Just The Tip-sters

On the night before Valentine’s Day 2000 (which, like this year, was also part of a three-day Presidents Day weekend), a beautiful 9 year-old girl named Asha Degree and her ten year-old brother O’Bryant went to bed in their Shelby North Carolina home.  Sometime around 2:30 am, O’Bryant heard his sister go to the bathroom and return to bed – but when he was awakened in the morning by his frantic mother, he found out what the rest of the nation was about to learn – young Asha had disappeared.  And what made the whole thing baffling is that every indication was that Asha had left of her own free will.  There were no signs of a break-in nor anything else that would indicate anyone took her from the home.  Her backpack and some clothes were missing, indicating she had planned to leave.  Even more baffling was the fact that it was heavily raining the night/early morning when Asha disappeared.  A witness claimed to have seen her walking in the downpour, but when offered a ride she ran into nearby woods.  Would a nin