“From what I was able to uncover, Charles had been working with the police. It’s why he was let off the hook with barely a slap on the wrist all the times he was arrested prior to the murder of Debra Oshae.”

“Is there any truth to that claim?” I ask, looking between the two detectives.

“We don’t know for certain, but we couldn’t find any evidence that it was true.”

“Did you speak to the officers who were involved about this?” I ask, and they glance at each other. “As you know, if an officer has an informant working for them and that informant gets charged with a crime, the officer involved can be held liable. That would be a pretty fucking big reason for them to ignore the confession given by Charles back then.”

“Exactly.” Janelle smiles triumphantly.

“Jesus,” I mutter, scrubbing my fingers through my hair. “Do you have the information you’ve collected from the case for your podcast?”

“Yep.” She opens her purse and pulls out a file that is about ten times bigger than the one I received from Mary. “This is everything.” She passes it over to me, then reaches back into her bag and pulls out a card, handing that over as well. “That’s my podcast if you want to listen. I’ve interviewed her husband and her family and friends.”

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” She sits back and lets out a breath before looking over at Burros. He looks annoyed, but she doesn’t seem at all fazed. “Me and the guys might not agree on everything, but we do agree that we want the man responsible for killing Alice charged for her murder. She deserves that, and her family does, too.”

“I’m going to take my time going through all of this, and then I’ll want to sit down with you guys again before I bring her family in.” I look at Burros and Shaw. “I’m also going to need to speak with the detectives who handled this case. Can you get their information for me?”

“Yeah,” Shaw says.

“Thanks.” I stand, and they all get up from their chairs as I move around my desk and toward the door. “Thanks for coming in today.” I shake the two detectives’ hands, then do the same with Janelle.

“My cell phone number is on that card I gave you. If you have any questions for me, just reach out.”

“Will do,” I reply, then wait until they leave my office before I go back to my desk. After gathering all my stuff, I dial Franny’s number as I head out of my office.

“Hey,” she answers on the third ring.

“Hey, I’m leaving work now. What are you in the mood for?”

“Toast.”

I might laugh if I thought she was joking.

“You’re not eating toast for dinner,” I tell her.