HOST (intro): Imagine this: A neighborhood like many others. Families hustle to get their kids to school. People run to catch the bus or hurry to get out the door in time to walk to work. Elderly folks stop to talk to neighbors as they make their way to the local grocery store. Dogs are walked. Library books are borrowed. And in the middle of this normal, everyday activity, a woman goes missing, and it isn’t until almost three days later that someone notices, the police are brought in, and a search begins.
As I told you on my last episode, that’s what happened to Vanessa Rodriguez, in a neighborhood like the one I just described. Maybe it was a one-in-a-million occurrence.
But what if it wasn’t? What if I told you that another woman had disappeared under very similar circumstances, in exactly the same neighborhood, about two months before Vanessa?
Almost a million people are reported missing across North America every year. If we pay attention, if we work together, maybe we can help bring some of them home. I am the Seeker, and this is Radio Silent.
RECORDING: (voice of Danetta Bryce) Nia Williams is my cousin. She’s a fun girl, likes to have a good time. Loves music. Loves her family. She’s a chartered accountant, and she works hard, but she always finds time for the people in her life. She’s always got a million things on the go: hanging out with her nieces and nephews, volunteering, making spur-of-the-moment weekend road trips with some of her girlfriends. It isn’t unusual to not hear from her for a while because she’s just so busy.
That’s probably why it was a couple of days before anyone noticed she was missing.
HOST (intro): The woman you just heard is Danetta Bryce. After learning from a friend about Radio Silent’s series on Vanessa Rodriguez, she contacted Carla Garcia and told her about her cousin, Nia Williams, who disappeared just over two months before Vanessa went missing. The two missing women didn’t live in the same neighborhood, but they lived close enough that they frequented some of the same spots.
Notably, Nia was a semiregular at the Impact Café, which astute listeners might recognize as the very same restaurant where Vanessa Rodriguez worked full-time as a server. The same restaurant she didn’t show up to on the same day that her friends, family, and presumably police believe she went missing.
Is this a coincidence? Or is there more to it than this?
So far, nothing is known about the whereabouts of either woman, and police have not publicly speculated on whether or not they believe the cases are connected, but there are a couple of notable coincidences. The first, and most obvious, is the connection both women had to the Impact Café. But it’s worth noting that both women are in their mid to late twenties, both described by friends and family as attractive, personable, and outgoing.
It’s also very important to mention that according to Vanessa’s acquaintances and coworkers, she often chose to avoid the busy stretch of road between the café and her apartment building, preferring instead to take a slightly longer, but much quieter route of back streets, through a residential area and past a couple of small parks.
With the help of Nia’s cousin Danetta, we were able to confirm that Nia’s home, the second floor of an old house, fell along this very same route that Vanessa would often take on her way home from a late shift, meaning it was highly likely that both women would have taken this same unconventional and quieter route when walking to or from the Impact Café.
I’d like to highlight one more important detail.
Both women are visible minorities: Nia is black; Vanessa is Latina. This is worth noting because statistically, women of color are significantly more likely to have their disappearances underreported and underinvestigated by authorities.
These cases were different enough to not have raised too many suspicions—in fact, we don’t even know if police have examined any connections between the women—but as I’ve pointed out, there are obvious similarities.
Is there a connection? Possibly, although as I’ve mentioned, the police haven’t indicated as such. The reality is, it’s hard to find a lot of information about any of these cases, other than the basic one- or two-paragraph stories on local news websites. Facebook groups have been set up for each of them, but the information there is light on details as well. It’s more or less impossible to figure out how much has been done by police.
We need to do better. And Carla and Danetta are making an effort. They’ll be hosting an LDA meetup for their local area this coming Saturday. They want people to help: putting up posters, knocking on doors, reaching out to potential witnesses through social media, you name it.
I want Radio Silent to help them, so please, think hard. Do you live in the area? Are you a regular at the Impact Café? Details of the meetup are on all of the Radio Silent social media pages, and as always, you can reach out to us through any of them or through email.
Is there something you can do to help?
Listen up.
Let’s try.
Once I’ve edited and uploaded the new episode, I lean back into my chair and close my eyes. It feels like the Houston case is building toward something. Bits and pieces of information collecting and shifting and clustering together, and if I put them together just right, the story will start to come into focus.
So why don’t I feel the same way about what’s happening right here in Redfields?
Sibby. Layla. Burke and Terry. Quinlee Ellacott. Even Sarah. I feel as if everyone and everything is conspiring to bring me back into the center when that’s literally the last place I want to be.
Am I a completely different person in real life than I am online? Is there any of Dee Skinner in the Seeker? More importantly, is there really any of the Seeker in Dee Skinner? Should I listen to Burke and let the lines blur?
I sigh and sit forward, reaching to wake up my computer. I send Carla a quick message to tell her that the new episode is live, then quickly check my feeds. Word is already spreading, and people are discussing the new developments.
Downstairs, the front door slams, and I can hear laughter and chatter as my family arrives home. I’m about to slam my laptop shut and head down to join them when a new message appears in my inbox, and my mouth goes dry as I read the subject line.
SIBBY CARMICHAEL STILL ALIVE?
Dear Radio Silent,
I just read online that connections are being drawn between Layla Gerrard, the missing girl in Redfields, and the older case of Sibby Carmichael who also went missing in Redfields ten years ago. I have held on to this information for years because I was never sure if I was right or not, but this has never left me and I can’t keep it to myself anymore under the circumstances. I am almost certain that I met Sibby Carmichael about five years ago. I can’t go into details because I fear for my personal safety, but I can say with almost complete certainty that it was her. I don’t know the state of the investigation into Sibby’s disappearance, but it is my belief that she is still out there and alive. I can’t approach the police about this for personal reasons. I recently began listening to your podcast, and it occurred to me the Seeker might be able to help.
The email stops there. No specific information. No signature, just a random Gmail address: PrettyInInk_1988.
I write back, asking for more details, and then reread the email a dozen times. There’s every reason to believe that this came from another crackpot, one of the hundreds of people who send me false information or useless leads every single month, but still…The message stares back at me from my screen like a beacon, a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, I could be reconnected with Sibby after all.