Page 48 of Waylaid in Whittier

“Alex Smith, the gold mining show’s producer, lives in LA but made a comment about having a cabin here in Whittier,” Millie said. “How interesting.”

“I guess it would explain him wanting to produce a show about gold mining in this area,” Danielle said.

“True. Let’s look at some others.” Millie moved on to the next person in the group, another local but without a lot of background information available.

Ditto for the next person and the next.

They reached Wanda’s name. Millie already knew some information about the woman, including where she lived. Nothing hit her radar. “She doesn’t have a lot of information out there.”

“Try social media,” Danielle suggested.

“Good idea.” Millie pulled up a popular social media site and typed Wanda’s name into the search bar. Her profile appeared. She listed a few friends and ticked the box, stating she was single.

The profile included several snapshots. Standing with a group of women in front of what Millie recognized as her apartment building. A photo of Wanda beaming and holding a whopper of a salmon caught her eye. “She looks like an outdoor gal.”

“I was thinking the same thing. You said you talked to Wanda’s neighbor. She didn’t seem to think there was anyone who might have it in for her?”

“Nope. Although she mentioned Alex the producer and Carter, the co-producer had both visited Wanda at her apartment recently,” Millie said. “She didn’t strike me as being thrilled with her having people coming and going.”

“Maybe it was her,” Danielle said.

“Her the neighbor lady?” Millie arched her eyebrow. “She looks like she’s in her eighties.”

“You don’t think she would be strong enough to whack Wanda in the head?”

“I suppose it’s possible. I don’t think it was her. We need motive. Attacking your neighbor for having visitors isn’t a motive.”

“I dunno. I’ve seen shows about feuding neighbors. To me, it would depend on how annoying Wanda may have been.”

“We’ll put her on the list of potential suspects, but I’m almost certain it wasn’t the no-name neighbor lady.” Millie finished working her way to the bottom, reaching Carter Morley last. She clicked on his profile and found, like Alex, he had ties to Whittier.

Danielle peered over her shoulder. “He’s a hottie.”

“He’s a nice looking guy, clean cut and polite,” Millie said. “I thought he was from somewhere else, but it appears he’s also a local. No doubt he’s interested in gold mining.”

“I think it would be one of those things where, if you found a nugget, it would get in your blood. Brody said the dig site Elvira is staking a claim to…”

“Mount Baldie.”

“Mount Baldie is in the middle of nowhere.”

“I haven’t made it there yet, but based on the pictures I’ve seen, I wouldn’t be surprised.” Millie pivoted. “Elvira is packing up and plans to sail south with us.”

“You mentioned that before. She’s leaving her promising site behind? I would think she would settle in for the winter.”

“Elvira said the roads will be impassable. Plus, she claims even though Brody, Cat and Annette noticed someone digging around in the general vicinity, she doesn’t seem to think anyone will find her exact spot.”

“Unless they followed her.”

“I suppose it’s possible. She’s coming back here next spring.Ifshe’s allowed to leave Alaska. It all hinges on clearing her name.” Millie scrolled through the screen, noticing several stories about the Gold Grade Mining Group and television series.

The women skimmed through each, searching for clues. Nothing struck Millie as being significant. “I’m stumped. Anyone on this list could have been behind Wanda’s attack, but why her?”

“If we can figure out the why, we can start narrowing it down.” Danielle reached for the list. “Some event triggered Wanda’s attack. Refresh my memory. What were Wanda and Elvira talking about right before they argued?”

Millie repeated what she remembered about the confrontation at the bar. “Wanda knew about Mount Baldie. She point-blank asked Elvira if she found something. Elvira accused her of spying on her and told her to watch her back. They said a few more unpleasant things to each other and Wanda left.”

“She argued with Elvira and walked right out the door.”

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