Page 52 of Wild Justice

“Maybe he will,” Max said. “You never know.”

Kai asked Stacy and Max for a few fun stories that he could share with readers about Dana, showing the kind of person she was. They eagerly talked about hikes, picnics, movie nights, and Christmas cookie-decorating parties. The three of them appeared to have a genuinely loving friendship.

“Once again, I am sorry for your loss,” Kai said when it was time for him to go. “And I appreciate your time today.”

“You’re not going to write what Jillian told you?” Stacy asked, her tone apprehensive. “Because she’s lying about Dana. She’s always resented her.”

“I’m not going to say anything negative about Dana,” Kai responded. “That’s not the type of article that I’m looking to write. I just want people to get to know Dana Cartwright a bit more than they might have before. I’m not looking to tear down anyone’s reputation. That’s not what I do.”

After speaking with Jillian and now Stacy and Max, Kai was more certain of this than ever. He hadn’t quit his soul-sucking job as a lawyer to write sensationalized articles about people who weren’t alive to defend themselves.

He said goodbye to the couple and headed out to his vehicle. Before he could leave, Stacy jogged out of the house and waved.

“I told Max that I remembered a story I just had to tell you,” she said, shifting on her feet. “But I need to make sure that you’re not going to print that Dana was seeing someone. It’s important that you don’t.”

“Because he’s married?” Kai guessed.

“Yes,” Stacy admitted with a sigh. “He’s married, and no, I don’t know who he is. Dana said he was unhappy in his marriage and planning to leave his wife.”

“Do you think he was going to do that?”

“I don’t, and I said the same to her. Now, you’re not going to print any of that, right? I need your promise.”

“I promise. I’m not planning to write anything negative about Dana.”

Stacy thanked him and went back inside while he climbed into the car.

While his interviews had answered many questions, they’d also posed new ones. Did Jillian hate her sister enough to kill her? Was Allie convinced that Dana was after Jay, and would she kill to keep him? And possibly the most important of all, just who was the man that Dana Cartwright was dating?

That’s who Kai wanted to talk to.

14

“Idon’t need an alibi. I’m telling the truth.”

Allie sat across from Lulu, her expression defiant with narrowed and cold eyes. She had the distinct impression that she wasn’t going to get anywhere with this young woman.

I’m wasting my time, but then, it’s my time to waste.

Her attorney, an older man who had introduced himself at the beginning, but hadn’t said much since, simply sat there. Probably billing four hundred bucks an hour.

“Right now, you don’t have an alibi,” Lulu replied, keeping her tone neutral. She wasn’t going to give Allie any reason to get angry or freak out. “Jay says that he dropped you at your home after the movie. According to him, he wasn’t with you all night.”

Allie’s mouth dropped open, and her cheeks turned an angry shade of red. Apparently, she hadn’t thought to synchronize her story with her boyfriend’s. Rookie error? Or she was so innocent, it hadn’t occurred to her?

Why would an innocent woman lie about where she was? It didn’t automatically make her guilty or anything, but it did raise suspicion around her.

“Is he lying?” Lulu pressed. “If I pull traffic cameras, what will I see?”

The problem was that so many people forgot they were being recorded. Even in a small town, there were more and more cameras in homes, stores, and in traffic.

Allie elbowed her attorney, and they quietly conferred for a moment before she answered.

“He dropped me at home,” Allie admitted, but she didn’t look happy about it. “I guess I forgot it was one of the nights that I didn’t spend at his place. That’s where I usually am.”

Sheforgot. Okay, Lulu wasn’t going to go after that one, although she could. It was a bit farfetched to think that Allie wouldn’t remember where she spent the night a few hours before Dana was killed.

Lulu had to pick her battles, and this one she wasn’t going to win.

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