Local Girl Missing Quotes

“While you’re busy worrying about one thing, something totally different comes along and clobbers you!”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“Josie hadn’t realized how much of a train wreck she was until she got into the Chief’s bathroom and saw herself in the mirror.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“I’m afraid so.” “He tried to kill a seventeen-year-old girl. A defenseless girl. In a police station. What is more brazen and out of control than that? How could a judge allow it?” Noah sighed. “You know how these things work, Josie. He’s a city councilman. A fine, upstanding citizen with no prior history of violence or a criminal record. Not so much as a parking ticket.” His words dripped with sarcasm, and she knew he was quoting Pierce Fuller’s attorney. “He’s a devoted husband with deep ties to the community. Not a flight risk at all. The judge gave him bail and his wife posted it.” Josie stood up and smoothed down her polo shirt and jeans from the night before. Powder and what looked like oatmeal from the Mills’ kitchen still clung to her pantlegs. “Unbelievable. Not even an ankle bracelet to ensure he doesn’t come near Alison again?” “I’m afraid not.” Josie thought about how this would make Alison feel—knowing this man was still out there, free, after he had walked into a police station and tried to kill her.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“In our sight at all times means just that,” she had told the Chief. He had promptly provided her with a camping cot, blanket and pillow. Under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t have found it at all comfortable, but nothing about the last day—or this bizarre case—had been normal. Josie was too tired to register any discomfort. She turned her head and saw that Alison’s bed was empty. “Where is she?” Noah shifted from kneeling on the floor to a seated position beside her on the narrow cot. He moved stiffly, still grimacing with pain. “She’s downstairs with the Chief.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“A light touch across her cheek brought Josie out of sleep. Familiar fingers smoothed the hair away from her skin. She floated back up to consciousness, her entire body filling with warmth at Noah’s touch. A smile spread across her face before she even opened her eyes. When she did, he was there, face hovering above hers, concern in his hazel eyes. “Hey,” he whispered.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“She wants to tear her eyes from the carnage before her, but she can’t. From the recesses of her mind, Mug’s words return. Sweetheart, no one wants to fight, but sometimes you have to handle your business. Did she always know? Did a muted part of her psyche always know that her father was a monster? Or was she just a dumb kid living a fantasy life under the watchful eyes of her mother and Mug? “Pea,” her father says. His voice is husky but not with sadness or regret or any human emotion that Pea would understand in this moment. No, this is exhilaration and it makes her want to vomit. He steps closer. “My princess.” “Don’t.” Her voice squeaks out, clawing past the lump in her throat. “Stay away from me. Don’t come near me. Not ever again.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“FORTY-EIGHT She is almost fifteen when her father shows his true colors. It is the garage again. This time she is looking for empty plastic soda bottles for a school project. The recycling bin will have plenty. It is mid-afternoon on a weekday. Her school dismissed early due to a bomb threat that turned out to be nothing more than rumors. All of her friends went out to lunch, but Pea is home. She hasn’t felt like doing much of anything since The Day Her World Shattered. Her father is up her ass about school on a daily basis though, so she decides to get an early start on her project. This time, it’s not a gaggle of men that she sees. Instead it is only her father. He stands over his handiwork, chest heaving, a look of bloodlust and absolute satiation on his face that sends Pea’s stomach plummeting. Before she can turn away, he sees her. He smiles. A voice in her mind tells her to run but where would she go? This is it. This is what she has in life. This is her life. She can run, but this man will always be her father. She hears something dripping, sees her father turn toward her, hands at his sides. He says, “I had to, Pea.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“Are you saying… are you saying this never goes away?” “I don’t know.” Alison considered this. “What if it doesn’t? What if it never goes away?” “You live with it,” Josie said. Alison lifted a hand and pressed it to her chest. “Live with it? That’s it? That’s your answer? What kind of adult are you, anyway?” Josie said, “The kind who believes that lying to you and giving you some kind of bullshit platitude about death and grief and guilt is not going to serve you at all. It’s never served me. The truth, Alison, is that these things you’re feeling? They’re here. They’re tough. They can be crippling. But no matter how much pain you’re in, how much guilt you feel, it changes nothing. Absolutely nothing. Not one tiny thing.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“It tore Josie’s heart out to leave her there, but their training dictated that they neutralize the threat before they tended to the wounded. Standing and stepping over more debris, Josie made her way to the basement door. Noah followed her lead, moving along with her. She readied herself to go first. He pulled the door open, and Josie stepped through, onto a small landing. At the bottom of a small staircase hung a single dull yellow light bulb. Beyond it was only darkness and two killers.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“She could not lift her head, but Josie saw a tear slide from one of her eyes. Josie felt everything at once for one wild, unmanageable second. Sadness at seeing Marlene fighting for her life on her kitchen floor. Fear that she might not make it; that all of them might not make it. They were here in this house alone with two men who thought nothing of shooting a woman who was in no way a threat. But most of all she felt rage, fractious and bucking against her professional restraint. Here was a mother who worried over her daughter at every turn, who even now, shot and bleeding, was trying with her last ounce of strength to get to her daughter, to get her out of the house, away from harm.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“While you’re busy worrying about one thing, something totally different comes along and clobbers you!”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“thought, I’m going to need money. I logged into our online banking to see the balances in our checking and savings, and guess what?” Josie was pretty sure she wasn’t expecting them to answer, although she had a feeling she already knew where this was going. It made her sick to her stomach. Tori looked at Noah and then at Josie. “There is one hundred seventy-two dollars in checking and fourteen dollars in savings.” Noah said, “How much did you think was in those accounts?” “Well, I know that two weeks ago when I checked the balances, there was over three thousand dollars in our checking account and ten thousand dollars in savings.” She handed Josie the pages. It took a moment for Josie to flip through them and figure out exactly what she was looking at, but she found the withdrawals. “He took out almost thirteen thousand dollars last week.” “Yes,” said Tori. She tapped against the pages, indicating for Josie to keep looking at the bank statements. “He also drained his retirement account. Tens of thousands of dollars. Gone. He didn’t even leave enough in there to pay the penalties!” Josie found that statement, her heart dropping when she saw that Elliott had taken an early withdrawal of nearly two hundred thousand dollars. She passed the pages to Noah, who studied them.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“I need to ask you some questions.” Zeke patted the pockets of his jacket until he came up with a half-crushed pack of cigarettes. “You always got questions. Only time I see you is when you got questions.” Josie had to clamp her mouth shut to keep the words from pouring out. Did you really think we would be friends? Did you expect that I would be making social calls to you after everything you did—and didn’t do? Needle had stood by year after year while Lila abused Josie. He had witnessed it on many occasions, and although once or twice he’d made half-hearted attempts to get Lila to stop, mostly, he’d allowed it to go on.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“Then there was a more alarming conversation from two days ago. Dina: We need to talk. Alison: I know. I’m really worried about you. Dina: Did you check on that thing I asked about? Alison: Yes. There is nothing there. Nothing. Are you sure that’s what all this is about? Dina: I don’t know. They never said for sure. But if I don’t find whatever it is they want, they’re going to kill me. I’m really scared. Alison: Me too. I don’t know how to help. Maybe we should tell my mom. Dina: OMG no. No parents! Alison: We might have to call the police. Dina: NO. NO POLICE. Alison: Then what do we do? Dina: IDK. Can you sleep over at my house tomorrow night? After work? We can talk then. Alison: Sure. “What the hell did these kids get into?” Gretchen muttered. “And who is ‘they?’” asked Josie. “There’s no way to know just from these texts,” said Noah. “We need to get out on the street and start talking to more people.” “We need to find Alison Mills,” said Gretchen. “I’ll get back on the search today if you two want to follow up on the hotel leads—in particular their coworkers and boss, who, according to these text messages, is this Max person Dina was into.” Josie plopped into her chair. She pulled up the internet browser on her computer and went to the Eudora Hotel’s website. Within seconds, she found the name of the catering and events manager. “Max Combs.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“It felt like hours before they reached the road. As the Chief had promised, an ambulance waited, doors open. Sawyer and another paramedic rushed over as soon as they spotted the officers emerging from the woods with Calvert. Sawyer and his colleague got him into the back of the ambulance and began assessing him, calling out findings and instructions to one another. On the gurney, Calvert looked small, almost frail. It was hard to imagine this was the same man who had viciously attacked two teenage girls the day before. Josie stood at the doors to the ambulance. “I’m going to call your wife, Mr. Calvert,” she said. His eyes found hers and grew wide. “No, don’t call her. Don’t call my wife. Whatever you do, don’t call her.” Sawyer stepped toward Josie and grabbed the handles of the doors. “We have to get him to Denton Memorial now. He’s going to need surgery.” Josie nodded. As Sawyer pulled the doors closed, Elliott continued to yell, “Don’t call my wife. Whatever you do, don’t call my wife. It’s not safe. Please.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“I’m not going to fall. I’m going to jump. Whatever he’d been looking for had made him desperate enough to attack two teenage girls and yet, standing on the precipice of Roaring Creek, he didn’t care at all whether he lived or died. He was afraid, that much was obvious, but he was also desperate. What made a man so desperate that he would lose all control and regard for his own life? More practically, where the hell was he? Josie turned over and retrieved her cell phone from the nightstand, checking for any text messages from the Chief or anyone in the department. There was nothing.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“Josie caught his hand in hers as it moved to her wrist. Squeezing, she said, “A lot of that joy had to do with you, in particular that thing you do with your—” “Josie,” he cut her off, laughing softly. “You know what I mean. I’m just saying it’s okay for us to be happy.” She wanted to believe him.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“For the first time since she opened the door, concern blanketed her face. “Locate him? What do you mean?” Josie said, “Mrs. Calvert, at approximately seven this morning, my colleague and I were traveling on Widow’s Ridge Road. It was foggy. We were attempting to pull over. We came upon your husband attacking a teenage girl on the shoulder of the road.” Tori stared at them for a long moment, several emotions trying themselves on her face: bewilderment, skepticism, fear, confusion, shock, and then incredulity. She laughed. The baby laughed in response, waving the slimy strand of hair clutched in her tiny hand through the air, as if in victory. “Now I know you have the wrong person,” said Tori. “That’s absurd. My husband would never do something like that. Also, as I said, he’s been at work all day.” They said nothing. Rolling her eyes, she shifted the baby again and turned away from them. “Fine. I’ll just call him and you’ll see.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing

“I know everyone says that about their kids—oh, they tell me everything. I know everything they’re doing on and offline and who they’re talking to and what about—when usually it’s total crap, but Alison is really good about it. I don’t want her to have secrets from us. We have always told her that if she gets into some kind of trouble, we want her first thought to be, ‘I better call Mom and Dad for help’ and not, ‘I have to hide this from Mom and Dad.”
― Lisa Regan, Local Girl Missing