Rowley straightened. “Nope, I’d wait for the ME’s findings. She could have been sleepwalking, tripped over a log and banged her head for all I know.” He eyeballed him. “When did you last see Lindy?”
“Hmm, not sure, some of
the girls came by at lunchtime before spring break to say goodbye.” Lancaster stared into the distance and smiled as if to himself. “The guys call them my fan club.”
“Yeah? Many of them come by alone?” Rowley cleared his throat. “Have you dated any of them?”
“Nah, they’re just kids.” Lancaster snorted. “It’s been the same since I injured my knee. The older women see me as a liability, figure I can’t make the big bucks any longer, but the kids, they see me as a football star and a celebrity.”
“I guess they would.” Rowley frowned. “Have you seen any strangers hanging around the school, or hereabouts?”
“People are coming and going all the time.” Lancaster glanced at his crew, who were standing around gawking at them. “Will this take much longer?”
“No, I have a couple more questions.” Rowley made a few notes. “Can you account for your whereabouts on Sunday night?”
“Sunday? Yeah, I was with one of my girlfriends, Angela Pike. She’s one of the teachers here, lives out on Pine, number seven.”
Pine Road ran parallel to Stanton Road and was around one mile from the Rosens’ ranch. The time Lancaster was at his girlfriend’s home was critical. Rowley noted her name and address, and then lifted his attention back to Lancaster. “What time?”
“We had dinner at the Cattleman’s Hotel, left there around nine, I guess.” Lancaster’s forehead creased into a frown. “I spent the night with her but left early to get ready for work. She’ll be home now if you’re planning on checking out my story.”
Rowley closed his notebook. “Okay, that’s all for now, thank you for your cooperation.” He turned and walked away with Walters.
“I figure we need to hunt down Angela Pike and see what she has to say.” Walters looked grim-faced. “He was in the area at the time Lindy went missing.”
Rowley made his way back to his cruiser. “Yeah, he ticks a few of the boxes. In the area and he knew Lindy. She likely would’ve trusted him. We’ll go see if Miss Pike is at home.” He pulled open the car door, slid behind the wheel and then picked up the radio mic. “I’ll call in and let the sheriff know where we’re heading.”
He listened with interest as the sheriff gave him the details of the Kittredge interview. “He doesn’t remember her name? What a sleaze.”
“How close are you to the Triple Z?”
Rowley cleared his throat. “Not far. We could swing past there, and then go see Angela Pike on Pine.”
“Yeah, it would save you driving out there in the morning. And I’ll text you the address of Sean Packer. I want you to speak to his wife and get a statement from her confirming her husband was at home on Sunday night. He lives closer to town, so you can swing by there on the way back to the office.”
“Roger that.” Rowley disconnected and turned to Walters. “Looks like we’re heading out to the Triple Z, to find a mystery woman who sleeps around.” He scratched his cheek and stared into nothing, thinking. “I can’t see any woman offering up that kind of information. Any ideas?”
“Yeah, I figure I’ll leave the questioning to you.” Walters snorted a laugh. “Oh boy, this is gonna be fun.”
Twenty
Jenna was having one of those days that seemed to drag on forever and was virtually running on caffeine. She eyed the steaming cup of coffee on her desk with apprehension. Although exhausted in mind and body, the explosion had left her feeling as if a truck had run her over and she doubted she’d sleep again tonight. At times like these, she wondered why she’d gone into law enforcement in the first place, then she glanced up at the crime scene photos of Lindy Rosen and felt ashamed. The girl’s eyes held a plea for help. She took a long drink of her coffee. “Whatever it takes, Lindy, I’ll bring your killer to justice.”
She picked up her phone and called Wolfe. He’d promised the autopsy report by five and he never let her down. “When can I expect your report on Lindy Rosen?”
“If you drop by in the morning, I’ll have a preliminary report.”
Jenna drummed her fingernails on the desk. “It’s taking longer than usual. Any problems?”
“I’ve run into a few complications.” Wolfe sighed. He sounded tired as well. “First up, the Rosens didn’t want me to perform a post. I had to explain that in homicide cases, it was up to my discretion and I didn’t need their permission. I figure the idea of someone messing with their child was too much to bear.”
“I can’t imagine anything worse than losing a child.” Jenna glanced back at the image of Lindy. “I’m sure you explained the process.”
“I did and Emily was very helpful. She sat Mrs. Rosen down, gave her a drink and explained she would be there with Lindy during the examination. It made it a bit easier on her.” Wolfe cleared his throat. “The autopsy isn’t why I’m waiting to report my findings – yes, it was a homicide, but you already know that. I wanted to check my readings and make sure the majority of forensic tests are completed before I make my assessment.”
Jenna frowned. “That’s unusual, what’s causing a problem?”
“Time of death.” Wolfe sounded distracted. “The facts presented to me don’t add up to the timeline we have of what we believe happened to her. I’ll go through everything again and explain in the morning in detail. Right this moment, nothing is making sense.”