Lauren appeared to be caught off guard. She sat back in her chair, seeming to search for an appropriate answer. “I found out she was a plastic surgeon. I don’t know many plastic surgeons. So, I was interested.”

“Interested in what? What she could do for you?” Jack said.

“Interested in having a fellow professional friend.” Lauren glared at Jack.

“Oh yes, I’m sorry. You found it necessary to have a professional equal as your friend. And might I ask what your profession is?”

Lauren didn’t answer. What remained of her jaw clenched hard.

“Were you even employed when you met Julia?” he asked.

Lauren lurched forward, looking as if she wanted to tear Jack in two.

“When did you go to Julia’s office for the first time?” Thomas spoke up quickly.

Lauren’s chest heaved with anger. Thomas repeated the question, once and then a second time.

“She asked me to work for her. She asked me to stop by and check out the office. Later, she offered to remove my mole free of charge, practically insisted on it.” The words were rattled off in quick orchestrated succession. Val couldn’t help but think that this wasn’t the first time Lauren had said this explanation.

“And you agreed to it?” Thomas asked.

“Yeah, she was going to do it for free and it’s something I’d been wanting to do for a while. If I had known who she was, I never would have let her touch me. I started with the infection the next day. She did it on purpose. She knew who I was.” Lauren sat back in her chair.

“Did she ever say that to you? That she knew?” he asked.

Lauren paused.

Thomas said it again. “Did she ever tell you that she knew you were having an affair with her husband?”

“Christ, she had to have known. No one is that stupid.”

“What would make you think that?”

“Colin was out almost every night with me. You don’t think she was suspicious? If my husband was out every night, I’d wonder where he was going.”

“When did Colin leave her?”

“Right after I got the infection,” Lauren said. “He was going to leave her anyway. This just sped things up. He saw her as a monster for doing this to me. He couldn’t stand her after that.”

“That’s awfully convenient then, isn’t it? You just said it ‘sped things up.’ Made him not stand her. Maybe he wouldn’t have left Julia otherwise,” Jack said.

“Colin loves me! Not her. He was just worried about hurting her feelings!”

Jack opened his mouth to respond, but Thomas intercepted. “How long were you with Colin before he left Julia?”

“About eight months.”

Thomas’s eyes opened wide. “You were with Colin before he married Julia?”

“Yes,” Lauren said with confidence. Her eyes were piercing, challenging him. Daring him to ask more.