“She was stabbed one hundred and four times,” Detective Burros says as I look through the photos he handed me. I’ve read that number in my case file numerous times, but hearing it again while looking at the crime scene photos makes me realize how much rage was involved in the murder of Alice Groden.

“She was caught off guard by the attack, and it wasn’t planned.” I lift my gaze to him, his partner, Detective Shaw, and the woman who has been sitting quietly at their side—Ms. Janelle Branch, the podcaster who came across the story of Alice Groden and shared it with her followers. She’s young, maybe twenty-five, and reminds me a little of Franny, with her dark-blonde hair, air of femininity, and glint of wisdom far beyond her years in her eyes.

“He might not have gone into her home with a weapon, but that doesn’t mean the attack wasn’t planned,” Janelle says softly, glancing over at Detective Burros. “He could have known she was there alone and gone over with the intent to rape her. We know he has a history of that.” Her eyes come to me. “During my investigation, I found out that Charles had been staying off and on with his brother, who lived across the street. He could have been watching her for a while and waiting for his moment to strike.”

“This isn’t a podcast,” Burros tells her, and she presses her lips together.

“I’m on the same page as Janelle,” Shaw says, then adds while ticking off on his fingers, “Nothing was taken from her apartment. Her purse was left untouched. There was money out on the counter left by Greg so Alice could go to the hair salon that afternoon. And she still had on all her jewelry. Her pants were undone, but she was still fully clothed. If he had tried to rape her and she started fighting and was getting away, he could have grabbed the closest thing he could get his hand on and used it as a weapon.”

The weapon he’s referring to is the knife that matched the ones that she and her husband had gotten as a wedding present just a few months prior. The handle was recovered from the scene, and the blade was later recovered from one of the wounds in Alice’s back, where it had broken off.

“And he knew that she would be able to identify him for attacking her, and he’d go to jail, so he couldn’t leave her alive,” Shaw concludes.

“Not that it would matter,” Janelle mutters.

“Don’t start that again,” Burros says, and Janelle rolls her eyes.

“What’s that about?” I ask, focusing on her.

Burros interrupts before she can answer for herself. “She thinks that the cops were covering for Charles because he was an informant.”

“What?” I look between the three of them.