Ferrari was finally on the phone with the Conrad’s security company having them walk through the replay of video from the house.
He’d tasked Josie with going through Chloe’s high school yearbook to see if she could come up with Mallory’s last name.
There was only one Mallory in Chloe’s class. When Josie showed Tami the girl’s photo, they had Mallory’s surname—Newman. But they still didn’t have her address.
She wrote the friend’s information on an FI, then asked Tami to give her a description of the girl.
“Oh, gosh. She isn’t that memorable.” She shrugged and smiled. “When standing next to my Chloe, Mallory just kind of fades into the background.”
She gave a cursory set of details, which Josie documented, but she didn’t have much confidence Tami’s information was accurate.
The detective hung up from the security company. “Bender. Get a DMV check on this plate.” He handed a piece of paper to her partner. Then held up a photo on his phone. “This car picked up Chloe at about 12:30 a.m.” He turned the screen toward the mother. “Do you recognize it?”
She looked at the photo and frowned. “I’m sorry. I can’t even tell what kind of car it is. Is there a bigger picture?”
He led her into the office where the computer sat on the desk.
Josie followed.
Tami stared at the larger image on the screen.
They all watched as Chloe walked down the driveway and got into the passenger side of the vehicle.
She shook her head. “I don’t know. If it were in color, maybe I could see better.”
Bender returned from outside after having the dispatcher run the license plate for the registered owner of the vehicle in the photo. “Gerald Newman, 1452 Mulroy Drive, Chatsworth.” He scratched his ear. “I’m pretty sure that’s over by the cemetery off Valley Circle.”
Ferrari looked at the mom. “We’re going to go talk to Mallory. We’ll be in touch.”
“Can’t I go too?”
“No. You need to be here in case Chloe calls or comes home.”
Tami’s face fell. “Oh, right. You’ll call me if you find out anything?”
He nodded. “Come on, guys.”
It took them twenty minutes to arrive at the Newman residence.
Josie and her partner exited their black and white, and met with Ferrari, who’d parked behind them.
“We’ll go in softly,” he said. “I don’t want to spook her. If she’s got information, she needs to feel comfortable telling us.”
As before, the uniformed officers were in the lead. There was no response to their knock, so Bender rang the bell.
“Try again,” the detective said.
Her partner looked at her, so she pounded as they had taught her in the academy. Three loud pounding strikes to the front door.
There were sounds from inside. Then a female voice.
“Who is it?”
Her partner spoke. “Officers Bender and Price— LAPD. Can you open the door, please?”
The trio heard a rustling. The occupant of the house was looking through the peephole.
Seconds later, the sounds of locks being thrown led to the door being opened by a teenaged girl.
“I’m Detective Ferrari from the LAPD.” He showed the teen the badge on his belt and his ID card in a special wallet. “Are you Mallory Newman?”
The girl’s eyes grew wide, and she managed a slight nod.
“May we come in? We have some questions regarding your friend Chloe.”
The teen shook her head. “My parents are at work. I’m not allowed to have anyone in the house.”
He smiled. “Is there a number where I can call them? We’re concerned about Chloe’s safety.”
“Oh,” she said. “I’ll get my dad on the phone.”
She shut the door, and the click of the deadbolt being thrown sounded.
“Smart,” Josie nodded. “I’m new, but she doesn’t strike me as a rule breaker.”
The detective nodded. “That’s my impression too. But I’ve been fooled before, so let’s see what she has to say.”
The sound of the locks being undone preceded the entry opening again. The teen was on her phone.
“I don’t know what they want. Something to do with Chloe.” She thrust her cell toward him. “My dad wants to speak with you.”
He took the device. “This is Detective Gunner Ferrari from the LAPD. We’d like to talk to your daughter regarding Chloe Conrad.” There was a pause where he listened. “At this time, I have no reason to believe that your daughter is in any trouble. It appears her friend might be missing.”
He handed the phone back to the girl.
She listened for a minute. “Okay, Daddy. I will. Yes, I understand. I love you, too.” She hung up and pulled the door wider. “You can come in.”
The trio entered the house.
It was a nice tract home, but nowhere near as opulent as the Conrad estate.
She’d obviously been in bed before their arrival. She wore fleece sweat pants cut to a short length, and a baggy T-shirt. The young girl seemed at a loss as to what to do.
Josie felt sorry for her and motioned toward the family room. “Can we go in there and sit down?”
“Sure.” Mallory led the way, then hurried to remove a blanket from the couch and a beer bottle on the coffee table.
Josie and Bender stood near the wall, while Ferrari took a seat on the sofa.
That left a rocking chair for the teen. She settled into its seat.
“Your friend Chloe is missing. She snuck out of her house at12:30 last night. Did you know she was going to do that?”
Mallory gave a big sigh. “She texted me about ten, asking me if I could give her a ride in a couple of hours.”
“Did you?”
She sat up straighter. “I did, but only because I wanted to talk her out of going.”
He nodded. “Where did she want to go?”
Mallory’s gaze traveled to her, then shifted to her partner, and finally on Ferrari.
The girl turned her eyes back to Josie. “Can I just talk to her?”
She had to admire the detective. If the girl’s request took him aback, he hid it well.
“Sure thing.” He pointed to a glass sliding door. “Does that lead out back?”
“Yes.”
“What if us guys go out there and sit? We’ll have to leave the door open a bit, but you’ll certainly have more privacy.”
Relief washed over the teen’s face. “Great.”
Great for you. I’ve got no idea what kind of questions I should ask you.
The men moved to the backyard, and she turned her attention to Mallory.
“So, Chloe contacted you about ten for a ride. Where did she ask you to take her?”
“To a motel. She said she had to meet a friend. I’m sure it was that loser Eloy she’s been dating.”
“Why do you think it was him?”
“Because he can make her do anything he wants.”