“GOOD IDEA PICKING a hotel within walking distance of the college,” Abby said as she and Luke made their way across the hotel parking lot.

“You’ll have to thank Faye for that,” he said. “It was her call.”

She nodded and started to say something but stopped.

A stray thought crossed Luke’s mind, that Abby was uncomfortable working with Faye. No, he told himself, that can’t be it. He ignored the thought and concentrated on the job at hand.

He liked working with Woody, but right now he wanted to hear Abby’s insights on the case. Abby had a keen mind and was a good, thorough investigator. He wanted to solve this case, and circumstances found him happy that the man had decided to stay in only because Luke would be able to listen and watch her process things up close and personal.

Cal Poly was a large, sprawling campus on the north side of San Luis Obispo. They had with them a map of the area, with the pertinent locations marked by the original investigators. Ciara had attended a party at a fraternity the night she disappeared, so they headed to the address of the fraternity to retrace the steps she took back to her apartment.

It was dusk now, but mild and a truly beautiful evening, warm for late January and nice. A surprise impulse to reach out and grasp Abby’s hand stymied Luke for an instant, and he was glad when her voice broke his train of thought.

“So what was Maddie’s take on you being away from home on this case?” she asked.

“She was okay with it, after I assured her I would not miss her party, and that no earthquake was going to flatten the house.”

“Oh, good play, Dad.” She laughed, and Luke smiled.

“That movie was something, wasn’t it?” she asked. “I could feel the ground shaking even after we left the theater.”

They’d crossed the main streets and were on the southern edge of the campus now, an area crowded with student housing, fraternities, and apartment complexes. Ciara had rented at the Foothill Garden Apartments, about a block and a half away from the fraternity.

“It was definitely a great disaster film. I almost regretted taking Maddie, but as it was, we had a talk about whose palm we’re in.”

“Ah.” Abby looked at him, eyes dancing. “Wise man. I want to have kids someday, but I have to admit when I see how much there is in this world to be afraid of . . .” Her voice trailed off.

“You know that we’re safe in God’s hands. Children are a gift, and I cherish my gift of Maddie.”

Abby stopped, the brightness fading from her eyes and seriousness dropping like a curtain over her features. Luke held her gaze and his breath, fighting the urge to pull her close.

“I believe that, and I know it,” she said. “But look at the two of us. We both know how painful life can be in this fallen world for kids, even being safe in God’s hand. I lost my parents and Maddie lost her mother.”

Nodding, Luke said, “Faith is hard sometimes —I don’t deny that. But what keeps me sane is the knowledge that even though I might not have all the answers, God does.”

Abby looked away. When she turned back, a half smile played on her lips. “Everything works together for good?”

“‘For those who are called according to his purpose,’” Luke finished the verse from the book of Romans. “I guess we need to keep doing what we’re doing, fighting the good fight, catching the bad guys.”

“Works for me,” she said with a tilt of her head. She pointed in the direction the map indicated and stepped forward. “Let’s try to finish this walk-through before it gets dark.”

Luke fell into step with her, feeling a comradeship, warm and strong, and praying for wisdom and insight into this fascinating and capable woman.

When they reached the fraternity, they stopped and looked around.

“It’s dense here,” Luke said. “If something happened to Ciara here in the street or on the sidewalk, someone would have seen or heard something.”

“I agree.” Abby looked all around. “And there were probably a hundred partygoers. A lot of people did say they saw her leaving with her boyfriend.”

Luke nodded. “She crossed the street with him and headed for her apartment . . .”

Abby finished for him, “Where Considine says he left her and then went straight home. His mother corroborated his story. That information made the cops believe he did not have the time to kill her and dump her body.”

“Even if he were responsible for her death,” Luke said, “it didn’t happen at the party. I doubt he would have done anything with all the people in attendance at the party watching.”

“True,” Abby said as they checked the map, following the path that Chaz had told the police he’d walked with Ciara back to her apartment. “Let’s find the apartment.”

They crossed the street to the Foothill Garden Apartments, a large complex that looked to Luke like dorms or public housing. Adjacent and just past the complex, there were a lot of trees, hidden places where a predator could lurk.

“You’ve been quiet,” Luke said after he and Abby had walked wherever they could around the complex.

“I’m wondering what a college groundskeeper would be doing over here.”

“Good question. On his way home from work?”

“As I recall, he took care of the pool.” She considered the map again. “That’s this way, west of here. And he should have been off work and home long before the frat party started.”

Luke stepped close and looked where she was concentrating. “Investigators would have asked him if he had business near the apartment complex.”

Abby frowned. “Yeah, they should have, and he could have lied. I read somewhere that they believed he probably stalked her, but they had no proof of that.”

“His background would make that believable, the background he lied about.”

“It would have convinced me,” Abby said. “Lying about something like sexual battery definitely moved the spotlight to him, that’s for sure.”

“We need to talk to him, get a feel for his veracity.”

“Or lack thereof.” Abby looked at him and smiled. “Maybe we can try Harkin tomorrow after we talk to Considine. You ready for pizza?”

“You bet. Too dark to see much more now anyway.” He saw something in her eyes that intrigued him. “You think of something you might want to share?”

She looked away and did a circle on the sidewalk. “The latest case review made a note that not much has changed here, no new buildings. So we’re seeing pretty much what they saw originally. Look around at how close everything is. Those first investigators would have to be blind to miss this. A stranger grabbing Ciara . . . well, I’d scream if a stranger grabbed me.”

“People would have heard. Even Chaz said that she wasn’t intoxicated.”

“Right. I’d bet money that she knew the person who killed her. If Chaz wasn’t the guy, there’s another suspect we have to find.”