The Night She Disappeared

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of substance addiction.

Alone at Pete’s, Gabie feels uneasy. It’s dark outside, and she feels too visible through the windows of the restaurant. She receives a text from her parents, informing her that they will be working late.

A college-aged man with bags under his eyes enters the restaurant. He desperately asks if Gabie knows where Kayla is. His demeanor is frantic as he laments that the police are trying to pin the crime on him. Gabie wonders if they are correct in their suspicions. As she’s deciding how to deal with him, Drew reenters the restaurant, and the man leaves of his own volition. Gabie wonders, “Is this guy the hunter…or the hunted?” (132).

Drew asks Gabie about the frantic man. She rehashes their conversation but tells Drew that she doesn’t think he’s responsible. He seemed genuinely desperate, and his truck is brown, not white like the one described by the police. Drew knows from experience that the man’s behavior is indicative of being on methamphetamine. He also noticed that the man’s truck seemed poorly painted-over, like he had done it himself in a hurry.

Drew embraces Gabie and promises not to leave her alone again.