Before She Was Found - Heather Gudenkauf Page 0,63

think. Like I said, she was...is quiet. Doesn’t have a whole lot to say in class.

OFFICER WILSON: Who would you say her friends are?

JOHN DOVER: The only kids I ever really see her with are Cora Landry and Jordyn Petit.

OFFICER WILSON: Did the girls ever have any arguments that you were aware of?

JOHN DOVER: Not that I know of, but Jordyn always seems to have some kind of conflict with her classmates.

OFFICER WILSON: Conflict? Anything ever get physical?

JOHN DOVER: God, no. Nothing like that. Just kid stuff. Jordyn likes to be in charge and not everyone likes to be told what to do.

OFFICER WILSON: But nothing physical? What about verbal arguments?

JOHN DOVER: Have you ever been in a middle school hallway? Kids argue. That’s not unusual.

OFFICER WILSON: What about Cora Landry? What kind of student is she?

JOHN DOVER: Nice girl. She’s bright but typically very quiet. I’ve been trying to get her to speak up more, be more confident about sharing her ideas. Cora cares very much about what others think about her so she’s afraid to make any waves. Unfortunately, middle school students can spot this a mile away.

OFFICER WILSON: She was bullied?

JOHN DOVER: I don’t know if I would say that. Cora is a bit naive for her age. Like I said, her classmates pick up on this and can give her a hard time, but I wouldn’t call that bullying.

OFFICER WILSON: Did you ever see Jordyn or Violet being dismissive or rude to Cora? Anything that would suggest bad blood between them?

JOHN DOVER: For a while they were inseparable. I remember thinking that it was nice that Cora finally found some friends, but had been pretty solitary up until then. They had a bit of a dustup right before Christmas.

OFFICER WILSON: Oh? Over what?

JOHN DOVER: I can’t remember. Hurt feelings are par for the course in middle school. They’ve been pretty cool to each other since then. Although I did see them eating lunch together lately.

OFFICER WILSON: I understand that the girls worked on a project together in your class—the urban legend project.

JOHN DOVER: That was months ago. What does that have to do with anything?

OFFICER WILSON: Just trying to get a sense of the relationship between the three girls. What topic did they choose?

JOHN DOVER: God, I don’t remember. I teach six sections of social studies throughout the day. Wait... Joseph Wither, I think.

OFFICER WILSON: How did the girls come up with the idea for the project?

JOHN DOVER: I have no idea.

OFFICER WILSON: You didn’t suggest the topic?

JOHN DOVER: No, I don’t think so. I brainstorm ideas with the kids but they choose their own topics. Why?

OFFICER WILSON: What about websites? Did the girls ever go into chat rooms or have contact with anyone online?

JOHN DOVER: No! Never. At least, not that I know of and definitely not at school. What’s going on? What does this have to do with my class?

OFFICER WILSON: I’m hoping to see the girls’ notes and list of references. Do you have that?

JOHN DOVER: I think so. They’d be somewhere in my classroom. I can go get them for you when we’re done here.

OFFICER WILSON: That would be great. You live a few blocks from the Landry home, correct?

JOHN DOVER: I’m not sure. I don’t know their address. I’m sure I live a few blocks from a lot of my students.

OFFICER WILSON: But you live just a few blocks away from the train yard? Is that right?

JOHN DOVER: Yes, but why—

OFFICER WILSON: Where were you the night of Sunday, April 15?

JOHN DOVER: Wait a second... I don’t understand...

OFFICER WILSON: We are asking the same question of every individual who came into contact with the girls recently.

JOHN DOVER: You’re talking to all the teachers?

OFFICER WILSON: We’re talking to anyone who has direct contact with the girls.

JOHN DOVER: After school I went into Grayling to go out with some other teachers from school.

OFFICER WILSON: You went all the way to Grayling?

JOHN DOVER: Yeah, it’s no fun running into parents of students at the local bar. We ate at the Airliner and hit a few more bars.

OFFICER WILSON: What time did you get home?

JOHN DOVER: Midnight, I guess—give or take a half hour. Then I went right to bed.

OFFICER WILSON: By yourself?

JOHN DOVER: By myself.

OFFICER WILSON: So no one can vouch for your whereabouts between midnight and 1:00 a.m.?

JOHN DOVER: I guess not.

OFFICER WILSON: Tell me about your teaching job prior to coming to Pitch.

JOHN DOVER: I don’t... What’s that have to do with