Andi cleared a catch from her throat and sat up straight in her seat, the moment of connection slipping away. “I can’t tell you what to do, but know that if you quit, it will come with a price.”

“I can’t even think straight right now. I feel like I’m at the end of my rope.”

“You have a lot more rope than you think, Lila. If only you—” Andi stopped mid-thought, paused for a long moment as if struck by something profound, and then said, “What size shoe do you wear?”

Lila looked up, confused.

“About a six, maybe?”

“Yeah, six. Why?”

“Have you ever been to Interstate State Park up by Taylor’s Falls?”

“No, but—”

“What are you doing tomorrow?”

“It’s Saturday.”

“My question stands.”

“Nothing.”

“Then meet me at the information center there, and wear something athletic. We’re going rock climbing.”

Chapter 42

Matty Lopez had earned undergraduate degrees in both accounting and computer science before turning his eye toward law enforcement. He had a gift for numbers and research, which made him a perfect fit for Niki Vang, who thrived in the open air of the crime scene. She sometimes felt guilty letting him do so much of the background work, but he kept reminding her that he enjoyed that part of the chase, so she left him to it. As they drove out to visit Gavin’s mother for a second interview, Matty brought Niki up to speed on Amy Spencer.

The daughter of a mechanic from Mountain Iron, a small mining town in the heart of the iron range, Amy had managed to stay out of trouble for most of her life, with only a single arrest for underage consumption at the age of eighteen—no conviction.

But then, at twenty-two, she’d shown up in the Twin Cities when she was questioned in a case of aggravated robbery. According to the victim, Amy came on to him in a bar. After several drinks with this very attractive young woman, he’d followed her out to her car. When they got there, a man with a knife stepped out of the shadows, stole the victim’s wallet, and ran off. The victim, an out-of-town businessman, told officers that Amy didn’t appear to be spooked by the attack, and he’d thought it suspicious that the thief didn’t take her purse. No charges were filed.

Three years later, Amy married David Spencer, a man who owned a small catering business in South Saint Paul. Gavin was born four months after the wedding.

Over the course of their two-year marriage, police visited the home of David and Amy Spencer on three occasions, disorderly conduct calls that came in from neighbors tired of the yelling and screaming. No charges were ever filed. David filed for divorce, but before the process played out, he died in a motorcycle accident. A year later, Amy shuttered the failing catering business and went to work as a hostess at the Minneapolis Club.

“That’s where she met Richard Balentine,” Matty said. “He was a member there.”