“Pia was spending a lot of time with Michael. She was going sailing with him that morning. They were going snorkeling.”
“Did she say where they were headed?” Harper asked.
“She hadn’t talked to Michael yet so she wasn’t quite sure.”
“When did she say she’d be back?” Chase asked.
“That’s the thing. They were only supposed to be gone for the day, but she said if they were having fun, they might stay a little longer. I guess she really liked him. But she should have been back yesterday at the latest.”
Christy turned to Harper. “Your brother, he wouldn’t... He wouldn’t hurt Pia, would he?”
Harper’s throat constricted. “Michael wouldn’t hurt anyone.” She swallowed back the threat of tears. “He’s one of the nicest people you could ever meet.”
Christy’s eyes filled. “Then where are they? Why didn’t they come back or at least call to let me know they were okay?”
“That’s what we’re here to find out,” Chase said. “I’m a private investigator, Christy. We’re going to find Michael and Pia. Give me her cell number. We’ll find out where she was the last time she used it.”
“You can do that?”
He just nodded.
“It’s expensive, so she might not have made any more calls,” Christy said.
“We’ll find out.”
Harper figured Chase’s friend could find the location of the phone even if Pia hadn’t made any more calls. He put both girls’ numbers in his cell, then phoned Tabitha Love again. It was getting late, but it was an hour earlier in Dallas.
“I need one more thing, Tab, if you don’t mind.” He rattled off Pia’s cell number, talked a little longer, then ended the call.
“It might take a while to get the information,” Chase said. “Tabby’s on a project for Jonah that has to take precedence—missing six-year-old girl.”
“Jonah?” Harper asked.
“Jonah Wolfe. He’s one of the PIs in my office. Finding the little girl has to come first, but she promised to call no later than tomorrow morning.” He turned to the petite redhead. “In the meantime, Christy, why don’t you get some sleep? We’ll call you in the morning before we leave.”
“Where are you going?”
“Unless we hear something that will change things, Curaçao. The GPS on Michael’s satellite phone puts him there early evening four days ago. We’re pretty sure he was with a woman.”
“Oh, God, I hope they’re okay.”
“We’re going to find them,” Chase said. “I’m not sure what’s going on, but as soon as we figure it out, we’ll let you know.”
“Do you think I should report Pia missing?”
Once the police got involved, Harper and Chase would be sucked into the investigation, and precious time would be lost. Harper glanced over at Chase, knew by the look on his face his thoughts ran the same.
“Time is of the essence,” he said. “I’d appreciate if you waited until we’re out of here tomorrow morning.”
“Oh, God—”
Harper rested her hand gently on Christy’s shoulder. “My brother is a good man. If Pia is with him, he’ll do everything in his power to protect her. I promise you that.”
Christy nodded and wiped the wetness off her cheeks. “Thank you.” She walked over to the door and pulled it open. “I’ll be praying for both of them. Please let me know what you find out.”
The door closed with an ominous click behind her. Harper looked up at Chase.
“We’re making progress,” he said. “Tomorrow we’ll know more.”
