Pretty Little Killers

by Berry, Daleen, Fuller, Geoffrey C.

But who did Skylar leave with? And why?

  Most people unwittingly believed this theory for months; it became the basis for a general timeline of Skylar’s disappearance:

  11:00 P.M.: Skylar sneaks out of the house to joyride with her friends.

  11:45 P.M.: Skylar’s friends drop her off at the end of Crawford Avenue, along University Avenue.

  11:45 P.M.–12:30 A.M.: Skylar’s activity is undetermined.

  12:31 A.M.: Skylar is seen getting into the back seat of an unidentified vehicle.

  For almost two years, people who have seen the video replayed online at various news sites have asked the same question: Why did no one recognize Shelia’s car as the one in the video? More important, why did no one realize Skylar was never seen leaving the first time, when she snuck out with Shelia and Rachel? And why did it take trained law enforcement as long as it did to come to these same conclusions?

  The answer is: it didn’t. People believed that’s how it happened, but it really isn’t.

  Initially the police didn’t suspect anything was amiss because they knew the vehicle seen in the grainy video couldn’t have been Shelia’s—not when she told McCauley she and Rachel parked on Crawford Avenue in front of a different apartment building, next to the Neeses’. After picking up Skylar they then turned onto Fairfield Street, which intersected with Crawford just a few feet away from where Shelia said she parked that night.

  It all made perfect sense: the vehicle in the video couldn’t be Shelia’s. It had to be someone else’s. However, within two days law enforcement realized Shelia’s story sounded phony.

  That first night, though, no one had a reason to believe Skylar’s best friend would lie about the exact time Skylar snuck out or where Shelia had parked. Especially not Mary and Dave. To them, Shelia was still simply a trusted teenager.

  No one suspected the real liar she would turn out to be.

  eleven

  Long Weekend

  Two of Skylar’s closest friends learned about her disappearance while on vacation at the beach.

  Compared to teens like Morgan and Daniel, Shania was a relatively new friend of Skylar’s whom she met through Shelia.

  “I was at the beach when I missed a call from Shelia,” Shania said. “She left a message saying no one knows where Skylar is, so I called her right back. ‘What do you mean no one knows?’ I asked her.”

  Shelia told Shania how Skylar had snuck out with her and Rachel the previous night, but she said that after a small tiff, Skylar insisted they drop her off at the end of the road. Now, no one could find her. Shania was really concerned and had all kinds of questions, but Shelia didn’t seem worried about Skylar at all.

  “She was casual about it,” Shania said. But she wasn’t, and immediately texted and called Skylar, trying to reach her.

  Over the next two days, Shania thought about nothing but Skylar. She recalled their last conversation, and how Skylar felt abandoned by her friends. Shelia was in Indiana visiting her maternal grandfather, Rachel was going away to church camp, and Hayden and Shania were both at the beach with their families.

  “Skylar was staying at home and going to Wendy’s to work,” Shania said. “So . . . she did feel like, out of the circle.”

  Skylar hated feeling left out. Her diary said so.

  “Skylar was less fortunate than we were,” Shania explained. “Her parents never told her no [or] anything, but she didn’t have the money Shelia and I did. And she wouldn’t ask for things like we did, because she knew her parents wouldn’t have the money. What she did have, it was like a big deal to her. So I can see where she would feel that.”

  The last time Shania remembers talking to Skylar was after midnight on July 4, and they made plans to hang out when Shania returned from the beach.

  “Skylar said, ‘Yeah, ’cause you’re the only one who actually tries to hang out with me anymore,’” Shania said. “Nobody else likes me.”

  “That’s not true.”

  “Well, you’re the only one who puts effort into hanging out with me,” Skylar replied.

  Hayden wasn’t just Skylar’s coworker at Wendy’s. She and Skylar had been friends since they were small children. So when Daniel texted saying Skylar was missing, Hayden knew something was wrong. At first she didn’t believe him. So she asked her mother to call Mary and Dave. That’s when Hayden learned it was true: Skylar was gone—and no one knew where. Or why.

  Hayden knew Skylar was upset because she thought they would spend the weekend together. But Hayden had gone to Ocean City with her parents at the last minute, and called off work. So when Skylar got to Wendy’s and realized she was the only girl in her social circle stuck at home, she felt abandoned.

  Hayden worried about her childhood friend all the way home, and tried to reach out to Skylar, too. Naturally, Hayden didn’t hear anything back.

  Several teens reported receiving a text message or phone call from Shelia Eddy about Skylar’s disappearance. All of them say the same thing: Shelia seemed nonchalant over the fact no one could find her best friend. However, there is one person Shelia did not reach out to with the news—Crissy Swanson.

  That singular fact struck Crissy as very odd. “She knew I really liked Skylar,” Crissy said. “She knew I was a huge fan of Skylar. I loved Skylar. I told her that all the time.”

  Skylar often visited Crissy’s home with Shelia, where they would hang out, watching movies or sometimes drinking and playing cards. Crissy said she loved Skylar, in part because Skylar didn’t feel the need to hide her activity from people. If she thought it, or did it, Skylar talked about it.

  The tendency to be open often got her into trouble with Shelia, like the time Skylar told Crissy about Shelia losing her virginity to Dylan Conaway. Crissy said Shelia gave Skylar a dirty look to try and silence her, but it was too late. Crissy was glad Skylar spoke up—because she was like Shelia’s big sister and was better able to give her advice about being sexually active.

  When Crissy learned Skylar was missing three days later, on Monday, July 9, she was shocked Shelia had not told her. Crissy later related that day’s events, saying she was stunned to learn about Skylar’s disappearance from a Facebook friend in Virginia. At the time, Crissy wasn’t in the same Facebook social circles as Mary and Dave, so she wouldn’t have automatically seen the news online.

  I heard Skylar’s missing, just let me know if you hear anything, the friend messaged Crissy. I just wanted to let you know . . . let me know what’s going on.

  Where did you hear that? Since when? Crissy said she immediately replied.

  She’s been missing since Friday.

  You’re shitting me.

  Crissy was at work, but she immediately texted Shelia, What’s going on? What’s going on with Skylar? Shelia said she didn’t know. I guess she’s been missing since Friday. No one has heard from her, she replied.

  All through her shift, Crissy couldn’t believe it. “I told my mom, ‘Shelia didn’t even tell me Skylar was missing. Did you know?’” Her mother told Crissy that she had found out earlier in the day.

  Crissy also reached out to Tara, hoping she might have answers. Tara was really worried, too. “She was scared for Shelia, like this would alter her life—because Shelia’s best friend had gone missing,” Crissy said. “Like it would ruin her childhood. Like Shelia . . . would just be traumatized, basically.”

  The next day Crissy printed copies of the MISSING Skylar flyers, picked up Shelia and Shania, and the three of them headed to Fairview, where they plastered the flyers all over storefronts and utility poles. They had so many the three teens ran out of time long before they ran out of flyers.

  Crissy stashed the extra copies in her car trunk. When she discovered them there months later, she didn’t have the heart to remove them.

  While Shelia was busy alerting her closest friends about Skylar’s disappearance, that first weekend was a blur for Mary and Dave. Watching Skylar vanish on videotape had been harder than they realized. Worry, hope
, fear, and despair filled the atmosphere of the apartment. They both felt the urge to do something, anything, to find their only daughter. At the same time, they felt too trapped and helpless to come up with an effective course of action. All they could do was cling to what the Star City police told every parent of a missing child. Trying to reassure Mary and Dave, the police said not to worry because Skylar had probably gone on some kind of crazy summer getaway.

  Even though they knew Skylar would never be that irresponsible, Mary and Dave tried to talk themselves into believing she had. The alternatives were too grim. “They said teenagers do this,” Mary said later, referring to what the Star City Police initially said, “and we should give it the weekend.”

  They almost convinced themselves Skylar would be home Sunday night. Almost. At the end of the weekend, she would magically appear. Her reckless, impromptu beach visit would be over, and their beloved daughter would be all apologies.

  The weekend was torture for Mary and Dave. They sat. They waited. They wondered when they would hear Skylar’s ornery laugh, see her mischievous smile. They barely noticed the endless parade of friends and relatives that weekend. Through it all, every time someone knocked, every time the door opened, Dave would think, God! It’s her. It’s her. It’s her.

  But it never was.

  twelve

  Rumor and Silence

  From the moment they knew Skylar was gone, the nearby sound of police sirens set Mary and Dave’s nerves on edge. Was an officer coming to tell them Skylar was home? Or were the sirens conveying something worse?

  Actually, the shrill sounds had nothing to do with Skylar. One fire whistle that ripped through the night, waking them up, went off because a couch was in flames. Another West Virginia University student igniting another couch. As one popular T-shirt said, “WVU: Where greatness is learned and couches are burned.”

  Skylar had planned to attend WVU, Morgantown’s great equalizer. Although many residents, like Mary and Dave, didn’t have college degrees, others jumped at the chance for their child to receive an education and have a better life. West Virginia PROMISE Scholarships provided free tuition for bright, hardworking students like Skylar. The money helped them cross the line from blue-collar to white-collar status.

  The population of greater Morgantown swells to almost 100,000 when class is in session, but shrinks by half when students leave for the summer. The town is well-to-do, but with coal mining on the wane in the outlying communities—with names like Core, Osage, and Blacksville—life can be hard. The university boasts faculty and students from around the world, a diverse population that the families who have lived in these mountains for generations mostly succeed in ignoring. The two cultures mix to some degree, but they often clash at the two largest high schools, Morgantown High and University High, where the children of university folks go to school with the children of townspeople.

  Early on, before most adults even knew there was a missing girl named Skylar, UHS students were abuzz with speculation. While Mary and Dave and their immediate circle worried and searched around the clock, most of Morgantown remained in the dark.

  Not so the town’s teenagers. In fact, those teens were coming to conclusions the adult world wouldn’t reach for months.

  In the days following Skylar’s disappearance, while the Neeses were filled with panic, Shelia and Rachel showed very little concern. This was odd, given how close they had been to Skylar. In fact, UHS students said the trio had been inseparable in their freshman and sophomore years. Where you saw one, you usually saw all three.

  On Friday, July 6, while the Neeses were searching for their daughter, Rachel and her mother were sunning themselves at Cheat Lake, out in the suburbs. Patricia Shoaf, a full-time communications sales rep, had originally planned to go out onto the lake with her good friend, Kelly Kerns. But for some unexplained reason, Rachel asked to tag along. Patricia really thought Rachel should be home sleeping, since the dark circles under her eyes belied Rachel’s claims that she hadn’t been awake the entire night.

  Rachel usually relished the chance to be home alone without her mother, and Patricia couldn’t be sure, but something in Rachel’s nervous demeanor suggested she didn’t want to be alone that day. Patricia shrugged it off, happy to have her daughter along for the day trip since Rachel was leaving for Camp Tygart the next day.20

  While Patricia and Kelly chatted and sunbathed, Rachel was glued to her mother’s cell phone. Both women noticed the three-inch cut along Rachel’s lower right leg, close to her ankle. “What did you do to your leg, Rach?” Kelly asked.

  Rachel shrugged. “I must have scraped it on the boat motor when I climbed into the boat.”

  No doubt Patricia could tell the cut looked angry, like it would leave behind a nasty scar. “You need to be more careful, Rachel.”

  Rachel continued texting, without even looking up at her mother. “I sure do.”

  On Saturday, Shelia and her mother Tara helped the Neeses canvass door-to-door again. They walked the rail-trail down by the river, an old railroad track that had been converted into a hiking trail. Unlike the day before, Shelia was now as tearful as Tara, and they both hugged Mary repeatedly. Tara’s heart went out to Mary and Dave; their only daughter was missing. She could not imagine how she’d feel if Shelia was gone. Mother and daughter promised they would be back the next day and every day thereafter for as long as it took.

  The next time Shelia stopped by the Neeses’, she was alone. She asked Mary if she could sit in Skylar’s bedroom. Mary agreed, but several long minutes later, when she heard Shelia crying, she hurried down the hallway. Shelia was sitting on Skylar’s bed, hugging a pillow to her chest and sobbing. Mary, feeling sorry for Shelia, sat down beside her and rubbed her arm, as if the girl was her own distraught daughter.

  In the following days, Shelia appeared to grieve for her missing friend. She spent hours with the Neeses trying to help find Skylar. However, when Mary and Dave looked back on events, they saw her sadness as feigned. Shelia was the picture of sorrow in real time, but her activity in cyberspace revealed not all was as it seemed. Saturday night at 11:45 she tweeted, tired of losing sleep over this. The meaning of this was unclear. One can only guess Shelia’s loss of sleep had to do with the disappearance of her best friend.

  An hour and a half later, at 1:24, she posted another mystifying tweet: when you text me and my stomach drops to my ass <. The < symbol indicated she did not like what she felt. Was Shelia talking to someone with whom she shared some important knowledge, perhaps a secret discussed only in texts? And why were they talking at nearly 1:30 in the morning? Most of Rachel’s tweets disappeared from the web in the spring of 2013, but it’s likely she was the one who shared Shelia’s secret.

  The most intriguing aspect of Shelia’s Twitter traffic that weekend was not what she said, but what she didn’t say. Why wasn’t Shelia reaching out to Skylar via Twitter? Why wasn’t she sending out tweets begging Sky to come home? Shelia’s silence was a huge departure from her usual blowing up21 of her Twitter feed, and what she didn’t know was some people were starting to notice. She didn’t tweet to Skylar. She didn’t tweet about Skylar. Nothing.

  thirteen

  Nagging Doubts

  Officer Colebank never thought of Skylar as a runaway. In fact, Shelia’s story “sounded hinky” the minute Colebank heard it. The only problem was, she couldn’t tell the Neeses.

  Jessica, as Mary and Dave referred to her, was the Star City Police Department’s lead investigator into Skylar’s disappearance. Initially, Bob McCauley had handled the case, but though he had spent many years as a deputy sheriff, he now worked only part time for Star City. Since this case involved a missing teenager, it required a full-time investigator like Colebank. As soon as Colebank came back to work after two days off, McCauley handed the case over to her. Included in the file were Skylar’s phone records. Due to the fact Skylar could have been in immediate danger, McCauley had filed the appropriate paperwork with the phone company t
he same day he responded to the 911 call, citing exigent circumstances.

  Colebank found the records very telling: most of the calls and texts going to and from Skylar’s phone were among her, Shelia, and Rachel. In fact, Skylar had called Shelia six times just before midnight—and the last call Skylar received was from Rachel.

  Around the station, Colebank was considered the department’s unofficial “detective” because she liked to dig deep when working her cases. Six years as a 911 dispatcher had helped motivate her to become a cop—every time a call came in, she longed to be on the other side of the radio.

  Difficult cases were her lifeblood. Colebank was the type of cop every small-town police chief loves: intelligent, dedicated, and hardworking. She also has an investigator’s keen instinct for sniffing out falsehood and an innate ability for reading suspects’ behavior. Liars pissed her off, and she had no qualms about telling them.

  When Colebank inherited Skylar’s case, she’d only been in law enforcement four years. She had already become a thorough and aggressive investigator—partly because her father, on the force for thirty-five years, had helped train her when they worked together as Fairmont, West Virginia city cops. The Star City Police Department dealt with four or five missing-juvenile cases a month; Colebank handled the majority of them. Most had been runaways; up to this point, Skylar was the only missing juvenile on Colebank’s watch who had never made it home.

  Officer McCauley entered Skylar’s name and other vital data into the FBI’s National Crime Information Center database July 6, the same night law enforcement first learned of her disappearance. Important details about missing juveniles go into this central crime database, the country’s largest, which the FBI makes available to facilitate the flow of information among police agencies. That’s how local FBI agents learned Skylar was missing, and why they called the Star City Police Department to offer their help.