Page 214 of Rangers Unexpected Return

“What was it?”

“A metal box.”

Not cardboard.

Metal.

My mind raced.

“The cabinet held a decoy,” I said.

“The real evidence was hidden beneath the desk,” Mace added.

“And Emily moved it.”

Sheriff Tate slowly removed his hat.

“Then somebody found her before she could come back.”

“Or…” Mace spoke quietly.

Everyone turned toward him.

“She gave the box to someone.”

The possibility settled over the room.

Emily hadn’t hidden the truth forever.

She had trusted someone.

The question was who.

Carson came running from the parking area.

“Judy!”

“What?”

“I just got off the phone with Austin.”

“About Emma?”

He nodded.

“They searched every missing-child report in Texas from that summer.”

“And?”

“There wasn’t one.”

“What do you mean?”

“No little girl named Emma was reported missing.”

Rylie stared at him.

“But she was real.”