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“My daughter,” said Mr. Dexter. He glanced left and right, then lowered his voice even more. “I’m afraid she’s been taken. She might even be dead already.”

CHAPTER 7

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“When I was a young man,” Mr. Dexter explained, “still trying to find my place in the world, I was fueled by this powerful desire to be successful. A burning desire to make something of myself. You see, my family didn’t have a lot of money, and as a kid I often had to witness my mother cry when she had trouble making ends meet. So I vowed one day to become so rich that I could buy her a big house, and set her up with all the amenities she needed, making sure she was happy and didn’t have to worry about money ever again. And it was this desire that fueled me all these years, and led me to where I am today.”

“One of the wealthiest men in the country,” said Odelia, who was probably thinking this was newspaper gold. Then again, I wasn’t sure the billionaire was pouring his heart out for the purposes of an article.

“The only problem was that I was so busy setting up one business after the other, and trying to find a way to hit the big time, that I neglected my personal life, to such an extent that I didn’t even bother to look for a partner. And so when I finally managed to make my first million, I found myself alone, with no one to share my success with, apart from my parents, who were understandably proud, but also worried that I would end up alone.”

“But at least you were able to fulfill your dream,” said Odelia.

He nodded, and when a server came, he ordered drinks for both himself and Odelia. The moment the man was out of earshot, he resumed his tale.“When I was thirty, I finally met someone through a mutual friend, and within a year we were married and pregnant with our daughter. Only disaster struck and my wife was taken from me. Luckily the doctors managed to save the child, and ever since that day Addie has been the most important person in my life. We’ve always been close, to the point that I see her taking over from me at the head of the company one day. She is that smart, that driven, and as dedicated as me.”

“But you said she’s gone missing?”

“Yes, about two months ago Addie went on a coast-to-coast road trip with her boyfriend Ted. Ted Machosko. I wasn’t too worried, as she’s a responsible person, and so is Ted. And besides, these days it’s so easy to stay in touch, through your phone or Skype or whatever.”

“So what happened?”

“Well, for the first part of the trip she reported back to me almost daily. I’d told her the only way I was going to allow her to go was if she took along a state-of-the-art satellite phone, hooked up to one of my satellites, just in case she passed through an area with bad cell phone reception. And I also told her to call me every day. And for a couple of weeks everything seemed to be going really well. She was happy, posting little videos of their trip, and regular updates on her social media. But then all of a sudden two weeks ago the updates stopped, and she alsostopped calling. So obviously I got worried, but when I tried calling, there was no connection. As if she’d disappeared from the face of the earth.”

“Did you try to pinpoint her location through her phone?”

“Yes, of course. Only both of her phones had stopped transmitting a signal. Either she’d turned them off or…” A look of despair filled his eyes. “Or they were destroyed. I contacted the local authorities of the last place where she was seen, and one man, a gas station owner, remembered seeing her and Ted pull up with their RV and fill up their tank. But that’s the last time anyone saw them. Addie, Ted, the RV—gone. Not a trace of them.” The server returned with their drinks— coffee for the battery tycoon and tea for Odelia, and once the man was gone, he continued, “It’s been two weeks, and frankly I’m at the end of my rope, Mrs. Kingsley.”

“Odelia, please.”

He smiled weakly.“Which is when I remembered our interview, and Dan telling me you have a knack for solving unsolvable crimes in this town.”

“Dan is too kind,” Odelia muttered modestly.

“I want you to know that I’ve practically abandoned any hope of ever seeing my daughter alive again.”

“You think something happened to her?”

“I do. This isn’t like Addie. She would never just disappear on me like that. Either she was abducted or… worse.”

Odelia nodded as she toyed with her teabag.“Where was she last seen?”

“Well, that’s just it,” said Mr. Dexter. “You’d think she would have disappeared in the desert, or some godforsaken place in the middle of nowhere. But the last person to see her alive said he saw them head in the direction of town.”

Odelia frowned.“What town?”

“Well, your town. Hampton Cove.”

CHAPTER 8

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“How can anyone disappear in Hampton Cove?” asked Dooley. “This town is so small, it’s impossible to disappear, even if you wanted to.”