Haunting Whispers (3 page)

“You’re saying someone knocked her out and dragged her toward the back of the building?”

“I’m only telling you what I see. It’s your job to draw conclusions. Look at these odd shoe prints.”

Rae squatted beside him. “What do you mean?”

“They’re consistent with a shoe size but not with any sole material I’ve encountered. It’s almost like they were covered with fabric. See the wrinkles in the print? That doesn’t happen with hard-soled shoes.”

Disguising shoe prints indicated planning and intent, not a spontaneous or last-minute act. Was Audrey the intended victim or simply a convenient target? Still, it was a neighborhood known for frequent drug crimes and assaults. The shoe prints could be totally unrelated. She would talk with Audrey again tomorrow and maybe she could shed some light on the details. Perhaps she didn’t remember everything yet, or was embarrassed.

Crime victims often used a variety of justifications to avoid facing the truth. Audrey Everhart didn’t seem like that type. With a wave of nostalgia Rae realized she’d been wrong about a woman she thought she knew a lot better than Audrey. She turned her attention from a puzzle she hadn’t deciphered in eight months and focused on a more solvable one—at least she hoped it would be.

“Thanks, Trev. Would you make a cast of the shoe print for me?”

While Trevor poured the casting agent into a bucket and mixed it to the ideal consistency, he kept glancing at her as if he had something to say.

She was too tired to play guessing games. “What? You’re dying to tell me.”

“Did you hear Ken Whitt is retiring?”

Rae wasn’t in the mood for small talk, but Trevor was making a point. He didn’t engage in idle gossip. “Yeah, he’s in my unit.”

“The captain of detectives is reassigning a serial of his—The Whisperer Case.” Trevor lowered his voice at the end for effect. “You got any interest in taking that on?”

“Like I’d have a chance.” She’d love the challenge of a serial case, and it would keep her mind off Janet. Even her worst days at work beat the hell out of pacing and dredging up the corpse of bliss passed. The Whisperer had stumped Whitt for the past year, so what made her think she was up to the task?

“The captain asked me to recommend somebody I can work with. I’m reviewing the forensics side. We do all right.” He waggled his finger back and forth between them like they shared a special pact. “I could put in a word—if you’re interested.”

“Yeah, sure.” Rae had no illusions that she’d get the assignment. She was junior in the squad and the case was too high profile. Her publicity hound of a sergeant would want his best detective on it. As she walked toward her car, she called back, “Keep me posted. I’m going home to get some rest. I’ve been up since yesterday.”

Rae settled behind the steering wheel and rubbed her gritty eyes. She was too tired to think about victims or cases or even Audrey Everhart.

*

Rae slammed the door of her condo and winced at the empty echo that welcomed her. The old chocolate-brown recliner, side table, and lamp faced off with her forty-six-inch flat-screen in the otherwise bare living room. Janet had taken most of the furnishings and accessories as compensation for their failed relationship. Rae had done little since to make this place a home, citing work demands as the culprit. Using the job as an excuse covered a multitude of sins.

She threw her backpack onto the small dining table that served as a desk and tried to shake her annoyance at her ex. It had been eight months, and Janet had obviously moved on with an associate provost at the university—someone more desirable, more educated, and up to her intellectual standards. The triple whammy, the three areas in which Janet found her constantly lacking. Maybe Janet had nagged to distract Rae from noticing her infidelity.

Whatever Janet’s reasons, Rae hadn’t really trusted anyone since. Today she’d let her uncertainty creep into an investigation. She’d doubted a victim’s version of a crime, which was uncharacteristic. Irritable and jumpy, she needed to stay busy until she regained her self-confidence. She hoped it returned before the past destroyed her career and any hope of a satisfying future.

As if answering her thoughts, her personal cell vibrated against her hip. She wore it like an additional appendage, enjoying at least the perception that she was connected to others. Normally she became so engrossed in work she didn’t notice the phone’s silent demand for attention. She considered ignoring this summons, but curiosity prevailed and she plugged in her password. Three messages.

“Honey.” Her best friend Deb’s Southern voice strung the word out like it had a dozen syllables. “How are you?” She always paused as if she expected Rae to actually answer. “The other girls and I want to see you soon. We miss you. Call me.” Rae smiled, made a mental note to do just that, and deleted the message before flipping to the next.

“Rae, this is Mrs. Cowan, your advisor at the university. I wanted to remind you that finals begin shortly, and you’ve missed a few classes. If you’re interested in catching up, give me a call.” Rae regretted being the cause of the concern in the woman’s voice. “I’m not sure what’s going on with you. If you need to talk I hope you know I’m here.”

Should she pursue her college education now? She’d enrolled to prove something to her family, but they’d disowned her when she came out. Then Janet became her reason to continue. Janet said it embarrassed her for her partner not to be a college graduate. She harassed Rae about her shortcoming and the amount of time it was taking to complete a simple four-year degree. Rae had been determined to finish in spite of her workload. When Janet left, Rae lost interest in almost everything. Maybe she wasn’t worth the effort. Rae made a note to get in touch with Ms. Cowan, deleted the message, and skipped to the last one.

“Rae, stop avoiding me.” Janet paused, and the air rushed out of Rae’s lungs in a painful gush. “I know it’s late, but I need to talk to you.” Another pause during which Rae debated deleting the message. Some masochistic urge immobilized her. “You’re probably out on a date or something. Rae, I miss you. I miss us. Can we talk? Call me, please.”

The message ended and Rae steeled herself for the customary tears and pain. Looking around the nearly vacant condo, she waited for the outrage that accompanied betrayal. Feelings bottlenecked in her chest. Why couldn’t she grieve any more? Perhaps that was the blessing.

She’d been a less than attentive partner, working all hours and expecting Janet to wait patiently until she had time for their relationship. Drained of emotion and disillusioned with the world, she’d come home unable to talk about their issues with the energy and consideration they deserved. The inhumanity Rae encountered at work had tainted even their enthusiastic but infrequent sex. But she couldn’t just leave the job and pretend it all never happened.

In spite of the imperfections in their relationship, Rae missed the connection to another human being. It grounded her outside a profession full of harshness and brutality. Lately she felt terribly lonely and afraid that she deserved nothing more.

“Ms. Everhart, wake up, honey. You’re dreaming.”

Audrey opened her eyes and sat up in bed. Her throat burned from yelling and her screams echoed in the unfamiliar room. The nurse rested her hands on Audrey’s shoulders and Audrey felt the woman’s emotions flood in.

“I’m fine. Please stop.” She flinched at the woman’s touch. “I’m sore.”

Shying away from the unwelcome feelings, Audrey clutched the sheet to her chest. She edged out of the nurse’s grasp, and the loose-fitting gown fell from Audrey’s back.

“Look at those bruises. What the—?”

“I’m sure it’s nothing. I’m fine.” But it wasn’t nothing, and she wasn’t fine. Audrey simply couldn’t bear to be touched. She didn’t want to explain what came next or how she knew what the nurse was feeling. “Please.”

“Honey, these look like stun-gun marks. I’ve seen them on folks the officers bring in. They’ll want to take pictures. Did you tell the detective?”

At that moment the door opened and Rae Butler entered, filling the room with her vibrant energy. She was more handsome than Audrey remembered, dressed in black jeans, a burnt-orange turtleneck, and a black leather jacket that covered the weapon at her side. As Rae approached, the initial wave of exuberance settled into a comforting calm and Audrey felt almost safe. Cops and safety hadn’t always gone together in her past. At this moment she was grateful to have Rae Butler beside her…as long as she didn’t ask too many questions.

“Did she tell the detective what?” Rae’s emerald eyes sparkled with anticipation and an I-thought-so glint. “Good afternoon, all.”

Audrey gave the attendant a cautionary stare. The woman couldn’t say anything about her medical condition without her permission. “That I’m going home. Right, Nurse?”

The unsuspecting woman nodded mutely and headed toward the door. “I’ll get your paperwork together, Ms. Everhart.”

“How are you feeling today?” Rae asked. Her gaze held Audrey’s, the unasked questions almost like conversation bubbles above her head.

“Fine, thanks, ready to get out of here. I can’t believe I’ve slept the day away.”

“You didn’t miss much. It was dreary. You’re in luck now, though. I’m your personal escort slash taxi service.”

Audrey couldn’t imagine being confined in a vehicle with Rae for ten seconds, much less the ten minutes it would take to reach her apartment. In some cases, proximity was as risky as touch. Rae Butler would be such a case. How could she refuse the offer of a ride without getting into the idiosyncrasies that made her life so difficult? “That’s not necessary. I can manage.”

“I’m sure you can, but I don’t have a choice. Mayor Downing’s orders.” Rae’s smile let her know that she didn’t consider the task unpleasant. Was Rae actually flirting with her?

“He shouldn’t be throwing his weight around.” Her boss’s overprotectiveness bordered on imposition, but she accepted it as concern for her welfare. He couldn’t possibly know what an inconvenience the police would be right now. Any minute Rae would launch into more questions, and Audrey needed time to prepare her answers. She wasn’t ready to tell the truth until she understood what happened, but she didn’t want to lie. Evasion would work only so long with someone as astute as Rae Butler. “Would you mind waiting outside while I dress?” Audrey found the pink flush of Rae’s cheeks endearing. The stoic officer had a shy side.

An hour later Audrey stood in front of her apartment and waited for Rae to leave. She’d avoided probing questions by rattling nonstop about working in the mayor’s office. She’d kept calm by almost hanging her head out the window, grateful for the winter chill in the air. Her brief respite was about to end.

Rae collected Audrey’s mail from the box as casually as if she lived there. Pulling a note from the doorjamb, she added it to the collection, handed the stack over, and hesitated at the threshold. Audrey hadn’t invited anyone into her apartment since she moved in last year. For the first time she actually considered it. She imagined Rae Butler sprawled across her old sofa, relaxed and tempting.

“Mind if I come in for a minute?” Rae asked.

Audrey shook her head to clear the image and reposition her defenses. “I’m not up for an interrogation, Detective.”

“Rae. Would you please call me Rae? We have met before. I don’t know if you remember. I was an instructor in your recruit class.”

Could she ever forget the emotional pull she’d felt toward Rae Butler every day she entered the small classroom, stood beside her at a mock crime scene, or inhaled the light fragrance of her perfume? Those emotions had nipped at the edge of her consciousness for the past year, and each time they surfaced, she stuffed them back down. Now she distanced from Rae in order to focus on what she needed to do instead of what she felt. “I remember. You were very kind, not to mention knowledgeable and professional.”

“Then talk to me, Audrey.”

“About what, exactly?” Her headache returned like the sound of discordant drums. Evasion wasn’t her forte, and the words sounded insincere.

“Tell me what happened and I’ll stop bothering you.”

“We can talk, but please, not today.”

Rae started to leave then turned back. Her usually full lips pursed in a tight line and a frown formed between her eyes. “If you’re afraid of someone, I’ll protect you.”

The wave of compassion from Rae was almost palpable. Audrey wanted to tell her everything but responded with the words self-preservation demanded. “I’m sorry. I’m just not sure what happened.” Mostly true, but the accompanying guilt was relentless.

“Okay, but this case isn’t going away. I’m already getting pressure from your boss and mine. If you do remember anything, give me a call. I’ll check on you tomorrow.” Before Audrey could insist that she didn’t need to be checked on, Rae handed her a business card and left.

Audrey gingerly made her way into her apartment, closed the door, and looked around. Would Rae find the small one-bedroom flat quaint with its mismatched furniture and large secondhand stereo? Would she think it unusual that she didn’t own a television like most people? The absence of pictures and decorations could be off-putting. An outsider would probably interpret her stark surroundings as the sign of a boring, uncreative person. To Audrey, it was necessary for a relatively peaceful existence.