a questioning look. “About half an hour from here,” he said. She nodded. He could tell by her eyes that she also thought Ivo was a man grasping at straws.
Ivo spoke a few words into the phone before he dropped it back onto the couch. His shoulders rolled in further. “She hasn’t heard from Adele today.”
Gundersund almost felt sorry for the guy. Sorry until he reminded himself that the husband was always the first suspect when a wife went missing. “I’ll take her phone number and address and your wife’s cellphone number.” He jotted them down in his notepad before asking, “Do you mind if we have a quick look around? I understand she left food out in the kitchen.”
Catherine jumped up. “I could take them, Ivo.”
“It’s okay. You stay here with Sam.” He stood and led Stonechild and Gundersund into the hall. He stopped and turned to look at them when they entered the kitchen. The ruddy colour was back in his cheeks. The hand he lifted to his forehead had a slight tremor. “I’ve already checked the basement. I found Violet’s knapsack and stuffed rabbit on the floor and the television left on. She never goes anywhere without her rabbit. Puts up a big fuss if we forget to pack it. I didn’t want to say this in front of Catherine and the boy, but I have a very bad feeling about this, officers. A very bad feeling.”
Chapter Three
Kala Stonechild looked at the food on the kitchen counter and the meals left uneaten on the table. Adele and her daughter had been interrupted while they were getting ready to sit down to their meal, no question. They’d left on an emergency or somebody had forced them out of the house. As the afternoon slid into evening, the second option was becoming a dangerously real possibility. If it had been an emergency, Adele would certainly have called her husband by now. She wouldn’t have turned off her phone. But who would take them, and why?
“Do you want to see the basement?”
She looked into Ivo’s eyes — a nondescript pale shade of blue, small dark centres. He seemed so unsure of himself, a man who cared too much, perhaps. She wondered what type of woman would have joined her life to his. One equally as unassuming? “Yes, thank you,” she answered.
She followed him down the steps while Gundersund called into the station. The room was large, carpeted, and wood-panelled. A flat screen perched on one wall with a couch facing it. A colouring book and crayons lay scattered on the floor. Violet had been colouring a duck in galoshes holding a bright yellow umbrella. Kala walked past the picture to check the laundry room and small bathroom. The furnace room was also empty. No sign of Adele or Violet, but she hadn’t expected there to be. Ivo was waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs.
“How did you the two of you meet?” she asked.
He seemed startled by her question before a smile lifted the corners of his lips. He looked younger, not handsome but passable, when the worry lines in his face relaxed. “Adele came into the bank and I was asked to help her with a problem. For some reason, we got along. She asked if I had time for coffee. Before I knew it we were seeing each other every day. I owned this house in the country and she asked if she could stay with me.”
“Were you married by then?”
“No, we’d only known each other two weeks, but she just moved right into my bedroom. We decided to get married and went to city hall the following week.”
“Two weeks. That was quick.”
“Yeah, I could barely believe it myself. A woman like Adele falling for me. You only get a chance like that once in a lifetime, if ever. I wasn’t going to let it go by hesitating.”
The conversation felt intimate, as if the real Ivo was letting himself out. Kala was sorry when Gundersund pounded down the stairs and broke the moment.
“Do you have a couple of recent photos of your wife and daughter, Ivo? We can get started on circulating them.”
“Of course. They’re on my computer.”
They all filed back up the stairs. Catherine and Sam met them in the kitchen. “We need to get on home. Sam is hungry and it will soon be his bedtime. Will you be okay, Ivo?” Catherine asked.
“I’ll be fine. I’ll call you as soon as I hear anything from Adele.”
“I want to play with Violet,” Sam said. He pulled on his mother’s arm until she restrained him with her free hand.
“We’ll be back another time when Violet is home,” Catherine said. “Say goodbye to Ivo.”
“No.”
Catherine smiled an apology. “Make sure you call me as soon as you hear anything. We’ll let ourselves out.” She took a firm grip on Sam’s arm and frog marched him toward the kitchen door that led into the front hall.
“I’ll just jot down your phone number and address,” Gundersund said, following her. “We might have more questions if Adele isn’t home by morning.”
“I’ll be by the phone, waiting to hear from somebody,” Catherine tossed over her shoulder before disappearing from view with Gundersund right behind her.
“I’ll get you those photos, shall I?” Ivo asked Kala when they were alone.
She nodded. He led her through a second door down a short hallway into a small study. She took a moment to breathe in this sanctuary, tucked into a corner of the building. On first entry, she’d liked the feel of this house. High beamed ceilings, double paned windows with stained-glass transoms, hardwood floors and comfortable, well-worn furniture. Ivo’s office was more of the same, dominated by an antique oak desk and swivel chair. It faced a window with a view of the woods, darkening now in the purple and indigo shadows of evening.
Ivo sat down at his desk and clicked on the keys. A series of images appeared on the screen. He clicked again and a woman and child filled the space. Kala leaned in, surprised. Adele Delaney was a looker: long brown hair with honey highlights, direct blue eyes, full lips, and pointed chin. Strength emanated from her eyes, the set of her jaw. Kala had no doubt this was a woman who would not put up with bullshit. The child was tiny and blond. Eyes like a doe and delicate features in a heart-shaped face. She was going to break some hearts in the school yard. Adele had her arm wrapped around Violet’s shoulder, holding her close. Kala would never have placed either one of them with Ivo.
“This will do,” Kala said. “Do you have separate head shots of them?”
Ivo nodded and brought up two more pictures for her approval. He transferred them to her mobile and she sent them on to Rouleau. Seeing the two missing people made this more real and urgent than before.
“Do you know of anyone who would want to harm your wife or child?” she asked the back of his head.
Ivo’s shoulders drooped. “We lead a quiet life, Detective. Adele wanted it that way. I have no idea who would force them out of our house.” He turned and fixed eyes glistening with anguish upon her. “I just want everything to go back the way it was this morning when I left them safe and sleeping. I want you to bring them home.”
“I know. I need to ask though: if Adele was depressed, would she take Violet into the woods? Have you checked the grounds around the house?”
“My wife wasn’t suicidal. I checked
