After Alison disappears, police again pull students into the principal’s office for questioning, much as they did after Brandi’s body was found. Tom is called in early and finds Chief Driscoll waiting for him. Tom immediately understands that the police want information that might lead them to Alison, although Tom privately knows Alison will not be coming home alive.

Chief Driscoll explains that Alison’s parents saw her in bed the night before, but she was gone by morning, and there were no signs of a break-in. Because of that, the police believe Alison either opened the door for someone she knew or left willingly. When Driscoll asks whether Tom knows any reason Alison might have left the house, Tom denies knowing anything. Tom’s hesitation and repeated use of the past tense when referring to Alison make him look nervous and suspicious, and Driscoll notices every slip.

The questioning tightens when Driscoll points out that Alison was Tom’s lab partner and Daisy’s best friend. Tom tries to minimize their connection, but Driscoll reveals that Alison’s friends said Alison hated Tom and had been urging Daisy to break up with him. Tom claims he did not know that. Driscoll then asks where Tom was the previous night and gets an alibi that depends only on Tom’s father, since Tom’s mother is out of town.

At the end of the interview, Chief Driscoll makes his distrust explicit. He tells Tom that Tom no longer needs to walk Daisy home from school because Driscoll will pick her up himself. The decision shows that Alison’s disappearance has intensified suspicion around Tom and has begun to isolate him from Daisy.