Page 138 of The Advocate’s Ultimatum

That earned a half-smile.

JP pulled out a photo of Todd Maddox. “Do you know this guy?”

The boy nodded. “Yeah.”

JP stayed casual. “How?”

“He fixed a window in the back apartment last year. He broke the first one carrying it in, then acted like he was a hero for fixing it.”

“Which back apartment?”

He pointed past the driveway. “The far one.”

“Did he come more than once?”

“Couple times, maybe.”

“For work?”

“I don’t know. He talked to everybody like he knew them.”

JP brought out Bay’s photo.

“What about her? Have you ever seen her?”

The boy was quick again. “She lived there.”

Finally! He tried to keep his tone casual. “Is she still living there?”

“No. She’s gone.”

“Who else lived there?”

“Another girl. A pretty blonde about the same age, maybe. I think they were sisters. They lived with their dad.”

“How do you know he was their dad?”

The teenager looked puzzled. “I don’t, I guess. I just assumed cuz he acted like a dad.”

“Can you describe him?”

“Normal.”

“That’s helpful,” JP said.

The kid grinned. “You know what I mean. Just average. Medium height, not overweight, dressed like an older guy.”

Whatever that meant.

“Did the girls ever talk to you?”

“No. They didn’t really talk to anyone. Neither did the old man. They were all a little weird. They never answered questions. My friends would say hi, ask if they went to school, whatever. Nothing.”

“Maybe they were smart.”

“Maybe.”

JP glanced toward the back unit. “Did they ever have visitors?”