Nowhere to Hide (9 page)

“
Wait here,” Graham told the women and caught up to Schaeffer, who was three paces down the driveway. Television sounds blared from an open window at the main house.

“
So which one’s the tenant?” Schaeffer asked. His hand was on his weapon and he slowed his pace as they approached Colleen’s entry.

“
The redhead,” Graham said.

“
If she doesn’t pan out, the blonde’s a number too. Or both? Double your pleasure.”

Why was Schaeffer here? This was a routine call. Damn, he was being tested. They were at the door, now half open. Schaeffer pushed the plastic Nordstrom bags aside with his foot.

Graham felt the comforting weight of his Glock in his hand. The adrenaline rushed as Schaeffer shouted, “Sheriff’s Office, come to the front door with your hands up!” When there was no response, Schaeffer said, “Time to slice the pie. You go low. Left. On three.”

Schaeffer kicked the door open. An empty room greeted them. “Clear here,” Schaeffer said. “You take the bedroom and bath. I’ve got the kitchen and living room.”

Graham edged into the bedroom. As he made sure it was clear, he tried to ignore images of Colleen living here. The bed was neatly made, nothing on the floor. Nothing unusual in the closet. Likewise in the bathroom. He poked the shower curtain aside with his gun barrel. Nothing but the expected female paraphernalia.  He holstered his Glock and joined Schaeffer in the living room.

“
Tell me what you see,” Schaeffer said.

Graham ran his hand over his eyes before giving the room a closer look. “The couch cushions look like someone moved them.”

“
Good. What else? Look like a burglary?”

Graham roamed the room, comparing what he saw to what he remembered from the previous night. “I’d say, no. Doesn’t seem to be anything out of place. She just moved in, and there wasn’t much here to begin with.”

He stepped closer to the entertainment unit and saw the label on the bottle of Scotch no longer faced outward. A black line dated a month ago marked the liquor level. Curious, but not police business. He tucked it into his mental “Colleen McDonald” file and went to the kitchen. Nothing seemed amiss. “I’ll let Ms. McDonald know there’s nobody inside and she can come tell us if this is how she left the place, or if she notices anything missing.” He paused. “But let’s check the main house first and see if the old lady saw anything, or heard anything over the television racket.”

Graham led the way this time, glancing toward the street and giving a thumbs up to Tracy and Colleen who were sitting on the hood of the Lexus. He motioned to the main house and Colleen jogged toward him.

“
What did you find?” she asked.

“
I think someone’s been in there, but there’s no damage. Wait here. I’ll go in with you, but first we’re going to check with Mrs. Walters.” Graham trotted up to the entryway. Schaeffer was knocking on the door.

“
No answer to the bell,” he said, “but who could hear it over the television?”

Colleen joined them. “I’m not getting a response,” Shaffer said to Colleen. “Did you see Mrs. Walters this morning?”

Colleen shook her head.

Schaeffer started looking in windows. “Check the back,” he called to Graham.

“
You should wait in the car,” Graham said to Colleen and headed for the yard. When he noticed the screen door to the patio ajar, he pulled out his Glock and called for Schaeffer. He tried the glass doors and one slid open. With Schaeffer behind him, Graham crept into the house. “Mrs. Walters!” he called. “Are you all right? It’s Deputy Harrigan.”

He discovered Doris sitting in an easy chair in her bedroom, dressed in a fuchsia pant suit, hair neat and tidy, with carefully applied makeup. Her head lolled to one side and her mouth hung open.

“
Mrs. Walters! Can you hear me?” He felt for her pulse. Slow but steady. Her breathing was shallow and regular. “I think we should call the medics,” Graham said to Schaeffer.

Schaeffer had his radio out and requested an ambulance. While Graham stayed with Mrs. Walters, Schaeffer went to the other side of the room.

“
These were in the night table drawer.” He held up a vial of pills. “Valium. It’s a month old prescription, says, ‘Take as needed.’ There’s a half-empty glass of orange juice too.”

“
No way to know anything until the medics get here,” Graham said. “I’d suspect she took too many, but did she take them intentionally, by accident, or did someone encourage it?”

“
That’s what we’re going to have to figure out. I’ll get the lab crew out here. You see what the tenant can tell us. And turn off the damn TV.
Law and Order
reruns drive me nuts.”

Graham went to the living room and clicked off the set, then hurried out to find Colleen. He opened the front door and saw her sitting on the ground hugging her knees, with Tracy standing over her. He sped to her side. “What happened? Is she all right?”

“
I don’t know. She was standing here, kind of staring off into space like she was on another planet. Then she clapped her hands over her ears, dropped to the ground, and I can’t seem to get through to her.” Alarm filled her eyes. “You think it’s an epileptic seizure? The kind where you zone out? She doesn’t have a Medic Alert bracelet or anything. I checked.”

He dropped to one knee and took Colleen’s hands in his. “Doesn’t look like it—those sorts of seizures are usually pretty quick. Colleen. It’s Graham Harrigan. Everything is fine. Come on, Colleen. You’re okay.”

Her green eyes snapped open and she stared up at him. She took one shaky breath before she spoke. “Shit.” She rubbed the back of her neck. “Wow. Must be all the ice cream I ate at Tracy’s. Messed up my blood sugar or something.” She climbed to her feet, refusing Graham’s offer of support.

“
Colleen…”

“
I said I was fine.”

“
Having someone in your home can cause the same sort of emotional response as being raped. It’s a personal violation.”

“
Drop it, Harrigan. It was ice cream, not rape. Now I’m going to go check out the place for myself.”

“
Wait and one of us will go with you. We need to keep the scene secure until we decide if we need to call the lab crew. You can tell us if everything is the way you left it. We’ve called an ambulance for Doris and—”

“
Ambulance?” Tracy asked. “Did something happen?”

“
Looks like a little too much Valium. Someone might have entered through the patio.” Graham addressed Tracy. “I’m going to go with Colleen. We’ll be back in a few minutes. Do you mind waiting?”

“
Not at all.” She grinned at Colleen. “Gotta hand it to you, sister. You sure do know how to take a girl’s mind off her misery.”

Graham walked half a pace behind Colleen and pulled on his gloves. Her stride was steady, and she elbowed through the front door. Hands in her pockets, she wandered through the living room.

“
What about the couch?” he asked.

Colleen seemed to contemplate it for a moment. When she spoke, she wouldn’t make eye contact. “I slept on it. Can’t remember if I straightened the cushions or not. Things on the shelves aren’t quite the way I left them.” He noticed her start to reach for the Scotch bottle, then clasp her hands behind her before she continued.

“
You seem to be good at this,” he said.

“
Misspent youth. Used to set booby traps for my brothers so they wouldn’t get into my stuff. Besides, anyone who watches television knows you don’t touch anything in a crime scene.”

“
Here. Should make things easier.” He handed her a spare pair of gloves and she snapped them on like a pro. Graham let it go, but added it to his growing internal file. In the kitchen, Colleen gave cursory glances into the drawers and cabinets.

“
I haven’t taken much inventory here. Most of this came with the place. Looks fine.”

“
What about the bedroom?”

She preceded him into the room, stopping short so he almost bumped into her. “Holy shit,” she said and pivoted toward the bathroom.

“
Are you all right?” He stood in the doorway, watching as she opened the medicine cabinet, pulled open a vanity drawer and fingered through the contents. He trailed behind her when she rushed to the kitchen and stared at the sink. A coffee mug sat in the draining rack, along with a plate and a knife.

She turned and gave him a sardonic laugh. “Outside.” She pushed past him and went to the front porch where she leaned against one of the brick pillars, then slid down the pillar until she was sitting on the tiles next to the shopping bags she’d left there. “You know any burglars who come in and make beds and wash dishes after they search the place?”

“
What?”

“
When I left this morning, the bed was unmade and my toothpaste was next to the sink. An unscrubbed sink. So were a couple of hair clips and my brush. I don’t know why it didn’t register sooner. In the kitchen—I’d rinsed my dishes, but they were still in the sink when I left. But now they’re washed and in the rack. Someone was in there. In my home. They rearranged stuff in the living room. After they poked around in my kitchen, they washed my dishes. Probably went through my closet and then cleaned my bathroom and made my bed. You’re the cop. You know any crooks who fit this MO?”

“
The landlady have a key?”

Colleen tilted her head. “Damn, I should have figured. I suppose she does. Although maid service definitely isn’t part of the rental agreement.”

“
We’ll ask her.” He crouched next to her. “Meanwhile, we’ll get the lab crew out here in case it was someone else. You have somewhere to stay while they’re working? Maybe with Tracy for a while?”

“
Probably. My car’s at her place. I’ll ask. You’ll let me know as soon as they’re done, right? Nobody kicks me out of my home.”

“
I’ll make sure you get a call before the lab guys are done. You can meet them before they leave here. I know they’ll want your prints for elimination.”

“
Thanks for coming so quickly. Sorry about the little freak-out.” Peeling off her gloves, she stood and tossed them to Graham. She picked up her packages and trudged up the drive and back to Tracy’s Lexus parked on the street before he had a chance to help her.

Graham saw the ambulance as he caught up with Colleen. “I’m going to need to finish up here, but I want to talk to you later.”

“
As a deputy or one of your Celt to Celt bits?”

“
Both.” He touched her shoulder and she turned to face him. “Mostly the latter.” He scribbled his number on a page from his notebook, ripped it out, and held it toward her. “My personal cell. Use it anytime.” When she raised her eyebrows and indicated her armload of packages, he smiled. “I’m going to stick this in your shirt pocket. No kicking, okay?”

She shifted the packages enough to give him access to her pocket, and he was careful to slide it in without making contact with anything other than fabric. Tracy had already popped the trunk of the Lexus, and he explained the situation while Colleen loaded the bags.

Tracy wrote her phone number on a scrap of paper. “We’ll hang at my place until we get the all-clear.”

The trunk slammed shut, and Colleen got in the car. Graham watched them drive away before jogging to the house.

Inside, Schaeffer and the paramedics loaded Doris onto a gurney. Graham heard vague mumblings about not wanting to go to a home.

“
Pulse is thready,” said one of the medics, a burly mahogany-skinned man with cornrow braids. “We’re going to transport. Did you find any other meds besides the Valium?”

“
A beta blocker,” replied his partner, a woman half his size. “I’ve got it, but the prescription was filled a few days ago and it’s almost full. Her BP is good. I don’t think it’s anything but the Valium.” She adjusted the IV in the back of Doris’ hand. “Let’s go.”

“
Come on, beautiful,” said the man. “Time to go for a ride.”

“
Not to the home, not the home,” Doris begged, her words barely audible. “I didn’t mean to. I forgot. Please, don’t take me away.”

“
Hey, beautiful. We’re taking you to Turkey Lake Emergency. They’ll get you checked out and you’ll be home before you know it.”

“
Home? Not the home!”

“
No. I mean back here.” The medics started wheeling the gurney out the door and Graham went over to Schaeffer.

“
What did she say about her apartment?” Schaeffer asked. “Anything missing?”

Graham shook his head. “No, but someone had definitely been inside. Cleaned, made the beds. My guess is it was Mrs. Walters, but I thought we should print the place. Miss McDonald’s waiting at her friend’s.”

“
I’ve already called the techs. They can do both places.”

“
You find anything in here?” Graham asked.

“
Hard to say. Once Mrs. Walters is more coherent, we can get more. She kept rambling about not going to the home.” Schaeffer walked down the hall. “Everything looks neat and tidy, except for the guy’s office.” He stopped at the doorway and motioned Graham inside. “What do you think?”

Graham slowly scanned the space. “Looks like an office. Messy, but that’s not unusual. I see piles of paper, mail and file folders all over his desk. More books and papers on the floor. Still, nothing screams the place has been searched. Did you check the file cabinets?”

“
Locked.”

“
That fits with someone leaving town, but I don’t know about the mess on the desk.” Graham walked over and started looking through the piles. “Doesn’t seem to be in any kind of order, not like he got everything organized before he left town. But maybe this is how he operates. One of those people with a filing system in his head. I don’t suppose it would be kosher to play with his computer?”