Lauren named a few more, and when she got to Huzzah!, Kelsey really lit up. “I was crazy about that game for a while,” she said. “You should totally make more.” Then she added, “A woman in tech. I like it. Though I bet you stick out in this place.”

“Oh, you mean with the moms?” Lauren could tell she was getting somewhere. “I do. Most of the time. Especially at this school in particular. Everyone is so competitive.”

Kelsey’s eyes lit up. She looked back and forth conspiratorially, then leaned in closer. “The parents we’ve recorded so far? They’re so high-strung. I mean, come on, people. A lot of them are freaking out that their toddlers aren’t bilingual yet. Or that their kid’s going to eat a nonorganic yogurt squeezie at a friend’s house. There’s a major recession going on. I thought that would put things in perspective.”

“I know it,” Lauren murmured. “I see a lot of babies in Gucci around here. For some people—not all—it’s like the economic crisis doesn’t exist.” And then, casually, she added, “Did you tell the police that some of the parents seem . . . tricky? I mean, stressed moms and dads make for some crazy shit going down.”

Kelsey shrugged, becoming a little closed off again. “There isn’t really anything specific. And anyway, these are my opinions. I’m probably overexaggerating.”

“You’re not, believe me. Though . . . I’m surprised to hear you’ve begun recording. I thought you were just in the early stages.”

“We’ve started, a little,” Kelsey answered. “We sent an email around about it—parents who wanted to participate signed up.”

Lauren sank into one hip. She hadn’t gotten an email, though that certainly fit her theory that Piper thought she was nuts and didn’t want her to be part of the documentary. Perhaps Piper had deliberately left her name off the email chain.

She decided to share this theory with Kelsey, casting herself as the techie outsider who didn’t fit the Silver Swans mold. Kelsey looked annoyed. “That seems really unfair and discriminatory. But then, it is her project.”

“Did you get a sense Piper was doing that?” Lauren asked.

“Not really, no. But if she was deliberately leaving people off my list, I guess I wouldn’t know.”

“Did she ever bring up anyone named Jean?”

Kelsey thought for a moment. “Doesn’t ring a bell. Why?”

“Oh, just wondering,” Lauren said airily, though she was disappointed. This lead was going nowhere.

Kelsey picked at an invisible string on her jacket. “Before the incident, we kept scheduling an interview with Piper, but she’s brushed us off. Sure, we’ve had general meetings, but I know very little about her personal life, what she’s about, her parenting philosophy—I thought she’d be more involved. It’s so strange, considering . . .”