texted Oaks who said he’d meet them there to brief them.
Gretchen showed up armed with coffee and Danishes, but Josie could only stomach one cheese Danish before the nausea overcame her once more. She drank some water instead, willing her unruly stomach to settle as Oaks went over everything his team had accomplished while Josie and her team rested up.
“We got nothing from the note. No prints. The paper was just standard copy paper that could have been obtained at any office supply store, and the ink appears to be regular blue ink found in any common ballpoint pen,” Oaks began. The four of them sat at one of the card tables while Oaks stood at the head. “We talked with the park manager who looked inside the carousel column. One of the poles that controlled some of the horses had been disabled.”
“So when they started the ride, it would have been a problem,” Josie said.
“Right,” Oaks went on. “Several of the horses wouldn’t have moved up and down while the ride was in motion, so someone would have had to go into the column where they would have found Lucy’s backpack.”
“What about the other leads?” Josie asked.
Oaks continued, “Sex offenders checked out. They’re all accounted for and have alibis for when Lucy went missing. The parents who were at the park check out. No red flags. We did, however, find seventy-four credible threats to Mr. Ross related to the cancer drug he told us about last night.”
“Well,” Gretchen said. “That seems a lot more significant than he initially let on.”
“We think he was trying not to scare his wife,” Oaks said. “Quarmark’s legal department had already reported these threats to the local police. No one appeared to have any active plans to kill or harm Mr. Ross. My team has alibied half of those seventy-four people so far for Lucy’s kidnapping. We should have the rest checked out within the next twenty-four hours.”
Josie felt a wave of relief. It would have taken her small department weeks to do the work the FBI was able to accomplish in less than a day.
Oaks continued, “We took a closer look at the nanny and she checks out. She’s been in Colorado visiting her family for the weekend just like Mrs. Ross said. Her travel plans were made several months ago. We can’t link her to anyone who might have had the desire, wherewithal or capability of pulling off a kidnapping. She gave us permission to search her apartment, and her landlord let us in. Nothing unusual there. We interviewed a few of her friends and professors. Nothing suspect. She said she’d let us know as soon as she’s back in town which should be sometime today.”
“What about the first-grade teacher?” Josie asked.
“She checks out, too.”
“Did either of them report seeing Lucy talking to anyone unusual in the last several weeks or months?” Josie said.
“No, nothing. We also looked at phone records for both parents. Couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary. We polygraphed both of them this morning. Dad passed no problem, but Amy failed her polygraph.”
“What?” Josie and Gretchen blurted in unison.
Oaks spread his hands, palms up. “Remember, these tests aren’t entirely accurate. A person’s emotional state has a lot to do with whether they pass or fail. As you know quite well, Mrs. Ross has been very volatile. It could be the emotional stress skewing her results or it could be the fact that she had been lying to her husband about taking online college courses.”
“Did she tell you that?” Noah asked.
Oaks shook his head. “No. She told us she was enrolled in online courses but our search of her computer and a check with the university confirmed she hasn’t ever been enrolled, despite being accepted into the program over a year ago.”
“The husband didn’t notice that her tuition wasn’t being paid?” Gretchen asked.
“She has a discretionary fund that the husband deposits into but doesn’t monitor.”
“You mean an allowance?” Noah said.
“Basically, yes. The husband manages their finances, pays all the bills, gives her cash for groceries and anything she needs for Lucy. This is just for her, it seems. He said originally it was for spa days and yoga classes, but then she decided she wanted to go back to school so he put more into it. He doesn’t even know how much is in there.”
Gretchen raised a brow. “Must be nice.”
Oaks continued, “The husband gave us access to all their finances. There have been no tuition payments to any