Page 4 of Say Nothing
"He still has that reputation," Derek said."He was already well known on the outside, and he’s making a name for himself in prison.Still, he’s been imprisoned for five years, and he’s not scheduled to be released for another five."
"You think he could be behind it?"Alison asked.
"He’s made a lot of friends in prison," Derek replied."It’d be easy for him to have someone target her when they were released, or have someone on the outside do it.Do you remember the trial?"
"No," Alison admitted."I will have coached Margaret, but I wasn’t present for the trial.I remember there was something with her husband, too."
"There’s no record of anyone else living here," Derek told her."Maybe they separated, and he didn't like that?"
"Either him or the man she helped to put away," Alison said."And if she went to this much trouble to keep someone out, she was afraid of someone getting to her.We should check for any police reports connected to the residence.Did anyone try to get in?Any domestic disturbances?"Alison looked at the camera at the main gate."Maybe we get lucky with this one and the perpetrator is caught on camera."
"That would be nice," Derek admitted."You ready to go in?"
Alison nodded.They walked through the open gate together and up the driveway where a car was parked by the house.
"I’ve been meaning to ask you," Alison said."Has there been any movement on my sister’s case?"
Derek sighed."No, nothing.Is your dad still on at you?"
"He calls just about every week asking if there’s anything new in the case," Alison said."Twenty years and nothing.There’s an almost zero chance something falls into our laps now, but he thinks that just because a CBI agent is on the case, you’ll be able to dig something up."
"If there’s something to be dug up, I’ll find it," Derek admitted."But you know how these things go."
"Yeah, I do," Alison replied."The first few days are the most important in a case, and the longer the case goes, the less chance there is to catch the perpetrator.The graph is exponential.Twenty years means an infinitesimal chance of catching her killer.We don't even know if the killer is still alive.Maybe they’re living halfway around the world.We might as well be chasing a ghost."
"I believe in ghosts," Derek said.
Alison cocked her head and stared at Derek.
"Yeah, that sounded better in my head," he admitted."As soon as I said it, I realized it was a nothing statement."
Alison gave him a wry smile.They stood outside the open front door of the house.A doorbell camera was attached to the wall to the right of the doorway—it was another opportunity to get a glimpse of the person who’d killed Margaret.
A woman emerged from the house wearing a black pantsuit and white blouse.She had an air of authority about her, and Alison had no doubt the woman was the lead detective on the case.She went straight to Alison first.
"Dr.Payne, it’s a pleasure to have you on the case."The woman held out her hand."I’m Detective Samantha Moore, the lead detective on the case."
Alison shook the woman’s hand."I’m glad to help."
Samantha had long blonde hair tied into a high ponytail, prominent cheekbones, an athletic body, and dark blue eyes.
"I’ve followed your career from before I joined the force," Samantha said."It’s partly what gave me the confidence to pursue law enforcement when it was… well, you know."She glanced at Derek.
Alison knew exactly what Samantha meant.Law enforcement was a challenging field for women to get into and then thrive in, but the two of them were bucking the trend.It was especially hard to be the one in charge, telling people what to do instead of doing what people told you.Alison had had to work twice as hard for the same rewards as most of the men in her field.
"I’m glad to be on the case with another woman," Alison told her.
"Thank you for saying that," Samantha replied."There’s often the tendency for women to compete against each other, and I wouldn't ever want that.All I have for you is the utmost respect and gratitude.Do you want to come in and take a look at the body?"
"We would," Alison said."Did you get anything from the security cameras?"
"Nothing so far," Samantha said as she led Alison and Derek into the house."Most of the cameras are motion-activated, so the killer must have avoided the cameras.I’ve had a couple of the team walk the perimeter and a route to the house, and there are a few ways the killer could have entered the yard and house without being seen."
They walked down the short hallway from the front door to the living room.
"How about the security system?"Derek asked.
"Yeah, that’s a little trickier," Samantha admitted.She stopped before they got to the living room door, where the body presumably was."The security company sent an alert this morning when the AI system detected that the security system hadn’t been changed in keeping with Donovan’s usual routine, and they requested that a patrol car come to do a wellness check.That was when the body was found—she was visible through the side window.
