We parked in the driveway behind a new BMW and I noticed a woman standing at the front door. As I climbed out of Natty’s low Camaro, I realized the woman was much younger than I thought she’d be, probably not yet twenty-five. Her loose blond hair, blowing in the breeze, made her look like the girl next door. The beautiful one. Her face lit up as soon as she saw Natty. She wore jeans and a bulky sweater and those crazy boots younger women tended to wear, the ones with the name like “Neanderthal.”

Natty introduced us and she had good manners, smiling as she shook my hand and looked me in the eye. She said, “Thank you for helping us. The Newburgh police have been polite, but they showed no real interest in Pete’s murder.”

I hadn’t realized that Natty had told her I was taking the case. I liked her direct approach.

She served us iced tea as we sat on the couch. I couldn’t help but glance around at her collection of the Peanuts characters in all shapes and forms, from ceramic to stuffed. The place had a certain childlike warmth to it that I was sure came from her. Even though they didn’t have any kids, there were stuffed animals lying around on chairs and her beagle lay quietly in the corner, wearing a homemade knitted sweater.

Katie noticed my interest in the surroundings and said, “I use the toys for my job. I work with kids and they like to play with stuffed animals.”

She sat down on a plush chair across from me, and for the first time I noticed her bloodshot eyes. She had been crying. Maybe it was a cumulative effect from the last few days. I felt her sense of loss.

It made me think how easy it is to write off shootings reported on the news. No matter who was killed—a drug dealer, a gang member, or some poor guy walking down the street who was hit by a stray bullet—they were someone’s husband or child.

Katie said, “A detective talked to me on Saturday, but I could tell he was just going through the motions. I’m not stupid, I knew Pete was involved in some shady business, but we had an understanding. I didn’t ask as long as he was careful. He also promised me he never hurt anyone. I know that our relationship wasn’t perfect, but anything you could do to help find out who killed Pete would mean the world to me.”

I said, “I’ll do what I can, but right now there are absolutely no leads. I was hoping you might be able to tell me something about the night he was shot.”