“She did, at least according to her statement. No dice. Evelyn didn’t want to be found. I think Crystal was afraid if she went to DCFS with Oliver, they’d put him in the system. Or give him back to Evelyn if they located her. Same fear as you.”

“So what? She decided to keep the baby a secret until she realized he was colicky and then made the swap? That doesn’t make sense.”

“It’s an odd case, to be sure.” He clears his throat again and waits for more questions.

“But where does DCFS come in?” I ask. “Why were they listed on Oliver’s electronic medical records?”

“Evelyn talked about giving the baby up for adoption. She had no help, no family other than Paul, who’d just died. Paul and Evelyn’s parents died when they were young, which is why Paul was so protective over her. A damned cursed family, if I’ve ever seen one,” he mutters under his breath. “As far as the baby and Evelyn, DCFS is sometimes brought in with underage cases.”

“Underage?”

“Evelyn was only seventeen.”

I close my eyes and shake my head. “Seventeen? Jesus.” I ransack my brain for clues of a baby in Crystal’s life, but there are none. “Crystal never mentioned a baby. Not once.” I think of Savi. “There’s no way a ten-year-old could hide something like that. They’re natural truth tellers.”

“I think Crystal was worried about the legal ramifications of having a baby she had not reported. The longer she went, the more fearful she got. She made it very clear to Savi not to tell anyone, or she could get in big trouble. Savi just wanted to make her mother happy. You know how literal kids are.”

“What about Pam?”

“The contract.”

Right. The contract. The new information percolates in my brain but doesn’t answer the big question: “But why did she swap Jackson?”

The chief sighs once again, and I imagine him ripping off tiny spectacles from bloodshot eyes. “That we don’t know. Oliver is extremely colicky, so that’s one possibility. Maybe Oliver reminds Crystal of Paul. Maybe she never wanted to be a mom again. Who knows?” His weight shifts. He groans and sits in the chair opposite mine. “Could she have been jealous of you or your baby? Did she ever say anything about how good Jackson was, insist on holding him? Things like that?”

Chills barb my skin. “She doesn’t like babies. She had severe postpartum after Savi was born. Hardly had anything to do with her the first year. She definitely didn’t take any interest in Jackson.” Something still doesn’t add up. Unless Crystal is the best actress in the world, then I totally misjudged her and our friendship. Jackson lets out a tiny cry and I snuggle and rock him. “What happens now?”