“Have they all moved away?” Gigi asked, prepared to be completely disappointed.
“No. Not all of them.” He pulled out his phone and started reading off a list of names. A few of them had disappeared completely, and the PIs were still tracking them down. But others were still in town, and while they remembered Carolyn, no one had anything interesting to say. “There are a couple I think we should go see and talk to in person.”
“Both of us?” Gigi asked.
“Yeah. We could go and act like we’re there for a visit, make it more casual instead of an interrogation. What do you think?”
“Who are we going to talk to?” she asked, curious about who he thought might have some answers.
“Liza Crane, your old neighbor, and Justin Bastille, the manager of the café. And maybe her old boss, Ricky Kamp.”
“Kamp!” Gigi exclaimed. “That’s right. I used to call him Kamper when I was younger. You really think he knows something?”
Sebastian shrugged. “The PI said he seemed like he was holding something back. No real lead, just a hunch. Justin remembers her well and was really talkative. If we could get more memories out of him, he might inadvertently know something. It turns out they went out on a few dates. At least according to him anyway.”
“And Liza? Does she still live next door?” Gigi smiled as she thought of the woman. She’d always been kind to Gigi and her mother.
Sebastian’s smile vanished, and he ran a hand through his hair. “She does live next door, but her memory is a little iffy. Anything we get from her will be unreliable at this stage, but it might be worth checking out. She also had a lot to say about your mother. It seems as if the two were close.”
“I don’t know about close, but Mom did rely on her a lot.” Gigi frowned. “I can’t imagine Liza keeping anything from the police though. She would’ve told them anything she knew back then. I’m sure of it.”
“Not if she was trying to protect your mother,” Sebastian said gently.
Her gaze snapped back to his. “Are you implying what I think you are? That my mother really did run off and let me think the worst?”
“Whoa,” he said, holding his hands up in a surrender motion. “I’m not implying anything. I don’t think she left you. But if there is one thing I’ve learned over my years of working with PIs it’s to never rule anything out. We have a much better chance of figuring out the truth if we leave all options on the table. Liza clearly loved you and your mother. I think we should talk to her and see what she says. There’s a good chance she’s not remembering things correctly. Or if she was covering for Carolyn, maybe she’ll let something slip that will help us. All we can do is try.”
Gigi chewed on her bottom lip. She hated the idea of entertaining the thought that her mother had left her intentionally. As long as she lived, Gigi would never believe that she walked away just like her father had all those years ago. But Sebastian was right. They needed to talk to Liza just to see what she had to say even if she had all the details mixed up. Besides, Gigi loved Liza. It would be great to see her again. “All right. I’ll do it. When do you want to go?”
“I’m pretty much free for the next few weeks, so whenever your back is better, we can make the drive down there.”
“It will just be a few days,” Gigi said confidently. “My potions will fix me right up.”
“Really?” he asked, sounding impressed. “If it works that well, hook me up with a bottle, will you? I can always use something on hand when I pull a muscle.”
“Sure.” She smiled at him, pleased he was interested. Her potions weren’t something she’d shared with a lot of people yet. It would be nice to get his opinion. It hit her then that she was certain that she trusted Sebastian completely. If she was willing to share her potions with him, she was already a goner. Because that was one thing that James had never had a hand in. Her gardens and her potions. They were too important to her. She’d never been willing to let him tear her down with some biting comment, or worse, try to force her to go into production with everything. He’d have