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By Seamus McGraw

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OCILLA, GA (Crime Library) — A clearer picture has emerged in recent days of Tara Grinstead's state of mind. According to several sources, the young woman had been on "an emotional roller coaster" following the break up of her six-year relationship with Harper, a former police officer who joined the Army Rangers after 9-11 and later became an independent contractor working in Iraq.

Several sources familiar with Grinstead's personal life said though the couple bickered frequently toward the end of their courtship, Grinstead, who had long hoped that she and Harper would marry, remained deeply in love with him. "I do believe she still had feelings for Marcus," said one source who discussed the relationship with Grinstead several times before her disappearance, "but she saw that it was going nowhere." Others close to Tara Grinstead say she may have harbored hopes that they would reunite.

In fact, in mid-October, one friend said, Grinstead had made efforts to reconnect with Harper, and when he resisted, she became so overwrought that she took a long drive and had to pull over and call for assistance to get home. The next day, uncharacteristically, she called in sick to school. A few days later, Dykes, a policeman from nearby Perry and long-time friend of both Grinstead and her family, a confidant whom she had recently been dating turned up in Ocilla. She left school early. That too was unusual for the highly devoted and motivated eleventh-grade teacher

What's more, Grinstead was under additional pressure as she struggled to complete a round of studies so she could begin the process of obtaining her doctorate in education.

Grinstead was last seen on the night of Oct. 22, which was the night of the annual Sweet Potato Festival and beauty pageant that Grinstead had attended. According to authorities, Grinstead left the pageant and went to have dinner at the home of the former local school superintendent and his family. She was last seen around 11 p.m.

She was reported missing Monday morning when she failed to turn up at school. Police responded to her home and found little out of place. The clothes she wore that night were found in the home, as was her cellular phone, which according to sources familiar with her habits, she never left behind. Authorities still don't know whether it is significant, but a clock had fallen to the floor and broken, and one of the meticulous young woman's lampshades was askew.

But friends and others close to her say that despite the pressure there is little chance that she simply ran away of her own accord. Describing the 30-year-old as a "grounded, Christian woman," they say it is unthinkable that she would have simply walked away from her life, from her students who idolized her, and her family without a word. Furthermore, they note that nothing in her behavior in the days leading up to her disappearance indicated that she might be planning an escape. Just days before she vanished, a neighbor told the Crime Library, she purchased a significant amount of groceries. Known to be deeply devoted to her dog, Grinstead made no arrangements for its care, one person familiar with the probe said.

Equally disturbing is the fact that when Grinstead vanished, she left behind her car

which she uncharacteristically left unlocked as well as a significant amount of cash and all the clothes she owned except for what was on her back.

Without a car and with little cash, friends note, it is unlikely that Grinstead could have made it far. There is no easy access to public transportation, and it would have been difficult for Grinstead, who was well-known in the tiny rural Georgia community, to have slipped out of town unnoticed.

Still, investigators and volunteers continue to search the area for any sign of Grinstead. A reward for information about her whereabouts has reached $80,000 and is reportedly growing, and the community is rallying around her family. Later today, for example, cheerleaders in her hometown of Hawkinsville have scheduled a march to call attention to her case, and a moment of silent prayer is scheduled outside Taylor Regional Hospital, where one of her relatives practices medicine.

But privately, even those closest to Grinstead admit they are starting to lose hope that she will return home safely.

"I can't fathom that she would leave under those circumstances," said one person who had frequent heart-to-heart talks with Grinstead. "I can't see any possibility of that. I think they're just going to find her buried somewhere."

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Tara Grinstead Publicity Mixed Blessing

Tara Grinstead's State of Mind

Search for Tara Grinstead Involves Entire Community

Beauty Queen & Teacher Tara Grinstead Goes Missing

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