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"Right," Koenig said His eyes had turned their high-beam stare on Tolliver, which was a relief to me "But I’m also here to lend whatever help and support they need, and I’ until"He couldn’t finish the sentence

"You were called in at the beginning," I said, entle "You were in Nashville"

He took a deep breath "Yes, I was Our paths never crossed there, but I was sent there when Tabitha was firstI talked to the randparents I talked to the crossing guard who’d ad, I talked to the teacher who’d threatened to send a note to her parents about Tabitha’s talking in class, and I talked to the lawn row up to be real pretty" He took a deep breath "I ith the police to talk to the moms who drove in the car pool with Diane, I talked to Victor and his friends, I talked to Victor’s ex-girlfriend who’d sworn she was going to get even with him, and I talked to the maid who said Tabitha hated to pick up her roo frole reason anyone would want the girl out of the way She wasn’t perfect Even people who loved her had a problem with her every now and then So, Tabitha wasn’t all sweetness and light No kid is, especially no kid in that in-between age But as far as I can tell, her mom and dad loved her no matter what she did or said As far as I can tell, they were trying hard to be good parents As far as I can tell, they didn’t deserve what happened to them because of Tabitha’s disappearance"

"Why Tabitha? Why are you so wrapped up in this? You ated other disappearances," I said "Some of them children, I’m sure"

He rubbed his face with both hands, hard, like he wanted to erase some of the lines in his flesh "Lots of sevens," he said "Too lanced at each other Tolliver didn’t understand the reference, either

"Sevens?" I tried to keep h a lot, and I didn’t want to sway his balance

"Kidnapping That’s the progra said

"There was never a ranso forward, his elbows on his knees "The FBI can co of state lines? When there’s no ransom demand?"

The agent nodded

"Any suspicious disappearance of a child under eleven," he said "We’ve offered all our facilities to the Nashville police and the Me the body Our guys already went over the grave Thank God whoever killed Nunley didn’t dump him there before our tearave thissince the body was found"

I shut my eyes and leaned back inyou by the arm, Ms Connelly But we know he left after that He wouldn’t let the hotel staff call hiet in his car and leave Did he contact you again last night?"

"No," I said "He didn’t"

"Why was he so angry?"

"He thought I’d cheated soto find a rational explanation for so that’s just unexplainable" I wondered if I needed to call Art Barfield

Seth Koenig looked thoughtful, as if he was easked

"I alking down Beale Street, trying to find so"

"What tiet back to the hotel?"

"About seven, I think Harper had been asleep"

"I was upset after the little scene with Dr Nunley," I explained "I had a terrible headache I took so that time?"

"I didn’t have roo?"

"It’s possible someone will remember me in some of the places I stopped in on Beale" Tolliver listed the places he’d visited, and told Agent Koenig he’d had a beer at one bar "It’s also possible no one will recall me The street wasn’t crah"

"And you were on foot?"

"Yes, we took a cab to the h our afternoon, including our randson Manfred

"I’ve ht smile on his lips It was the first tiood on hi us over the afternoon and evening over and over Just when I was beginning to think ere ho point Who was the ht, the man who sent Dr Nunley on his way?"

I’d wondered when he was going to get around to Rick Goldman "His name is Rick Goldman He’s a private detective, he told me," I said carefully "He was in the class at the ce to hined up for Occult Studies because the--well, a faction of the governing board, whatever it’s called--was a little uneasy about Dr Nunley’s class According to him, they’d asked him to take the courses, observe what happened, and report back to theot his card?"

"We aren’t on those ter snorted He’d taken a couple of notes Now he put his little notebook back into his pocket I was a bit surprised that he didn’t use soher-tech, like a BlackBerry

"Oneon me I refused to take his unspoken invitation to breathe easier "When you tent out last night, why’d you return to the St Margaret’s ce, like a cartoon character with a piano hoisted over its head, for the big collapse of the conversation, and here it was

Tolliver and I glanced at each other We had a choice toknoe’d been there because he had solid evidence of our presence? Was this sheer conjecture, a stab in the dark to see if he hit a nerve? Or did he only knoe’d taken our car out?

Tolliver tilted his head slightly Up to you, he was saying

"We went for a long drive We had cabin fever," I said "We just looked at Memphis We’ve never been here before But we avoided anywhere we nized We don’t want any more media attention We want to be out of here, and out of the public eye"

"You’re one of the few people I could hear say those words without wanting to laugh in their face," Koenig said He passed a hand over his crisp dark hair "And I can’t i this case, instead of"

"One of your colleagues ouldn’t believe I can do what I can do?" I said