Question K

[Jonetta]

Stacey’s search for Jessie Ryan leads her to best friend Emma Weston, who appears to have had a physical confrontation with Jessie the day she went missing. Stacey later finds Jessie’s phone hidden in Emma’s room. What were you suspecting at this moment, especially when we get her mother’s point of view? Did you think Jessie was dead?

[Sharon]

I thought Jesse was dead and Emma had something to do with it. It felt like her mother was trying to protect her daughter as a accessory.

[~Teresa]

I believed at this point that Jesse was dead, hoping not though. Emma and her mother were interesting characters. It was difficult to grasp where either one of them was coming from because they created chaos when interviewed.

[Robin]

At this point I thought Jessie had been killed by Emma. I thought Emma and her mother were covering the whole thing up.

[Lisa - (Aussie Girl)]

Something twigged to me and I suspected Munchausen's Syndrome by Proxy from the first. I've read about these cases IRL and Jessie's mother seemed to fit the profile straight away. I wasn't sure about Emma and her mother's connection but I didn't think they had harmed her at this point. Thought maybe they were involved in something shady and just didn't want Jessie in the way.

[Sharon]

Great catch Lisa. I didn't suspect the mother at all.

[Robin]

I didn't think of Munchausens by Proxy until later in the book. When Kim was talking to Jessie's mother and a neighbor stopped in to let her know that they (the neighbors) were making flyers and searching for Jessie, it seemed like Jessie's mother was reveling in the attention that the neighbors were giving her. That's when I started thinking about all of the tests that Jessie had over the years. It was really strange that Jessie had a 3-year stretch where she felt good. I thought she may have been living with her dad or gone away to boarding school during that time.

[Jonetta]

I also thought Jessie was dead, killed by Emma with her mother helping to cover up. I didn’t suspect Münchausen by proxy until much later, when the ex-husband shared Jessie’s medical history and then learned about the three-year gap.

I thought it was odd when Stacey first interviewed Jessie’s mother that she never mentioned anything about medical conditions or required medication. It made no sense that she didn’t lead with that and it made me suspicious, more that she might have been neglectful.

[Robin]

That's a good point, Jonetta. Any mother would have been worried about their child's condition and would have told the police first thing.

[Jonetta]

It was weird!

[Lynn]

I'm afraid that the Munchausens by Proxy jumped out at me right away. I've seen so many TV shows that have used that as a plot device.