“What route did you take?”
“Paradise to Main to Second Street to Oak Avenue.”
They would be able to verify that with street cameras. Rena ripped a sheet of paper out of her notebook and pulled a second pen from her bag. “Can you write down the make and model of your vehicle as well as your license plate number?”
Elaine sighed but she did it.
“What time did you arrive at the day care?” Rena asked.
“I don’t know. I didn’t look at the clock. But I’ve done that drive a hundred times. It takes ten minutes, give or take a minute or two either way.”
If that was right, she would have arrived as early as 7:16 or as late as 7:20. “Then what happened?” Rena asked.
“We got here and Emma got out of her car seat. She can unbuckle herself. We walked in. I saw her teacher near the front door and handed Emma off to her.”
“What teacher would that be?”
“Kara Wiese.”
“Did you talk to her?”
“I think I said good morning.”
“And what did she say?”
“Good morning. And then she said hello to Emma. Then I left.”
“Did you see her make any other contact with Emma?”
“Contact?” Elaine asked.
“Reach for her hand. Other conversation? Point her towards the classroom? Anything?”
Elaine closed her eyes. She was silent. Finally, she opened them. “No. I didn’t see anything like that. Because I wasn’t looking. I had turned and I was walking out the door. Because I knew that Emma’s teacher was there.”
“You and Kara Wiese had no other conversation than ‘Good morning’?” Rena asked.
“No.”
“Okay. You regularly drop Emma off at day care, right?”
“Several days a week.”
“And is this your normal drop-off process?”
Elaine Broadstreet shook her head. “No. I walk her to her classroom.”
“But not today. Why not? Were you running late?”
“No. Like I said, I didn’t spend any time at my daughter’s house. We were early. I didn’t walk her to her classroom because her teacher was at the front door. There was no need. What the heck happened here? How did they lose a child?”
“We’ll find her, Mom,” Leah said. “We...have to. That’s the only thing that can happen.”
Rena knew that wasn’t true. There were any number of bad alternatives to a child missing for over ten hours.
“Mrs. Broadstreet, was there anyone else in the lobby when you handed Emma off to Kara?” Rena asked.
“I... I don’t know. I don’t think so. I really wasn’t here very long.”
“But you don’t recall talking to anyone else? Greeting anyone else?”
“No.”
“Okay. Did you sign Emma in this morning, on the clipboard next to the office?”
“Yes.”
She pulled out the evidence bag. Showed Elaine the sign-in sheet. “This is the sign-in sheet from that clipboard. There are two signatures on here. Are either one of these yours?”
“No,” Elaine said. “But I signed the sheet. I’m sure I did.”
She had not mentioned that until Rena had specifically asked her about it. But that didn’t mean she was lying. “Were there any other signatures on the sheet when you did that?” Rena asked.
Again, Elaine closed her eyes as if she was trying to visualize the moment. “I don’t know. I really don’t remember.”
“When you signed the sheet, did you note the time?” Rena asked, pointing to the spot where it would have been entered.
“I...imagine I did.”
“But you don’t recall specifically?”
“No. Like I said, I don’t recall specifically noting the time. But I look at my watch a hundred times a day. It’s not a special action that I take. So I wouldn’t necessarily remember it. But if there was a spot there for the time, I’m sure I filled it in.” She looked at her daughter, as if seeking confirmation.
Leah didn’t offer it up. Her face was devoid of emotion.
But then again, her kid was missing. She probably felt as if she’d been run over by a train. “Earlier, Elaine, you said that after you saw Kara Wiese, you turned and left. You didn’t say anything about signing the sheet?”
“Look, I’m a little rattled here. I wasn’t thinking about everything that I did. But I signed the sheet. I turned, signed the sheet and left.”
“Okay,” Rena said. “Where did you go after you left here?”
“I went...” Elaine Broadstreet’s voice trailed off. “I went to work, of course. At Milo’s Motors.”
“What time did you arrive there?” Rena asked.
“Probably about 7:45,” Mrs. Broadstreet said. Her tone had cooled. “Although I don’t see what that has to do with anything.”
“Again, just trying to get a full understanding of the time lines,” Rena said.
Leah was now staring off into the corner. Elaine’s eyes were flicking toward the door, as if she might make a run for it.
“Where were you when your son-in-law contacted you this afternoon?” Rena asked.
“Still at work. At first, I didn’t understand what he was asking. I mean, I understood the words but it didn’t make sense. Why would he think that I had Emma?”
“What happened after the two of you talked?” Rena asked.
“I told him that I would meet him at the day care. I found my boss, told him I was leaving early, and I raced over here. I was sick, just sick, at the thought that Emma was missing. I was shaking so badly I could hardly drive.”
“Of course,” Rena said. “What’s your home address, Mrs. Broadstreet?”
“141 Duncan Avenue.”
“Would Emma know that?”
Elaine Broadstreet looked at her daughter.
“I don’t think so,” Leah said. “We always talk about going to Grammie’s house but we don’t use the address. We don’t say we’re going to Duncan Avenue.”
“Of course,” Rena said again. “Mrs. Broadstreet, do you live alone?”
“Yes.”