Hangman. Faye Kellerman

spoiled by her older sister. That one never gave us anything to worry about.”

      “Bea was a different child. There’s no sense comparing.”

      “But we do anyway,” Mack told her. “More than once we were up at four in the morning, calling Adrianna’s friends because her cell was off and we didn’t know where she was. When she wanted to be a nurse, I was skeptical. But…”

      Mack Blanc’s voice cracked.

      “The girl proved me wrong.” He sniffed back tears. “She not only graduated, but got a job with responsibility. Her coworkers love her.”

      “You met her coworkers?” Decker asked him.

      Kathy said, “She had a Christmas party in her apartment two years ago. She invited us and we went.”

      “I think that’s when we first met Garth,” Mack told her.

      “Do you remember any other coworkers?”

      “There was her friend Mandy Kowalski,” Kathy told Decker. “They went to nursing school together. I think it was Mandy who set Adrianna up with Garth.”

      “Mandy set her up with Garth?” Decker repeated.

      “I think so.” Kathy squinted, trying to bring back memories. “I think she knew a boy who knew him…something like that.”

      “Do you remember the boy’s name?”

      “No.” Mack waved his hand in the air. “We kept out of Adrian-na’s business.”

      Kathy said, “His name was Aaron Otis.”

      “How did you remember that?”

      “I just do.”

      Mack shook his head. “She’s a whiz with names.”

      “That’s very good,” Decker said. “Aaron Otis. Did you ever meet him?”

      “I had to have met him once because I recall he was tall with sandy hair…unless I’m getting things confused.” She looked down. “That’s certainly possible.”

      “That’s helpful,” Decker said. “How about the names of Adri-anna’s other friends?”

      “You can start with Sela Graydon and Crystal Larabee. The three of them were a tight little group.”

      “Did either of them become nurses?”

      “Heavens no,” Mack said. “I think Crystal wanted to be an actress. At twenty-nine, it ain’t gonna happen. What is she? Like a bartender?”

      “She’s a main hostess at Garage.”

      “Yeah, waiting to be discovered.”

      “Be kind, Mack.” Kathy regarded Decker. “Garage is the newest Helmet Grass restaurant. It’s downtown…right near the New Otani.”

      “Got it. What about Sela Graydon? What does she do?”

      “She’s a lawyer,” Mack told him. “She was always the smart one of the three.”

      “Do both women live in town?”

      “Yes,” Kathy said. “I’ll get you their phone numbers.”

      “Do you know anything about Mandy Kowalski?”

      “Just that Adrianna met her in nursing school,” Mack said. “She seemed nice enough.”

      “She used to help Adrianna study, especially when finals rolled around. The first time they happened, Adrianna freaked out. I couldn’t help her. I don’t know the first thing about the nervous system or the circulatory system, but after studying with Mandy, she not only pulled through, she did well. She even got a couple of A’s in some of the classes.”

      The tears came flowing down Kathy’s cheek.

      “She was so…proud!”

      Decker gave her another Kleenex and watched the woman sob. There wasn’t a state-of-the-art dam in the entire world that could hold back that torrent.

      “THERE’S NOT MUCH to come down for.” Marge was just outside in the parking lot of St. Tim’s because the reception for her cell was better. “The car’s being processed and we’re just about done with our preliminary interviewing. We spoke to a few of her coworkers. Also, we talked to a woman named Mandy Kowalski. She and Adrianna went to nursing school together, but they don’t work on the same floor.”

      “Yeah, Mandy’s name came up when I interviewed the mom,” Decker told her. “She thought that Mandy might have set Adrianna up with Garth.”

      “Hmm. Mandy neglected to mention that. She did say that Garth came on to her.”

      “Okay,” Decker said. “Triangle anyone?”

      “Could be,” Marge said. “I’ll see if I can sort the relationships out. We’ve also got an appointment to interview Adrianna’s supervising nurse tomorrow. She was well liked, did her job, but several people remarked that she liked to party.”

      “That’s consistent with the picture I got from her parents.”

      “Her parents told you she liked to party?”

      “Mostly her father did. He described her—and not kindly—as a party girl.”

      “Unusual for him to admit that under the circumstances.”

      “I have a feeling that he’s been miffed at her for a long time.”

      “But she’s dead, Rabbi. For him to even hint at hostility…that’s weird.”

      “People cope in all sorts of different ways. Maybe he figures if he can be mad at her, she’s really not dead. Anyway, there’s another sister in the family—Beatrice Blanc. She needs to be interviewed separately.”

      “I’ll do it.”

      “There are also two best friends of hers from high school: Sela Graydon and Crystal Larabee.” Decker spelled the names and gave Marge the phone numbers. “Lastly, we need to find out the name of the homeowner’s oldest son.”

      “Did that. Trent Grossman. He’s twenty-six. He lives in Boston with his wife and was at a party last night. So he’s out of the picture. The two younger Grossman boys were home last night, according to the parents. For verification, they sent e-mails, IMs, and were on Facebook. I haven’t dug deeper, but I will if you want me to.”

      “How old are they? Like fifteen and thirteen?”

      “Yep.”

      “Put them down at the bottom for now. Let’s go back to Adri-anna’s peers—Crystal and Sela. Set up interviews with them because…okay…here’s the deal.”

      Decker flipped through his notes.

      “Adrianna called Sela Graydon this morning right when she got off of work. Find out what that was all about. Adrianna also made another call, but we don’t know the identity of that number. Each time I’ve called it, the mailbox is full. It’s a cell, so our backward directories aren’t going to work. We may need a warrant to find out who the number belongs to. Hunt around and see if you can find out if the number belongs to one of her friends.”

      “Will do.” Marge asked him, “Any luck with the canvassing of the area?”

      “I haven’t heard anything so far. How about we meet up later in the evening and compare notes?”

      “Sounds like a plan. Talk to you later.”

      Marge hung up her cell and started to dial Sela Graydon’s number, when a crime-scene tech started walking her way. The woman came up to Marge’s stomach. Maybe a little bit higher than her stomach, but she was definitely less than five feet. She was young and Asian and as delicate as a spiderweb, except she