She waves at him over her shoulder. We want to see about how long it took Annalise Robb to walk from the bar to where she was abducted. Agent Metz is closest in age and size to our vic, so she got volunteered. Chase stands at the side road, where Annalise would’ve turned the corner, to direct Alison.

Joe and I drive up to the end spot where Annalise disappeared and wait for Agent Metz to arrive.

We sit in his vehicle, heater cranking, coffees in hand.

“Whoever did this had to leave the Bradley house sometime after midnight,” Joe says, “or Mrs. Pearson probably would’ve noticed. Annalise left the bar anywhere from one o’clock to one-twenty, according to witnesses.” When we reread the statements gathered by the sheriff’s department, there was some discrepancy as to when Annalise actually left. Still, it’s a pretty good timeline.

“And the deed was probably done by five a.m.,” I add.

“Key ring wasn’t back, according to Alice.” Joe raises his eyebrows.

“True. But wouldn’t she have heard something? I’m thinking the perp replaced the ring later. Realized it was still in his pocket maybe. I think he was finished by then and back in bed. It would’ve been risky to have been prowling around the house in the early-morning hours. I think he got the job done overnight when he was sure everyone was asleep.”

We’d gone over all this since we interviewed Alice yesterday, but talking through possible scenarios is always ongoing. You never know when something you hadn’t thought of before might pop up.

“And,” I say, “I don’t think it was the doctor.” I had lain awake half the night thinking about this case, and I’m growing more convinced Jay Bradley wasn’t a killer. Maybe it’s just my gut talking, but it’s getting louder. Ma always said the McMahons could feel things that not everyone else could. She used to visit an old woman who lived over Corrigan’s Bar on the corner who claimed to be a psychic, much to Father O’Brien’s chagrin. I don’t necessarily buy into that sort of thing, but you never know.

Joe tips his head. “Maybe not, Rita.”

“I still think he would’ve used his own keys. Why bother with the ring in the mudroom?”

“Maybe it was handy.”

We sit in silence. The car is facing down the road so we can see Agent Metz coming. She eventually appears, walking at a moderate pace, trying to embody a tipsy Annalise. When she gets close, Joe and I exit the vehicle.

Alison takes a big breath and points over her shoulder. “That incline is steeper than it looks.”

Chase appears headed our way, having walked a little behind her. We stand in a huddle.