As Val waited for Zoe to finish up her testing on Gabrielle’s teeth, she received a phone call from Gavin.

“Hey, have you had a chance to follow up with Scott Payne yet?” she asked.

“Things have been tumbling so fast with this case that I haven’t had a chance yet,” Gavin said. “Here’s the latest. According to birth records, Ingrid Gruber, the maid to Melinda Holbright’s family, the one who witnessed Melinda and Bethany running from the Morgans’ house the day the twins died… well she did have a daughter. Her name was not Jennifer, but Johanna.” Val could hear papers shuffling in the background. “Last name on the birth certificate is Manning, after the baby’s father.”

Val remembered that Jennifer’s maiden name was Manning. “That’s too close to be a coincidence,” Val said.

“It’s not a coincidence at all,” Gavin said. “That’s because Jennifer Ballard’s first name was originally Johanna. She changed it when she turned eighteen. Jennifer Ballard is Ingrid Gruber’s daughter. We’re questioning her at noon today. Would you like to watch?”

Gavin made sure to get a subpoena to question Jennifer Ballard. He didn’t have to use it. She came into police headquarters willingly. Right now, he and Warren sat with her in the interrogation room. Val stood behind two-way glass, observing everything.

“Thank you for coming in, Mrs. Ballard. We’d like to ask you some more questions about Gabrielle Morgan and a couple of her friends if that would be okay.”

She nodded.

“I do need to remind you that it’s your right to have counsel with you.” Gavin didn’t need to go through the full Miranda Rights with Jennifer since she wasn’t being questioned as a suspect. He simply wanted to know her connection to Gabrielle. Depending on how this all went, Jennifer may shut down and declare her right to an attorney. Gavin would have to wait and see.

“I have nothing to hide because I’ve done nothing wrong,” she said plainly. A lot of suspects think that forthcoming people project lack of guilt. Heaven help the truly innocent person because every investigator thinks you’re hiding something, whatever your tactic.

“You were born Johanna Manning, not Jennifer?”

“Yes. I changed my name when I turned eighteen.”

“Why?”

“My mother was accused of a lot of things with the Morgan scandal. It was the best way to distance myself from that.”

“What kind of things was she accused of?” Though Gavin already knew the answer he wanted to hear Jennifer’s interpretation of it.

“That she was a crazy drug and alcohol addict who saw nothing the day the Morgans’ children drowned.”

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Ballard, that must have been awful. How then, did you come to live right next door to Gabrielle Morgan, the person at the center of that scandal?” Gavin said.