By Seamus McGraw
In Fact, she did it twice
Three days later, Natasha was discovered and the police quickly returned her to her frantic mother. Black, who had been questioned within hours of her disappearance, was arrested and charged with child stealing. Authorities later agreed to reduce the charges to interfering with a police investigation. Black was fined $1,000.
But a year later, Natasha, by then 14, did it again; staging her own abduction by vanishing after her mother dropped her off at school. Rather than risk another motel disaster, Natasha persuaded Black to let her hide in his home. Naturally, that was the first police looked for her, but when they arrived, according to authorities, Natasha scampered into an attic crawl space to hide. The police never bothered to look there.
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| Natasha Ryan |
The police did keep Black under surveillance for a time, but eventually lost interest in him.
For the next four years, Natasha Ryan and Black lived together in total secrecy. "She kept a beautiful house," said one witness who spoke to Stuff on the condition of anonymity.
To keep up appearances, Black maintained his work schedule, and left the house every morning, nodding and grunting at the neighbors as he drove off. While he was away, Natasha kept the shades drawn and watched soap operas and game shows on television with the volume turned down low. She cooked, cleaned and taught herself how to read and speak German. Whenever people dropped by the house, Natasha scurried into hiding. She frequently cowered in a cupboard for up to six hours at a time, LoMonoco told Stuff. In four years, Natasha ventured out only once, after persuading Black to drive her to a nearby beach so she could stick her toes in the moonlit surf.
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