Naturally, Bill had checked it out. He’d called the principal, Mr. Purvis, and he’d found out that Coach Watson had been attending a statewide coaching clinic at the time. Since Boyd hadn’t come back to town until noon on Wednesday, that ruled him out as a possible suspect.

Hannah’s forehead furrowed as she poured herself a glass of diet Coke and carried it into the living room. When Maryann had said that she’d driven to Minneapolis to go shopping with Boyd, she’d assumed that Maryann had picked him up and they’d gone to the Mall of America together. But Maryann had said that she’d met her brother at the mall. Boyd must have had his rental car by then. But why would Coach Watson go to the trouble and expense of renting a car for less than twenty-four hours when his sister was coming to meet him? It just didn’t make sense.

She sighed and reached out to pet Moishe, who’d forsaken his food dish for the soft cushion of the couch and her company. Had Coach Watson been behind the wheel of the black compact that Mr. Harris had seen roaring out of the Cozy Cow driveway? The timetable was tight, but it was possible that Boyd had left before dawn, while Maryann and his mother were still asleep, and driven to Lake Eden. His last name began with a W, and he could have been the one to meet Max. If Maryann and her mother had slept until nine, Boyd might have had time to shoot both Max and Ron and get back before they woke up. But what possible motive could Coach Watson have for killing Max?

Hannah thought back to everything that she’d learned about the Watsons. Danielle’s ring had cost a thousand dollars and the dress she’d worn to the Woodleys’ party had sold for over five hundred. Boyd and Danielle lived in a very expensive house, and Danielle didn’t work. Boyd drove a new Jeep Grand Cherokee, and Danielle had a new Lincoln. How could Coach Watson afford to maintain their expensive lifestyle on a teacher’s salary?

“Boyd got a personal loan from Max!” Hannah exclaimed, causing Moishe to rear back and stare at her. “Sorry, Moishe. I didn’t mean to shout, but it’s the only thing that makes sense. There weren’t any loan papers for him, but the safe was open and he would have taken them right after he shot Max. And then he killed Ron because Ron had seen him with Max!”

Moishe turned to give her a long, level look and then he hopped off the couch and padded into the kitchen to his food bowl. He yowled once, calling for her to get out the kitty crunchies, and Hannah went off to comply. Moishe was the most intelligent cat she’d ever met. He was waiting for her to fill up his food bowl because he knew that she had to leave again.

Danielle opened the door several inches, but no wider. “Hi, Hannah. I…uh…I’m busy right now. Could you come back a little later?”