Romantic Tie Alleged in Killing : Crime: Authorities say a woman accused in a stabbing and kidnaping was involved with the victim’s husband.

A woman arrested in the stabbing death of an East Los Angeles woman and the kidnaping of two of her children was romantically involved with the victim’s husband, authorities said Wednesday.

Rose Duvall, 20, who was arrested Tuesday night at her Bellflower apartment, later led Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies to where she had abandoned the victim’s van. There they found 18-month-old Joshua Lopez and his 4-year-old brother, Orlando, frightened but unharmed.

“We recovered the van in Lynwood, about 10 miles from Bellflower,” Sgt. Joe Guzman said. “The kids were just sitting in the back of the van.”

Duvall agreed to take officers to the van after “we told her it would be her responsibility if something happened to those kids,” Guzman said.

Carol Ann Lopez, 32, died of multiple stab wounds Tuesday afternoon at her home in the 700 block of Vancouver Avenue, where she had been living with her children since separating from her husband, Lester Lopez, about two months ago, authorities said.

Lopez, an RTD bus driver, declined to discuss the incident with reporters except to say “the kids are fine and taking it pretty well.”

Neighbors, however, recalled seeing a slender, young woman with dark brown hair angrily hustle the victim’s children into the van about 2:30 p.m. Tuesday.

“I saw a young woman yell at the kids to ‘Get in the van!’ ” recalled one neighbor, shaking his head sadly. “Those poor kids must have seen everything.”

An older son found his mother’s body when he arrived home from school. Neighbor Darlene Glamuzina said the boy shouted: “Something’s wrong with my mom!”

“I called 911 and waited outside for police to arrive,” she said.

Sheriff’s officers found Duvall after speaking to neighbors and friends on the tidy Eastside street of 50-year-old stucco homes, authorities said. Duvall directed the officers to the 2500 block of Fernwood Avenue in Lynwood, where she said the children could be found sleeping in the van in an industrial park.

Irene Bernal, 31, a neighbor of the dead woman, said Lopez confided to her that the couple had separated because of marital difficulties. “But she prayed every night that he would come back.”

Detective Dale Christansen said Lester Lopez and Duvall had been living together in the Bellflower apartment along with Duvall’s 20-month-old son.