Page 54 of Breaking Rules

He took out his phone and took some pictures of the scene.

“Whoever broke in must have taken them,” Kevin mused, his mind racing with possibilities. “Maybe they contained something incriminating, something that could implicate someone in the robbery.”

Sam surveyed the room, taking in the dated but well-maintained furniture and outdated carpeting. Kevin followed his gaze, trying to piece together the puzzle of Hartman’s life.

“Does this look like the house of someone who has a lot of old bank-robbery money?” Sam asked, his voice laced with skepticism.

Kevin shook his head. “No, it doesn’t. Maybe he was saving it or gave it to his kids.”

“We’ll have to look into that,” Sam noted, his brow furrowed in thought. “But maybe he didn’t get any bank-robbery money at all. Maybe he was in the evidence room because he was investigating.”

“But why?” Kevin asked. “He was the investigator back in the day.”

Sam shrugged. “Maybe he figured he missed something and wanted to find out if he could solve the case now.”

Kevin glanced at the table. “Yeah, and maybe he got too close.”

Lucy caught Kevin’s attention. She was standing at a side table loaded with framed family photos. Kevin walked over, picking up a picture of a younger Hartman with two girls.

“Looks like he’s a family man,” Kevin said softly, a twinge of sadness in his voice. As he studied the photo, something clicked in Kevin’s mind. He turned to Sam, excitement building in his chest. “I might have an idea,” he said, his eyes wide with realization.

“What?”

“Remember, there was a photo in the box that Alex had from his grandfather’s belongings. It was a photo of who I assumed was his grandfather and another man. It was from their younger days, and they were sitting around a table with some sort of blueprints in front of them.”

Sam’s eyes lit up with understanding. “Cigars. You think those men might be the ones that were involved in the robbery?”

“Exactly,” Kevin said, nodding eagerly. “If we can identify the other man in that photo, it might give us something to go on.”

Sam surveyed the disarray in Hartman’s dining room once more, his expression grave. “There’s no way Hartman left this mess. And the broken door? Someone took him. We need to treat this like a crime scene.”

Kevin nodded, his mind already shifting into investigative mode. “And that means he must have been on to something. I’ll start processing the scene, see if I can find any clues or evidence that might help us figure out who did this.”

“Good idea,” Sam agreed, pulling out his phone. “I’m going to head back to the station and grab that photo. I have a feeling that other man might be Nathan Rickman.”

As Sam turned to leave, he paused, placing a hand on Kevin’s shoulder. “Good work, Kevin,” he said, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Looks like your memory is much better. Keep it up.”

Kevin felt a surge of pride and happiness at Sam’s words. It meant the world to him to know that he was regaining his chief’s trust and proving his worth as a detective once more. “Thanks, Sam,” he said, his voice filled with gratitude. “I won’t let you down.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Sam pushed open the door to the police station. “We’ve got a situation. Hartman’s house was broken into, and it looks like someone was searching for something.”

Jo’s eyes widened, her fingers freezing on the keyboard. “What do you mean? Is Hartman okay?”

Sam shook his head, his jaw clenching. “He’s missing, and his dining room was a mess. Files everywhere, and it looks like some are gone.”

Wyatt leaned forward in his chair, his brow furrowed. “Do you think it’s connected to our case?”

“It has to be,” Sam said. “Kevin is back there processing it.”

“Well, I guess that rules Hartman out as the killer,” Jo said.

“Maybe.” Sam turned to Reese. “Do we still have the boxes from Alex’s place here at the station?”

Reese nodded.

“Good. There’s a cardboard box with some personal effects. Can you get that?”

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