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Chapter 6

“Ok, Mr. Carter, Mr. McLean. Sorry for taking so long.” An officer entered the small office where Nick and AJ had been told to wait. He shook their hands and gestured towards two chairs in front of an office desk that stood in the middle of the room. “Please sit down and fill me in on the details. I’ve only had the time to get a brief look at the case when it was reported in 2004.”

The officer walked around the desk and sat down opposite to them, placing a rather thin paper file on the desk’s dark wooden surface. His name tag read Granger and Nick guessed that he was in his mid 50. His hair was grizzled and he had a pair of friendly blue eyes that seemed sincere and showed a passion for his job.
Nick liked him immediately.

The two friends had been waiting at the police station for a mere two hours after they had reported the case to one of the officers sitting at the front desk. It went a lot smoother this time then what it had when Alicia first had been reported missing. The officer was very helpful, and showed an instantly interest when Nick told him about the case.

“Well…” Nick sat down on one of the chairs and started thinking of what to say to make the case sound as convincing as possible.
“Mr. Carter, right” The officer asked, sensing Nick’s uncertainty.
Nick nodded. “Call me Nick, please.”
“Alright, Nick. Alicia has been gone for over a year. I see that the case was closed even before they started looking for her. I have to admit that if that was up to me, I would’ve never closed the case in the first place, but what’s done is done, and I understand that we might get a second chance, so why don’t you tell me what you know?” Granger finished and looked at Nick giving him reassuring smile.
“Ok…” Nick dug into his pocket and pulled out the envelope that contained the bracelet he had received earlier that day. “I got home from New York today, and this letter was waiting for me on the kitchen table.” He handed the letter to Granger who opened it and pulled out the bracelet.
“It’s Ali’s.” Nick said as Granger studied it more closely. There was silence for a few moments while Nick waited for Granger to say something.
“Are you sure?”
Nick nodded. “Yes. She made it herself and gave it to me on my tenth birthday. I gave it back to her when it got too small for me to wear. She’s wore it every day, ever since.”
Granger put down the bracelet and picked up the envelope. Nick and AJ exchanged looks as he carefully studied the back and the front, reading the writing and touching the paper gently.
“Russia…” He mumbled to himself after a few moments. “That’s weird.”
A few more minutes passed by, when Granger suddenly stood up from the chair and walked around the desk, the envelope and bracelet in his hands.
“I’m going to get this down to the lab so that they can test it for fingerprints and DNA, ok?”
The two boys nodded and Granger continued. “I’ll be back in a few minutes, and we can talk more about what to do from here.” With that, he was out the door, leaving Nick and AJ alone again.

“Well… that went fairly well, right?” AJ asked almost as soon as the door was closed.
Nick shrugged and ran his fingers through his hair. “I guess.”
“Nick, you have to be optimistic about this. At least he’s willing to listen to us, and it really seemed like he wanted to help.”
“Yea, you’re right. I just… I don’t know. I just don’t want to get my hopes up.” Nick sighed and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
“I know buddy.”
They both fell silent again. Neither of them felt the need to say anything. They were both tired, and they knew that they weren’t going home anytime soon.

A few minutes later, Granger returned from the lab.
“Ok, now…” He sat down again and folded his hands on the desk in front of him. “I’m going to as you a few questions so that we can start collecting some clues.”
Nick nodded and prepared himself to talk about Ali. It was difficult for him. Every time her name was brought up and he was forced to talk about her, he felt himself tense up.
“First, I want to know about her family. Where are they? Have they been informed about this latest incidence?”
Nick swallowed hard. “Ali’s parents were both killed in a car accident three years ago, when she was 22. She’s an only child. Her grandmother’s still alive, but she has Alzheimer and lives in a retirement home in Tampa. I don’t think she even remembers Ali.” Nick looked down at his hands. “Basically, I’m all she’s got...”
Granger nodded. “And what exactly is your relationship with Alicia?”
“She’s been my best friend since I was five. She’s like a sister to me.”
“So you know her well?”
Nick liked the fact that the Granger talked about Ali as if she was still alive. It made him feel like someone believed him, for once.
“Sometimes I think that I know her better than I know myself.”
“Nick, did Ali have any enemies? Or can you think of anyone who might’ve wanted to hurt her?”
Nick thought for a few moments, and then shook his head.
“Not that I know of…” He said hesitantly.
Todd
“Wait… There was this guy, Todd, she was seeing right before she disappeared.”
“Go on.”
“She was supposed to see him that day when she… you know. I called him when I couldn’t reach her to see if she was with him, but he told me that she never showed up. He seemed angry… at her.”
“Do you think he could’ve done something to her?”
Nick sighed. “Dunno… I didn’t really know him. I’d only met him once, but he had a bad temper, that’s for sure.”
“Ok… we’ll get in touch with him.” Granger continued. “What about her parents? What were their jobs? You know, sometimes, if people are in dept or owe someone money, kidnapping might be an action to get back at someone.”
“But no one ever asked for any kind of ransom…”
“That doesn’t mean they aren’t going to… Now, tell me about her parents. What did they do?” Granger leaned back into his chair and placed his hands behind his head. Nick got a funny feeling that he was watching an episode of CSI.
“Her mom was a teacher. She worked at an elementary school in Ruskin near Tampa. As far as I know and remember, she was always nice to everybody. I can’t imagine her having any enemies. Ali’s dad worked for a computer company as a consultant. I don’t really know much about the company or his relationship with his co-workers. He was a very quiet man, I guess you can say.”
Nick stopped talking, and looked up at Granger. “I guess that’s all I know. I mean, I could give you a list of the people that knew the Parker’s, if that would help… I’ll do anything to help you find her. I just want her back here, where she’s safe.”
“A list would be great Nick. And don’t worry; we’ll do anything in our power to find Alicia.”