She's Not There by Marla Madison Page A

that.”
    “I’ll do whatever I can.”
    Shannon blurted out, “We need to get Helen out of that house.” Maggie smiled. “In a perfect world, yes, that would be a good idea. But that would require cooperation by Helen for one thing, and police resources to put her up somewhere, which Oconomowoc doesn’t have.
    “Lisa, I’d like you to call her. See if you can get her to come to your office so you can talk to her away from any possible influence by Fischer. Then, if you feel the timing is right, you can call me in. If the situation seems to warrant it, we’ll encourage her to stay somewhere else for a time.
    Lisa said, “I’ll call her right now.”
    Standing, Maggie said, “If you’re able to set up a talk with her today, let me know. Here’s my card. My cell number is on the back. I need to get to the office and tell my partner about this. He couldn’t stand Stephan Fischer.”

30
     
    Later that morning, Shannon and Helen Mueller walked into Lisa’s office and sat on the sofa. Shannon had offered to pick Helen up when she’d told Lisa her car was in the garage. Dressed neatly in a pair of jeans and a white-collared sweatshirt with a cardinal on a pine branch embroidered across the front, Helen’s gaze darted about the room, betraying her nervousness.
    After offering her coffee and what remained of the morning’s treats, Lisa asked, “Did Shannon tell you why I wanted you to come in?”
    Helen looked at Shannon who smiled encouragingly. “She just told me you wanted to talk to me. I was so looking forward to talking to you about Emma when you came to the house. Stephen stopped in right before you came. He saw that I had cookies set out for company, and quizzed me about it until I told him. I didn’t want him to stay, but I couldn’t ask him to leave.”
    “Why is that, Helen?”
    “I wanted to be able to tell you everything. If I asked him to leave, he’d suspect that I’d tell you what I really thought. I know in my heart he had something to do with Emma’s disappearance.”
    “Helen, did you tell this to the police?”
    “Well, not really. You see; I had no proof.” Her hands were twining on her lap, her eyes bright with tears.
    Not wanting to cause her any more anguish, Lisa said, “You’re right, they couldn’t arrest him on suspicion. But if there’s no proof, why do you think he’d be concerned about anything you would say?”
    Helen blinked back tears. “I know it was foolish, but after she’d been gone a few days, I accused him of doing something to her. I was just so upset. He denied it, but since then he watches me like a hawk.”
    Lisa nodded, but wondered why Helen tolerated the man. “Helen, did you ever ask Stephen to stay away?”
    “Oh, no. I know he used to hit my daughter; I saw the bruises. I’m afraid to make him angry, he frightens me. I miss Emma so much! He keeps saying she’ll be back any day. I know he doesn’t really believe that, just like he’s lying about Emma taking her savings and collection with her. She was afraid of him too. She wouldn’t have left without telling me. I talked to her every day.”
    A tear spilled over and rolled down her cheek. “Now I’m even suspicious that he did something to my car. I wasn’t having any problems with it until after he left Saturday.”
    Lisa and Shannon exchanged a look. “Helen I’m worried that our interest in your daughter’s disappearance might provoke Fischer into doing something rash. I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve spoken with the detective who handled the investigation into Emma’s disappearance. She’d like to talk to you again, try to stimulate your memory.”
    Helen’s mouth set into a firm line of stubbornness. “Oh, I don’t know . . . “
    Lisa tried another approach. “Helen, I know this is a lot to absorb. We’re concerned for your safety. We think it might be wise for you to go away for a while, at least until the police can prove that Stephen had something to do with your