Jordan turned toward Spencer. “What if there were other messages to me at the other crime scenes? What if they were subtle enough that I didn’t pick up on them?”

“That’s pressing it, don’t you think? You were interviewed in the press several times, and guys who kill like this generally pay attention to the media. They like the attention. They follow the cops who are tracking them.”

She reached for her cane, opened the locker, and grabbed her purse. “Avery is my sister. Laura Davis knew Elena Sanchez, a woman I met with once. Tammy Fox knew Avery. Emma Powers worked in the hospital where I stayed.”

“Let me look over Laura Davis’s and Tammy Fox’s files again. I’ll read them with your theory in mind.”

“I know it’s a long shot,” she said.

“At this stage, it’s all a long shot.” A locker opened and closed, and she imagined he’d grabbed his Stetson.

“If you can get me to the lobby, I’ll call an Uber. Easier for me to meet Avery downtown at her café.”

“I can drop you.”

“It’s tempting, but I’ve got to figure this out. Getting around is a fact of life unless I want to stay in my house forever.”

“Baptism by fire?” he asked.

“They’re the most effective kind, aren’t they?”

“Let me at least get you to the curb,” he said.

“Fair enough.”

They moved through the building and out the front door into the bright sunshine. Sliding on her sunglasses, Jordan tipped her face toward the sun and savored the warmth. The air was crisp and the humidity low, so she guessed the sky was a clear blue. She tried to picture the shade of blue and finally decided it was azure. Nothing worse than leaving an autopsy and being met by gray skies and rain.

She fished her phone out of her purse and touched the screen. Using her voice-activated software, she asked the Uber app to open, and she summoned a car.

“High tech,” Spencer said.

“I’m a novice,” she said.

“You’re a quick study. You’re adapting well.”

“I’m hoping all this darkness is a temporary setback. Knowing I’ll get past this keeps me going.”

“And if your vision doesn’t improve?” No softening the question’s sting.

“Ouch. You don’t pull any punches.”

“You wouldn’t, either, if the shoe was on the other foot.”

“Honestly, Spencer, I have no idea what I’m going to do. I feel like I’ve got my leg in a snare. Right now, I’m just gritting my teeth and hoping the trap springs open.”

“Even if a trap opens, they always leave a mark.”

Her grip tightened around her cane. “Did you know that almost seventy percent of low-vision people are not in the workforce?”

“Sounds like you were practicing your internet skills last night.”