she could play with but they’re up in the attic,’ said Alex.
‘You’ve got a TV, haven’t you?’ Marisol asked bluntly.
Alex nodded and went into the living room, turning on the TV and the lights.
Marisol settled her daughter on the sofa under a wool throw. ‘OK,’ she said. ‘You watch for a while. Mommy won’t be long.’
Iris nodded obediently and Marisol followed Alex. ‘Any mother who says she doesn’t use the TV for a babysitter is a liar.’
‘I’m sure that’s true,’ said Alex. As she kicked off her shoes and padded back to the refrigerator in her bare feet, she explained to Marisol her thoughts about the receipt.
‘I figured that if the receipt was still in Dory’s coat pocket, the time and date on it might be just what we need to corroborate her story.’
‘What did you do?’ Marisol asked, frowning.
Alex told her about her trip to the store at Back Bay station, and then to the house where Dory grew up. She offered Marisol a bottle of beer from the refrigerator but Marisol declined it. ‘I’m driving,’ she said. ‘Precious cargo.’
Alex poured herself a glass of wine and indicated that they could sit down at the kitchen table.
‘Well,’ she said, ‘I went to the Colsons’ apartment and, believe it or not, I found the coat, still hanging in the foyer.’
Marisol groaned and clapped a hand over her eyes. ‘Tell me you didn’t take the receipt.’
Alex took a sip of wine and sat back, affronted. ‘What’s the matter with you? That’s what I went there for.’
Marisol shook her head. ‘Oh, no.’
‘Well, given your reaction, I guess you’ll be glad to know that I never got the chance. I don’t even know if it was in the coat,’ Alex admitted. ‘Her mother came home and basically kicked me out of the house.’
‘You told her mother what you were looking for?’ she asked anxiously.
‘I considered it,’ said Alex. ‘But I decided against it.’
Marisol exhaled noisily. ‘Whew. Good,’ she said. ‘You should have asked me before you did something like that.’
‘I didn’t think I needed your permission.’
Marisol waved her hands as if to dismiss the subject. ‘Anyway, it’s all right. Everything is all right.’
Alex felt irritated by this response. ‘Now it’s all right?’ she demanded. ‘I don’t understand. I didn’t get the receipt. I doubt that Elaine Colson will let me back in that house again. I thought it was a good idea so I did it. Now I’m not so sure.’
‘It was a good idea. It was a great idea,’ said Marisol. ‘It’s just that we can’t be the ones who come up with this receipt. The police have to do that. Otherwise, it’s considered contaminated. They won’t let us use it as evidence for the appeal.’
‘Oh,’ said Alex, thinking how close she had come to stuffing the contents of Dory’s coat pockets into her handbag. ‘Of course. I didn’t realize.’
‘No harm done,’ said Marisol. ‘We know the coat is there. That’s the important thing. We’ll see about getting a search warrant for it.’
‘The police would do that?’ Alex asked. ‘Search Elaine’s house?’
‘No. But I can probably obtain a warrant for that particular item.’
‘If that receipt is in there, will it prove that Dory didn’t kill her sister?’
‘Not exactly,’ said Marisol. ‘She could have gone out for a walk, come home and killed her sister then. After all, it was Dory who found the body. Dory who called nine-one-one.’
Alex frowned at the law student. ‘I’m confused. Do you believe her or don’t you?’
Marisol held up her palms. ‘I’m just saying what a judge might say.’
‘Then why are we bothering? If the receipt doesn’t confirm her story, it doesn’t even matter.’
‘Oh, it matters,’ said Marisol. ‘It could be a game changer. With the receipt, we can gauge how long it would have taken Dory to walk home. And we know what time she called nine-one-one. That receipt may prove convincing evidence that she did not have sufficient time to commit this crime.’
‘Really?’ asked Alex, suddenly hopeful again.
‘If, as you suspect, it’s still in her coat pocket. Well, I shouldn’t get ahead of myself. We don’t actually have it yet.’
‘No, right,’ said Alex, sipping her wine. For a moment, they were both silent, lost in thought. ‘There was something else,’ said Alex.
Marisol waited, her eyebrows raised.
‘It turns out that Dory spent some time in a juvenile facility. Apparently, she . . . injured a girl with a razor blade at school. Her record was expunged.’
Marisol paled slightly. ‘You’re sure about this?’
‘You didn’t know, did you?’