Page 168 of The Advocate’s Ultimatum

“A yellow Mustang.”

Rourke frowned.

Sabre continued casually. “Nigel Gates told JP he saw a yellow 1966 Mustang following Victor Hayes the day Hannah disappeared.”

Rourke’s expression flashed with a second of surprise.

“And Marcus Caldwell later reported seeing a blonde girl he thought might’ve been Hannah riding in a yellow Mustang in Oceanside a few weeks after the abduction.”

That got a longer pause from Rourke. “Did he report it to the police? Because I don’t remember anything about a yellow Mustang.”

“No. He didn’t.”

“So, the fool thinks he sees his daughter whose been missing for a couple of weeks and never reported it?”

“Right.”

“That’s outrageous. It could’ve led to something back then. Now, it’s probably useless.”

“I know.” Sabre kept her tone even. “That’s why I wanted to ask you about it.”

Rourke nodded. “What exactly?”

“Did you ever develop anything involving the Mustang during your original investigation? Even unofficially?”

He shook his head. “No. If I had, it would’ve been in my notes.”

Sabre nodded like that made sense.

“JP tried tracing it, but it was a complete dead end.”

“That doesn’t surprise me.”

“There are too many restored Mustangs in Southern California. We had no plates or VIN, nothing unique besides color and year.”

Rourke shrugged. “That’s not traceable after eight years.”

Exactly the reaction she wanted—calm, dismissive, and unthreatened.

Sabre took a sip of coffee. “But it bothered me.”

“How?”

“The car appears three times.” She looked at him carefully. “Twice near the school before Hannah vanished. Then again in Oceanside.”

Rourke nodded. “That is interesting, but as I said, it’s too late to find the car now.”

Sabre kept it casual. “Do you think it matters to the case?”

Rourke glanced briefly toward the harbor before answering.

“It probably did back then, but today, maybe contextually.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means whoever had Hannah wasn’t acting like somebody in panic mode.” Rourke continued calmly. “A bright yellow classic car isn’t subtle. If the sighting’s accurate, the driver either felt safe…” He paused. “Or at least comfortable.”

Sabre felt a chill move through her. “JP said something similar.”