Amy Bradley's Best Friend Saw Her the Night Before. She Speaks After Reading the Book. | MMA Special

She was the last friend to see Amy Bradley in Richmond — the night before the cruise. She's here to talk about the book.

Stacie was Amy Bradley's best friend. On the night before she left for the cruise, Amy asked her to come over. They sat in Amy's apartment, talked, and made plans for when Amy got back. The "angst" Kevin has described in prior episodes — the nervousness Amy's family spoke about before the trip — was about flying and being on water for the first time. Not about going with her family. Not about being forced anywhere. Stacie was there. She knows.

Stacie rarely speaks publicly, but she reached out to Kevin because she felt she had to — because she watched the James Renner book come out and couldn't stay quiet.

Here is what Stacie says about Renner's book: the research was done via ChatGPT, Reddit, and WebSleuths. There were no real interviews with people who actually knew Amy before the cruise — the people who knew who she was, what she liked, how she moved through the world, and where her life was at the time. More than half the book, by Stacie's account, is Renner writing about himself. He titled it "How I Found Myself While Searching for Amy Lynn Bradley." Stacie has thoughts about that title.

On Amy's sexuality and identity: Amy didn't like labels. Stacie's exact words — "don't ever call her a lesbian." She was Amy. She liked who she liked. The Bradley family knew. Ron and Iva knew. Brad knew. The family didn't just accept it, they loved her like always. Ron and Iva came to karaoke nights. Stacie calls Iva "mom." Ron and Iva are, in her words, "disgustingly so much in love." They are not the family the book implies they are.

On the specific claims in Renner's book: Stacie calls out the bungee jumping story and the James River swimming story as false. She addresses Yellow — the cruise crew member last seen with Amy who continues to lie about being in his room at 1AM despite his keycard data saying otherwise. Renner called Yellow credible anyway.

Ron and Iva Bradley are well into their 70s. They exhausted their life savings searching for Amy. Both of them still go to work. They have never stopped.

Stacie has letters from Amy. She has the original Richmond Times-Dispatch article from when Amy went missing. She has been carrying this for 28 years.

She is here because Amy deserves people who actually knew her to speak for her.

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