Sherlock pranced along the wall and settled himself directly above the fountain, watching Leigh with a scheming look in his eyes. He was typically aloof, but he’d been known to sniff out sandwich crusts or abandoned yogurt cups.

Leigh finished her yogurt and set it on the ground. She resettled her computer on her lap and launched a social media search. She combed three platforms but came up with nothing for a Vanessa Adams living in Austin. Finally on Twitter, she found a Vanessa Adams who listed her location as Texas. The profile picture was a white daisy, and the account was private. It seemed like a longshot, but Leigh sent a follow request anyway.

Her phone chimed on the table beside her. The number was blocked, but Leigh knew who it was.

“Hey,” she said.

“I ran your friend,” C.J. told her.

C.J. Foley was Leigh’s go-to guy for background checks, mostly because he was good, but also because he was free. The private investigator occupied the office at the back of their building, and Javi had helped him out of some legal scrapes over the years, pro bono. It was a symbiotic relationship.

“That was fast,” Leigh said.

“Slow day. And it was easy. She’s clean.”

“No record at all?”

“Nope. No wants or warrants. Not even a traffic ticket.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yep.”

C.J. didn’t sound offended by her skepticism. He didn’t offend easily.

Leigh was surprised by the result, though. When Brandon had asked if Leigh got referrals from Gertie Soltis, a public defender, she’d figured Vanessa had had some sort of brush with the law in her past and Brandon had learned about it.

“I did find one thing,” he said.

Leigh’s pulse picked up. “What?”

“She reported a burglary back in June. Her name’s on the report.”

“She had an intruder?”

“Car burglary. It was parked on the street. Anderson Lane.”

“Do you know what was stolen?”

“Nope. I know the cop listed here, though. I could see if he remembers it.”

“That would be great, C.J. Thanks. I owe you.”

He clicked off.

C.J. wasn’t big on pleasantries. Or lawyers, for that matter. But he and Javi seemed to have a good arrangement, and he never pushed back whenever Leigh called him up.

Sherlock rubbed his head against her ankle, and Leigh reached down to scratch his ears. He was in a rare friendly mood after finishing off her yogurt.