So if Valentina wasn’t here, how did she leave?
“Caleb?” Naomi asked from behind him.
He turned toward her. “Have you seen Valentina today?”
“No. Not since dinner yesterday, actually. She told me she wanted to get some sleep and asked to be left alone. Why?”
“Her room has been cleared. All her things are gone.”
“What?” Naomi’s eyes widened. “That doesn’t make sense. Where would she go?”
“That’s what I’m trying to figure out.” He pulled out his phone.
Just then, Max stepped in from outside. A knot formed between his brow when he saw them all standing near the door leading to the garage.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
“Valentina’s missing,” Caleb said. “Have you seen her? Anyone come by to pick her up?”
Max’s eyes widened before he shook his head. “Haven’t seen her since last night. No cars came through that I noticed.”
Footsteps sounded behind them, and Sissy appeared at the bottom of the stairs, one hand on her belly. Her face was pale, her eyes wide.
She must have heard all the talking.
“Is everything okay?” Her voice trembled. “I heard you say Valentina’s missing?”
“We don’t know where she is.” Caleb kept his tone calm despite the tension coiling in his chest. “Her things are gone, but her car’s still here.”
“You don’t think—” Sissy stopped, fear flickering across her features. “You don’t think she had something to do with what happened, do you?”
“I don’t know,” Caleb said. “But until we have answers, I need everyone to stay inside. No one goes outside alone. No one opens the door to anyone they don’t know. Understood?”
Naomi nodded.
Max’s jaw tightened, but he gave a sharp nod.
Millie crossed her arms over her chest.
Sissy hugged herself, looking smaller and more vulnerable than ever. “This is so scary.”
“We’ll figure it out,” Caleb said.
But in truth, he wasn’t so sure he believed those words.
Two hours had passed since they’d discovered Valentina’s empty room.
Caleb sat at the dining table now, laptop open in front of him, Sheriff Sutherland beside him. Caleb had handed over the box he’d found in the woods, and they’d been reviewing the security footage for the past hour.
While they did that, Naomi and Millie worked on dinner. His mother wouldn’t be coming today. She was helping Luke out with his kids.
The smell of baked chicken filled the house and made his stomach rumble, despite the dire circumstances.
“There.” Caleb paused the video.
The timestamp read 4:47 a.m.
On the screen, a figure moved down the driveway in the predawn darkness—Valentina, a backpack slung over her shoulder and Pippa in her arms, moving quickly toward the road.
