“No, she didn’t.” Judith was attractive in a girl-next-door sort of way, with thick-lashed green eyes and a trim figure. She wore loose-fitting blue jeans and a cable knit sweater. “That’s why I agreed to see you. I want the man who murdered my friend brought to justice.”

Ellie leaned over and set her mug on a coaster on the coffee table. “If you really want to help us, you’ll have to be completely honest. I can promise that anything you say will not be repeated unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

Kade watched Judith’s expression, caught a look of understanding pass between the two women.

“I’ll tell you as much as I can,” Judith said. “Is there something specific you wanted to know?”

Ellie’s gaze didn’t waver. “Eight years ago, Kade’s wife, Heather, was also murdered. The circumstances of her death were very similar to what happened to Barbara. Enough so that the police suspect the crime may have been committed by the same man. Kade and I believe that man may have met Barbara, as well as Heather, somewhere in Vail.”

Judith’s eyes widened. “Are you sure?”

“We can’t be certain,” Ellie said. “At least not yet. But it’s a possibility we’re looking into.”

Judith took a sip of her coffee, cradled the mug in her hands. She took a shaky breath. “I tried to warn her. I worried every time she went out by herself. Barbara wouldn’t listen.”

“What happened?” Ellie asked.

“Bryan was always busy, and Barbara was lonely. She called, asked if she could come up. It wasn’t unusual. She was bored, she said. She just wanted to have some fun. Of course I told her yes. We’d known each other for years.”

“When was this?” Kade asked.

“The last time she came up was the weekend before she disappeared. Barbara arrived late Friday afternoon. I wasn’t feeling very well, so she went out for a drink by herself.” Judith looked at Kade and fell silent.

Ellie leaned over and touched her hand. “Barbara went looking for company, right? She went out to meet a man.”

Judith’s eyes filled with tears she dashed away. “It wasn’t the first time. She and Bryan came up a few times during the ski season when Thomas was here. The four of us always had a good time. But on the weekends when my husband had to work, sometimes Barb would come up by herself. She’d go out alone, and she wouldn’t come home till morning. I didn’t approve. It wasn’t something I would ever do. But I knew she was lonely, and she was my friend.”

Kade’s adrenaline was pumping, the story all too familiar. “So she met a man that Friday night and went home with him,” Kade said.