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“You came to look for her.”
“I went straight to the mansion. It was 1989, late fall. The place was still operating then, but barely. Robert Holloway, the administrator, told me Diane had left suddenly. That she’d run off with some man who’d come to collect her.”
Matt’s pen stilled. “Did you believe him?”
“I wanted to.” Marissa’s voice was barely above a whisper. “It sounded like something Diane might do—follow her heart without thinking it through. Ultimately, that was her dream. But something felt wrong.”
“Did you go to the police? File a missing persons?”
“Yes, but they said she would likely turn up, based on the information from Mr. Holloway.”
“You stayed on the island.”
“Mr. Holloway offered me a job in the kitchen. He said they could use the help, and frankly, I had nowhere else to go. I kept thinking maybe Diane would come back or send word.” She stood again, pacing to the window where rain streaked the glass. “I had no money. I needed the work to survive.”
Matt watched her reflection in the dark window. “Tell me about the staff at the mansion. Who else worked there?”
“It was a small operation by then. Mr. Holloway ran things day to day. There was a cook, Mrs. Patterson, and a handyman, Jasper. The doctor was there all the time.” Marissa turned back toward him. “And there were volunteers from town who helped with donations and supplies.”
Marissa’s eyes grew resigned. “There was this man who drove for one of the mainland companies that made deliveries to the island. He was… charming. Friendly. I fell in love with him.”
The pieces began clicking into place in Matt’s mind.
Marissa flushed as she went on. “I was lonely, missing my sister, and he seemed to understand. Said all the right things about helping me get back on my feet to start fresh somewhere else.” Her voice turned bitter. “Right up until I told him I was pregnant.”
“What happened then?”
“He disappeared. Stopped making deliveries to the mansion, at least when I was around. When I tried to track him down through his company, they said he’d quit without notice.” Marissa returned to her chair, shoulders sagging. “I was twenty-one, pregnant, and alone on an island where I knew almost nobody.”
“What did you do?”
“Mr. Holloway and Dr. Whitaker offered me a solution.” Marissa’s hands trembled as she reached for her cold tea. “The foundation was winding down, they said. But they could help through their connections, people who specialized in private adoptions.”
“Private adoptions?”
“They said there was a couple in England who desperately wanted a baby. Professional people who could give my child opportunities I never could.” Marissa’s voice grew thick again. “They offered me money. More money than I’d ever seen. Enough to start my own business and rent a little house.”
Matt kept his expression neutral, though alarm bells were ringing in his mind. In Maine, it was not legal for a mother to receive compensation for putting her baby up for adoption. The point of this law was to attempt to prevent human trafficking or the sale of children as a product. “How much money?”
“Ten thousand dollars. It seemed like a fortune to someone who’d never had anything.” Marissa looked up at him. “I know how it sounds now. But I was terrified, broke, and they made it seem like I’d be giving my baby a chance at a real life. Not like how I grew up.”
“When was the baby born?”
“March 14, 1991. A little girl.” Marissa’s voice broke completely. “The most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.”
Matt’s chest tightened as he thought of Kaitlin. “What happened after the birth?”
“They let me hold her. Said it would be easier to say goodbye if I had that memory.” Marissa pressed her hands to her face. “They came to take her three days later.”
“Did they give you any information about the adoptive family?”
“Nothing. They said it was cleaner that way. No chance for complications down the road.” Marissa looked up at him through her tears. “I signed papers that surrendered all my rights. So I just took the money and tried to convince myself I’d done the right thing.”
Matt studied her face. “Mrs. Lane, when you say ‘they’ arranged things, who exactly are you referring to?”
“Mr. Holloway handled most of the details, but the doctor was involved too. He’s the one who first suggested the adoption.” Marissa wiped her nose with a tissue. “They worked together on everything.”
“Both of them?”
