Page 22 of Close Quarters

She wandered out to the main living space and couldn’t stop her quick intake of breath as she got a look through the wall of windows at the back of the house where the roof came to a peak. The neighborhood was hilly, and Alex’s house sat on a corner overlooking the valley. The morning sun sparkled on the frost left in the grass, and the mountains cast deep shadows on the landscape. It was beautiful.

Taking a reluctant step away from the window and the urge to go out onto the deck, she turned to peruse the rest of the room. High ceilings gave way to pine rafters and a balcony for the second floor. She could see a couple of doors from where she stood and assumed they led to bedrooms. A hallway cut to her left, and she saw several more doors. In the great room, large brown leather furniture dominated the space. A colorful geometric print rug in teals and oranges covered the floor of the sitting area. A large screen television was mounted on the wall above a stone fireplace.

Katie sank onto the couch, taking in the soft leather and the view beyond the windows. She wouldn’t mind waking up to this. Hot coffee on the deck as the world woke up around her. She’d never want to leave.

But that was such a fanciful notion, she couldn’t help but laugh out loud at herself. She and Alex may have shared one hell of a kiss, but it was a far cry from her moving in. If any two people were mismatched, it was them.

Spotting a wall of family pictures across the room, she got up and wandered over. The first one she looked at was a photo of a recent Christmas gathering. Alex stood next to an older version of himself. A third man stood on his other side. Katie guessed it was probably the brother-in-law. In front of the men stood two women, one young, one older. They sported matching smiles and the older woman held a baby dressed in a velvet red dress with a green headband on her bald head. Two boys who looked to be around eight and four stood in front of the women in matching red and black plaid shirts.

Another photograph was of Alex, the younger woman, and the older couple at what looked like his med school graduation. He had on a black graduation gown with the doctoral hood. A third picture was at the younger woman’s wedding. More pictures of the children at various ages filled out the grouping. In each of them, the child sported a huge, cheerful smile. Katie couldn’t help but smile back. They were adorable.

Turning away from the pictures, she stepped over to his bookshelves and tipped her head to read the titles. He liked suspense thrillers with a smattering of epic fantasy. There were also shelves full of medical texts, which she expected.

Noise from the hallway drew her attention. She glanced back to see Alex coming into the living room, buttoning another flannel shirt over a long-sleeved black tee. His dark hair was damp, shining in the overhead light.

“That was quick.” She did her best to keep her eyes on his face and not let them stray to where he tucked the tails of his shirt into his pants.

“Took me longer to shave than anything else. Just let me grab something for lunch and we can go.”

She followed him to the kitchen and shrugged back into her coat as he started coffee brewing while he made himself a sandwich. As the brewer sputtered the last of the coffee into his travel mug, he plucked a banana from the bunch on the counter. He put the food into a brown paper lunch sack, then put his coat on. Katie turned and headed for the garage, Alex right behind her.

The drive to the hospital was short, and he soon pulled into the doctors’ lot. They got out and walked inside.

“Do you think Amanda will be here?” she asked as Alex punched the button to call the elevator.

He shrugged. “Maybe. I didn’t see either of the university’s SUVs in the lot when we drove in.”

She checked her watch. “We’re a little early, even with the pit stop at your house.”

The elevator dinged, and the doors swished open. They stepped inside and she pushed the button for their floor. The doors closed, and they descended a floor to the laboratory level.

Katie stepped off and went to her desk while Alex headed for his office. She stowed her things in her desk, then unlocked the evidence cabinet and picked up the dirt sample from the Jane Doe last night. She would get it started while she waited on everyone else to arrive. The techs who remained behind could finish it once she left with the team to retrieve the last two bodies.

As she worked, the rest of her team filtered in. By the time she had the gas chromatograph up and running, they were all present and ready to go. She gave instructions to one of the techs remaining at the lab, then led the rest outside to the van. Amanda was nowhere to be found. Her team was outside waiting, though.

She walked up to the senior technician, Dave. “Where’s your boss?”

He frowned. “She’s not here?”

Katie motioned around them. “I don’t see her, and she wasn’t inside.”

Dave’s frown deepened. “Dammit. I was hoping she just worked late and went in early.”

“So, she never came back to the inn last night?”

“Not unless she slipped in and out while we were all in bed. I never saw her.”

“Is it normal for her to work so late?”

He shrugged. “Sometimes. But if she’s not here, I don’t know where she is.”

Alex walked up then. “Did I hear you right? Amanda’s missing?”

Dave nodded.

Katie glanced up at Alex, communicating silently. Things didn’t look good for Dr. Pressley.

He held her gaze a moment before looking back at Dave. “Can you guys work without her?”

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