Iris gets home and calls Francie back. She doesn’t have long to talk. There’s a community meeting tonight at the Winding Creek pool clubhouse about the investigation and security in the neighborhood. Mike is speaking at it, as are the investigators from Travis County and Lakehaven PD.

“I found the family that threatened her,” Francie says. “Their name is Butler. Steve and Carrie Butler.”

Butler. She’s heard the name before, but she doesn’t remember where. Think. Think.

“How did you find them?”

“I remembered she complained about them in an email to me and I found it from months ago. I’ll forward it to you.”

It arrives in her in-box seconds later, and Iris scans it:

Yeah, this older couple was mad about being declined. Steve and Carrie Butler. They were just problematic. China and Uganda both said no and I think it took them really by surprise. They don’t know what they want to do yet, but they’re blaming me. My heart breaks for them but they don’t get to be terrible to me. This isn’t my fault. In other news Ned is about to make me tear out my hair, but life with a teenager, even so how lucky I am to have him.

“Should I give this to the police?” Francie asks.

Iris thinks. “No,” she says after a moment. “I will, if that’s OK. I already know the detective. It’ll be easier coming from me.”

Francie says, “I looked the Butlers up on Faceplace. He works for a software company, and she’s a pediatric nurse. They should have been stellar candidates.”

“But they weren’t. Did she say why?”

“No. I was surprised she even told me their names. Confidentiality—you know that was crucial to her.”

“Yes,” Iris says in a flat tone.

“I think she told me their names because if something happened to her, someone else would know they had threatened her.”

“But had they? Threatened her? Or just been mad at her?”

“Look at the email.”

Iris reads the end of it:

Hey thanks for listening to me vent. It’s fine. They’re disappointed and I’m disappointed for them but not everyone that asks us for help is a good match for overseas adoption and I think that they just don’t want to accept the verdict. We tried to prep them best we could, help them adjust their thinking. I’m only telling you this not to bring up my name if you cross paths with them. I’m their least favorite person right now. Just so you know. I wish them well.

“There’s no other time she mentioned them to you?” Iris asked.

“No,” Francie said.

“So it wasn’t like they were harassing her.”

“No,” she said. “Well, whatever ‘be terrible’ means. She mentioned about her car getting keyed. But she didn’t say they did it.”

“When?”

“Last month.”

“Francie.”