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“Do you all still live in Leavenworth?”
“Ew, no,” Juliette says. She hesitates, looks at Ruby, and adds, “You know what I mean. You had to stay since your mom’s here for the baby.”
Ruby’s face reddens, though it’s hard to tell if it’s from anger, embarrassment, or simply the heat.
“You’re back for the reunion?” Poppy asks Juliette.
“If you want to call it that. More like beers at Little Bar. But yeah, the five-year.”
“Other than you three, was Alison close with anyone?”
“Other than Ryan?” Juliette asks.
“Yeah.”
They all think about this.
“No,” Juliette says. “And to be totally honest about it, she wasn’t even that close with us.”
“Juliette,” Chrissy says, with a scolding edge.
“What? It’s true. She didn’t have time for us. Ryan was her world. She spent most of her time with him and she didn’t use social media, so it was hard to stay connected.”
“I noticed she didn’t use social. Why was that?” Poppy asks.
Juliette shrugs. “She said it was fake and just makes you sad.”
Ali was onto something, Poppy thinks, but doesn’t say so.
“Do you have any photos of Ali? I’m having a hard time finding any other than the one from the viral video.”
They all shake their heads. “Ali was, like, phobic about having her picture taken,” Juliette says. “Like she had body dysmorphia or whatever they call it. We all went to prom as a group and she wouldn’t even do group pics with us.”
“Do you know if Ali had a favorite book or a piece of writing that meant something to her?” This is the question Poppy’s been holding back. She’s learned that it’s best during an interview not to go in too hot. Build some rapport, get a feel for the interviewee, then drill down on what you really care about at the end.
The three shake their heads.
Disappointed, Poppy presses on: “If you were me, is there anything you’d want to know about Ali that you’ve never told the police? I know it’s hard, but it’s important.”
They all shake their heads again. It reminds Poppy of a tennis match, heads going back and forth in tandem. But this time she notices a slight hesitation in Ruby.
“You should come tonight,” Juliette says.
“Come where?” Poppy says.
“To Little Bar.”
“At least tell your brother to stop by,” Juliette adds with a wink.
“I think he’s planning on it,” Poppy says. “Thanks for your help. If you think of anything else, I hope you’ll reach out.” She hands each of them one of her new business cards.
Juliette examines it with an amused look on her face, then she and Chrissy give cheek kisses to Ruby. “See you tonight,” Juliette says. “Bring your A game, Ruby. Shots like the old days.”
Ruby doesn’t reply as her friends saunter off. She again looks embarrassed.
Poppy walks with her to the parking lot. It’s a silent walk, and Poppy doesn’t try to fill the void. She senses that Ruby wants to tell her something. So she waits.
When they reach Ruby’s car—a Nissan with a car seat in back—Poppy finally says, “Congratulations on the baby.”