Page 11 of Silent Ridge

“When I saw the body, it shocked me. I must have screamed, because Gonzo yelped and then the poor dear puddled on the floor.”

“He peed on the bathroom floor?”

“He’s old and I must have scared the bejesus out of him. It’s not his fault. I shouldn’t have taken him in there.”

You shouldn’t have been in that house.

“I understand,” I say. “I’ll tell my crime scene guys so they know it’s dog urine.”

Her eyes well with tears and then the dam breaks. In between racking sobs she asks, “Are you going to take Gonzo into evidence? I don’t think I can be without him. He’s all I have since my Stevie passed ten years ago. He’s my family. I just don’t know what…”

I feel my own eyes tearing up. Her son seldom contacts her and she is obviously lonely. I can relate. I’ve had little contact with Hayden and I miss him. The dog is Rowena’s only friend. The dog and the bulging fireman.

“Rowena, no one is going to take your dog. No one will bother Gonzo or you. I promise.” I give her a card with my phone number at the office. “If you have questions, you can call me. If you think of anything else, call me. I’ll try to come back and tell you what I find out. How’s that?”

She stands and wraps me in a hug and weeps. Her emotions come from the horror of what she saw. She weeps because she’s all alone and because I’m kind to her.

I ask one more question.

“Did you notice anything else unusual while you were in that house? When you walked through the bedroom?”

I’m wondering if she saw the two pictures of me laid out on the bed. Especially the laminated one.

She shakes her head.

“Did you see anything on the bed?” I need to know.

She looks at me like I’m stupid. “I was drawn to that smell. That’s all I saw, except for Gonzo doing what he… you know.”

As I drive back to the office I call Mindy.

“It’s dog pee, isn’t it?” I say right away.

“Yes. It’s dog urine.”

“She said her dog ‘puddled’ on the tile because she screamed and scared it.”

“Got it. Thanks.”

“I’m going to the office.” I don’t need to tell Mindy to call if she finds anything. I disconnect and watch the road play out. What I saw in that bathroom will stay with me forever. That my photo was found on the bed will give me nightmares. Someone knows that picture and the one of me leaving the sheriff’s office are the same person. Sheriff Gray picked up on it right away.

Ten

I park in the same place as I parked when the picture was taken. I look around for the spot where the photograph was snapped. I remember the angle and make my way toward the firs and cedars that ring one side of the parking area. Here, I think, is the place where the photographer likely stood.

The ground is thick with fir needles. I kick some of them around. There’s no telling exactly when the picture was taken, but it couldn’t have been more than two weeks ago. The toe of my boot shoves some of the debris around and I’m about to give up when I see something red flash. It’s a Camel cigarette butt. The red lipstick is fluorescent red.

Who would wear this grotesque color?

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office is a no-smoking zone within fifty feet of the building. I take an evidence bag from my blazer pocket and use it to retrieve the butt. I’ll give it to Crime Scene to have tested and compared with what they found at the scene. It’s more than a long shot and I might have to use my secret weapon, aka Ronnie, to get Marley Yang, the supervisor of the state crime lab, to run the test for me. Marley has a thing for Ronnie. She thinks he’s cute in a nerdy way and has gone out with him a few times. Marley drops by the office two or three times a week, using any excuse to see her.

Shoving more of the dry needles around reveals nothing except a PayDay wrapper and a pair of women’s black lace panties.

Eww.

I collect the wrapper. I suspect stalking is a hard job and they might have gotten hungry. But I can’t imagine someone stalking me and taking off their panties. I might have a naked stalker with a sweet tooth who smokes Camels and wears fluorescent red lipstick. I walk away and then come back and collect the panties too. If they belong to Nan, Sheriff Gray’s secretary, I’m going to bust a gut. Nan has done the walk of shame a few times since I’ve worked here.

I think I remember her wearing that shade of lipstick too.

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