The Green Children: A Sycamore Moon Novel (Sycamore Moon Series Book 3) Read Online Free PDF

slightly. Maxim wanted to look away but didn't. "Just what are you implying about my daughter, Detective?"
    "Nothing," he answered, turning to face the room, strangely turned on and feeling guilty about it. He gazed down the hall and saw the grand wooden staircase and realized they were alone in the large house. "It's just that Annabelle was awake for days. She was exhausted but overly tense. Is it possible she was abusing alcohol or drugs?"
    "No." The sharpness in Olivia's voice commanded Maxim's attention. Her face was flushed, and thankfully the bathrobe was tied tightly around her waist now.
    "What about any medication?"
    "Annabelle is perfectly healthy," insisted Olivia. "What happened to her, Detective?"
    Maxim softened his voice. He had to ask these questions. It would be negligent not to. But he knew: of all the lenses to view a person through, a mother's eyes were the most stringent. The mere mention of impropriety, however likely, always caused offense.
    "We're not sure yet," he said. "Some minor exposure to the elements. It doesn't look like she was hurt or... anything else. But she's been mostly sleeping since we found her so it's hard to say. There's another child that went missing yesterday, close to the same area. She was staying at a campsite between Bellemont and Williams. The Coconino County Sheriff's Office is looking into it, but I'm heading up Annabelle's case. We'd like you and your daughter to cooperate. When she's healthy, of course."
    "Of course," returned Olivia, nodding. "Annabelle and I will answer any questions you have. But talk to Gulliver first. That bastard. I bet he had something to do with this."
    "Your ex-husband, ma'am?"
    The scorn in her expression was confirmation enough. "He should have told me something was wrong."
    Maxim recorded the man's address on his smartphone and put it next on his mental to-do list. He hated when spousal disagreements endangered children.
    "What did you say your name was, Detective?"
    "Maxim Dwyer."
    "Maxim," she repeated in a distracted tone. "I hope you won't object to me putting some clothes on and seeing my daughter at the station. I can tell you anything else you want to know then."
    The detective put his phone away. At this point, the immediate concern was the father. Anything else from Olivia Hayes could well wait.
    "Of course," he said. "But there was one more thing. When you first saw me you mentioned something about a vandalized Land Rover?"
    "Yes," she said, dismissively. "I called the police last week. I usually park in the garage, but I was in a rush last Wednesday and left the car outside. Someone had thrown a brick through my window." Olivia headed for the stairs.
    It was clear, given the circumstances, that the incident was now an afterthought.

 
     
    Chapter 8

     
     

    Maxim hadn't yet reached his car when the call came in. It was the marshal himself, probably expecting a progress report.

    "Hello, sir. I just spoke with the mother, but it looks like Annabelle Hayes was in the custody of her father when she went missing."
    "I see," he said with a measured tone. "Where is he?"
    "Close. He lives in a condo in Bellemont."
    Marshal Boyd jumped quickly. "So the Coconino County Sheriff's Office would've responded to the missing persons call. They should have notified you."
    "That's if the disappearance was reported at all," countered Maxim. "According to Olivia Hayes, the husband never contacted her."
    Maxim could hear the marshal's disappointment. "We're still dealing with too many unknowns."
    "Not for long," said Maxim, slightly annoyed at the marshal's impatience. Boyd asking about the case was harmless enough, but Maxim hated not having the answers. Frankly, it surprised him that Boyd was on top of the case this early in the day. Usually the dawn hours were Maxim's time to be alone. "I'll see you at the station after I pay him a visit."
    "That needs to wait," asserted Boyd. "I need you in the front office to address the press."
    The detective