Page 24 of Seven

“I honestly don’t know.” Mom glanced over at me for a brief moment, then turned her focus back to the detective. “He seemed a little more stressed than usual, but, like I said, he never really discussed his work with me. Client privilege and all that.”

“Yes, I understand.” Detective Joyner studied Mom for a moment, then lowered his pencil and said, “I appreciate you both coming in today.”

“Of course.” Mom gave him a kind smile, then stood and said, “Please be sure to contact us if you find out anything.”

“I certainly will, and I’ll be in touch about meeting with your son.”

“Sounds good.”

We both shook his hand and made our way out of his office. Once we were in the parking lot, I took a moment to scan thearea, checking to see if I saw any sign of the black Mercedes, but there was no sign of them. Relieved, I got in the car and drove Mom back to her house.

I helped Mom out of the car, and as we started up the front steps, something felt off. The front door was slightly ajar, and there was a dark smudge on the brass door handle. Concerned, I looked over to Mom and asked, “Did you leave the door open?”

“No, I didn’t,” Mom clutched her purse tightly and stepped cautiously in front of me. “I’ll go check it out.”

“Not without me.”

“Fine but stay behind me.”

We both hesitated before stepping through the doorway. The hair prickled against the back of my neck as we made our way into the living room. At first, nothing seemed out of the norm. Then, I spotted the door to Dad’s office was wide open when it was always shut. I stepped closer, and my stomach dropped when I saw that it had been ransacked.

All his drawers had been yanked out and dumped on the floor. There were papers and files scattered all over the room, and his antique desk had been smashed to pieces. Books and binders were torn from the shelves, and pages were ripped out and crumpled on the floor. Someone was clearly looking for something, but I had no idea what.

“Oh my God,” Mom whispered, her hand flying to her mouth. “Who would do this?”

I didn’t answer.

My gaze landed on the wall behind the desk, where Dad’s certificates and degrees used to hang. The frames were shattered, and the glass shards glittered on the floor like tiny daggers. It killed me to see his life’s work destroyed and tossed to the side like it meant nothing.

Mom’s voice pulled me from my thoughts when she asked, “What if they are still here?”

“We need to go outside and call the police.”

Mom nodded, and we both rushed out of the house. As soon as we were back in my car, I locked the doors and grabbed my phone. Mom’s face was pale, and her hands were trembling as she listened to me call 911. My voice was steadier than I felt as I explained the situation, and relief washed over me when the dispatcher told me there was an officer in the area and would be there shortly.

I hung up, and Mom and I sat there for several moments in complete silence. It was too much. I was on the verge of completely losing it when Mom muttered, “Thank God Ford was next door when they came...”

“Yes, thank God for that. We should call and check on him.”

“We need to call your brother first.”

“Mom, he’s in London. There’s nothing he can do about all this.”

“I know. He needs to know what’s been going on though.”

“Okay. I’ll call him.” I nodded and then dialed his number. As soon as he answered, I filled him in on what had happened, and just as I expected, Rooks lost it. “What do you mean someone broke into the house?”

“They only went through Dad’s office. I’m pretty sure they were looking for something.”

“Like what?”

“I wish I knew.”

“My next flight is in an hour, but with my layover and travel time, it’s going to be morning before I can get there.”

“Okay. That’s fine.”

“Just do me a solid and stay in your car until the cops get there.”

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