Page 54 of Wild Justice

Allie’s expression had flickered and glitched for just a split second. She’d covered it up almost instantly, but Lulu had been looking specifically for it.

Allie had known. Somehow. It didn’t make a lick of sense as tohowshe’d known, but she had. Did that mean that Jay was an amazing actor? Had he known and just covered it better?

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Allie replied, her expression now bland. “You’re not making any sense.”

“Never mind,” Lulu said, standing up also. “Thank you for stopping in today. If I have any more questions, I’ll contact your attorney.”

Allie rolled her eyes and quickly exited the interview room with the lawyer right on her heels. When Lulu stepped out into the main area of the sheriff’s station, Steve was the first to talk to her.

“I’ve set up a meeting with the roommate Kathleen Meadows, but you have to go to her work. She has a job during the day.”

“Fine, where is that?”

“Dr. Millikin’s office. She can see you later today. She’s a receptionist there.”

“Dr. Millikin? She works there?”

“Yes, why? That’s…interesting.”

Everyone in town knew Dr. Millikin’s practice. It was the only OBGYN practice in town. Pretty much every woman in Harper - and some from other small neighboring towns - was a patient there because the next nearest baby doctor was in Springwood. Lulu had gone there until she moved to Seattle.

And if Kathleen Meadows worked there, she would have seen Dana Cartwright come in for her prenatal appointment. And if Ms. Meadows had a loose tongue, she might have told her roommate what she’d seen. That explained how Allie might have known about Dana’s pregnancy.

A few pieces of the puzzle.

Were they part of the big picture or simply a distraction? Either way, they needed to be put together.

Lulu was backingout of her parking space at the sheriff’s station when a car pulled in next to her and honked its horn. Looking over, she could see Ellen Dunphy in the passenger seat and Ray Ramsey behind the wheel. From the way they were waving, she had the feeling they were there to see her.

They both hopped out of their vehicle and motioned for her to roll down her window. There was no way to avoid this conversation unless she wanted to be rude. Technically, she worked for them, although they’d been scarce when her dad was the sheriff. They’d let Seth Reilly run the town, rarely ever questioning him unless it was something about the budget.

“Lulu,” Ellen exclaimed. “I’m so glad we caught you.”

“I’m heading out to do an interview,” Lulu explained. “What can I help you with?”

Hopefully, it wouldn’t take long. She was supposed to talk with Glen Foster, and after that, head to speak to Kathleen Meadows.

“We just wanted to see how things were going. Right, Ray?”

“We were,” Ray replied, nodding in agreement. “Any news?”

“I’m running down a few leads, but I don’t know if they’ll amount to anything,” Lulu replied. “We’re researching alibis, and gathering video from traffic cameras where we can to confirm them.”

“You were talking to Jay Bradford and Allie Baker,” Ellen said. “Anything there?”

“I’m still running down their alibis,” Lulu said. “I’m going to meet with Ms. Baker’s roommate in about an hour. We’ve confirmed Bradford’s. He was home all night.”

“Allie doesn’t have an alibi,” Ellen mused. “That’s interesting. Right, Ray?”

“She has one, but I just haven’t confirmed it yet,” Lulu corrected. “I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. It’s just one thing I’m running down today.”

“Of course, of course,” Ray said. “We don’t want to keep you from doing your job. You’re headed to speak to Ms. Baker’s roommate?”

“Yes, she’s at her job right now. But first, I need to talk to Glen Foster.”

“I have to say, Lulu, we’re so pleased with your work so far. You bring such energy to this investigation,” Ray said with a smile. “The energy of youth, I guess. But we’re quite pleased.”

“We are,” Ellen agreed. “Right, Ray? We won’t keep you any longer. We know you need to get back to work. Please let us know if you need anything.”

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