Page 2 of Lost Without You
Ethan took a long sip of his iced tea and nodded. “That’s true, but we have to start somewhere. I’m going to do some digging and see what types of clients they dealt with around that time. Then we need to search for colleagues who might have worked with your father. Because this isn’t an official investigation, we can’t ask for employee records, so the best we can do is research and talk to people who knew him. I received the P.I.’s case notes but I still need to review them in greater detail and devise my list of questions for him. I suggest we take the next available flight.”
“We’re going to New York?”
“Yes. I need to interview your mother, and anyone else that knew your father. I’ll also speak to the investigator your mom hired—he’s on Staten Island. Some of this could be done virtually, but I like to see the faces of the people I’m questioning in person.”
“Are you a human lie detector?” Rachel asked.
“Not quite,” Ethan smiled and wiped his mouth with his napkin. “But people have tells, and the best way to read them is face to face. You’re in communications, right? You understand.”
Rachel nodded in return. “I guess we both study human behavior, one way or the other.”
Ethan glanced at his phone. “I’ve had a look at your DNA profile and the genealogy search you completed, and I interviewed your cousin. She had information about your father’s side of the family, but I’m not sure how useful that is. However, your DNA may prove critical if we uncover a lead. But again…”
Rachel finished her burger and nodded her head. “I know. I told you at the beginning of all this that what I needed was answers, closure. Even if I don’t get that, at least I know that I tried.”
“You also have to face several possibilities. He could be missing. He could be deceased. He could also be…” Ethan paused and grimaced.
“He could be alive all this time, but living another life with another family?”
Ethan nodded. “I’m not trying to be cruel, but that could be the reality you’re faced with.”
A flash of irritation jolted her, and she met Ethan’s intense gaze with her own.
“I’m aware of that, Ethan. I’ve had years to think this over and I still want the truth. One thing you need to know about me is I’m stubborn as hell. Once I’ve made my mind up, that’s it. Now, are you going to help me with this investigation or not?” Rachel’s tone hardened and she braced herself for his reaction.
One way or the other, she was going to continue her search.
Ethan calmly sat back and smiled, his face transforming. Then, just as quick as it came, it was gone. What a shame. She’d confess to just about anything to see that grin again.
“I’m ready when you are.”
Chapter Two
Ethan
Keeping an expressionless face while interviewing subjects was harder than most people realized. Ethan’s experience doing just that finally paid off. And good thing, too, because Rachel Desoumas was so much more interesting in person than on paper.
Of course, he’d done his research and looked through her social media, but they didn’t come close to capturing her energy in person. Long, midnight hair that surrounded an angular face, a wide smile, and big blue eyes. Beautiful, haunted eyes that were filled with a sadness that he knew all too well. He’d gotten a pretty good sense of her personality in their email exchanges, but witnessing her tenacity and vulnerability in person touched something deep inside him that was rarely affected anymore. He reminded himself that she was a client.
Focus on the case.
Ethan didn’t lie to her. The odds of them figuring out where her father was or what had happened to him were not good at this point. Thirty-four years ago, people could disappear without a trace—few people had cell phones, DNA testing was experimental at best, and there were no internet or email trails since the world wide web wasn’t active until 1993.
It had been years since Ethan had worked an investigation, but he figured a missing person was a good place to start. The research he did for his books was stimulating, but there was nothing like being involved in a real case to get his adrenaline flowing and his analytic mind in gear. After his meeting with Rachel, he’d taken a long walk on the beach while she returned home to pack. The time alone was beneficial, the lulling sound of the lapping waves on the shoreline helping him to focus as he strategized about next steps.
Ethan was on his way home when his phone rang.Incoming call: Lara.
His ex-wife stayed in touch with him regularly, if only to brag about how wonderful her life was now which always made him feel like crap. Despite being divorced for seven years and happily remarried, Lara was still bitter about their marriage and the falling out. Ethan tried to remain calm and take her vitriol without returning fire, but it was getting more and more difficult to be her punching bag. They didn’t have any children so there was nothing to discuss anymore. She’d moved on with someone else so why wasn’t that enough for her?
“Hi Lara, how are you?” he answered on speaker as he waited in traffic.
The one thing he hated about living in California was the constant gridlock.
“I’m fine. Sloan gifted me with a vacation at a luxury resort in Mexico next week. I just wanted to call and let you know we’ll be out of town for seven days. In case you need to reach me.”
“You could’ve texted me given that there’s practically no chance I’d need to get in touch with you. About anything.”
Lara’s need to brag about her vacation and her husband, however, was paramount and a text simply would not do.