz lay on its side on Kathy's bookshelf They had four more chapters to read.
Was it possible that Kathy would never learn about Dorothy's safe return home? Betsy curled up on the bed, her cheek on Kathy's pillow, and hugged herself She could smell Kathy's freshness on the pillow, she remembered the softness of her skin. Kathy, who was so precious, so good, was now in a place as distant as Oz where Betsy could not protect her.
The house was chilly. Betsy had forgotten to turn on the heat.
Eventually the cold made her uncomfortable.
Betsy sat up. She felt old and wasted, chilled to the bone by the icy air, as if her blood had been drained from her, leaving her too weak to cope with the horror that had invaded her life.
The thermostat was in the hall. Betsy adjusted it and listened to the rumble of the furnace starting up. She drifted aimlessly from room to room. The silence overwhelmed her. It was rare for her to be completely alone.
Since Kathy's birth, she had always been surrounded by sound. Now she could hear every raindrop fall, the creak of timbers, water dripping in the kitchen sink.
So much silence, so many signs of loneliness.
Betsy saw the liquor cabinet, but rejected the idea of numbing herself She had to think, even if each thought was painful. Liquor was a trap.
There was going to be a lot of pain in her future and she had to get used to it.
Betsy brewed a cup of tea and turned on the television for company. She had no idea what show she was watching, but the sound of laughter and applause made her feel less alone. How was she going to get through the night, if getting through the day was so unbearable?
Betsy thought about calling her mother but rejected the idea. Rick's body would be discovered soon and Rita would learn that Kathy was missing. She decided to spare her mother suffering for as long as possible.
Stewart called at four to check on Betsy. He had talked to his contacts at the utility companies and the phone companies and had hired several investigators he trusted to scour the real estate ads for the relevant time period. Stewart insisted on coming by with Chinese takeout. Betsy knew he was doing it so she would not be alone. She was too tired to tell him not to come and she appreciated the company when he arrived.
Stewart left at six-thirty. An hour later, Betsy heard a car pull into her carport. She hurried to the door, hoping, irrationally, that her visitor was Samantha Reardon bringing Kathy home. A police car was parked in one side of the carport. A uniformed officer was driving. Ross Barrow got out of the passenger side. He looked troubled. Betsy's heart beat wildly, certain he was here to tell her about Rick's murder.
"Hello, Detective," she said, trying to sound nonchalant.
"Can we step inside, Ms. Tannenbaum?" Barrow asked.
"Is this about Martin's case?"
Barrow sighed. He had been breaking the news of violent death to relatives for longer than he cared to remember. There was no easy way to do it.
"Why don't we go inside?"
Betsy led Barrow into the house. The other officer followed.
"This is Greg Saunders " Barrow said. Saunders nodded.
"Do you want some coffee?"
"Not right now, thank you. Can we sit down?"
Betsy walked into the living room. When they were seated, Barrow asked,
"Where were you last night and today?"
"Why do you want to know?"
"I have an important reason for asking."
"I was home."
"You didn't go out? No one visited you?"
"No," Betsy answered, afraid to mention Reggie Stewart.
"You're married, aren't you?"
Betsy looked at Barrow for a moment, then looked down at her lap.
"my husband and I are separated. Kathy, our daughter, is staying with him for a few days. I've been taking advantage of the peace and quiet to sleep late, catch up on some reading. What's this all about?"