Chapter 11
11
Mark sat in the living room of the elderly couple, taking notes as the forensic team moved about the house. Brad walked back into the room after accompanying the husband upstairs while Mark interviewed the wife. Her face still held anger with a dose of fear mixed with what he suspected was pain.
“Yes, Detective. As my husband said, we returned home and drove into the garage. Stanley helped me navigate the steps into the house. After my knee replacement, I had to relearn how to go up and down steps carefully. I still don’t go up or down stairs unless he’s with me.”
“You realized someone had broken in?—”
“Almost immediately. There was glass from the door that leads from the kitchen to our patio and pool area.”
The house was south of Baytown, in a small neighborhood of million-dollar homes. It wasn’t visible from other neighboring houses, so the intruder easily came in through the back. An alarm was sounded, but the thief must have known it would take time for someone to get to the home, so they made quick work of what they stole. Upstairs in the owner’s bedroom was a jewelry box sitting on the dresser. The box contained several expensive dinner rings, diamond and pearl earrings, and a diamond-and-emerald bracelet.
Stanley Whitten moved around Brad and sat next to his wife who was perched on the edge of the sofa. “Honey, let’s take this to where you’re more comfortable.”
“And where would that be, Stanley? A different house? Because right now, this house feels tainted!”
“Then let’s move into one of the rentals for a few weeks until we get everything put right.”
A tear slipped down her cheek, but she dashed it away. Looking at the detectives, she said, “I’m sure this seems dramatic to you. After all, the thief came when we weren’t here. We weren’t held at gunpoint or assaulted or… or… anything like that. I’m sure you think a door repair and a call to our insurance company would make this all better.”
“No, ma’am,” Mark said, shaking his head slowly while holding her gaze. “I know this is traumatic. Especially feeling vulnerable after surgery, and then to find that someone was in your personal space and took items of value and sentiment.”
Mrs. Whitten sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly as her gaze moved from Mark to Brad and then over to her husband. Offering a slight nod to Stanley, she then looked back at Mark. “Thank you, Detective Robbins. I appreciate your understanding.”
Brad caught his eye, then said, “Mr. Whitten discovered something else had been taken besides the jewelry box.”
Mark gave his partner his full attention and waited, his pen poised over his notepad.
“He kept a small lockbox on the floor, just under his side of the bed. It was visible to someone who might notice, but Mr. Whitten admitted he hadn’t looked at it in a while. The lockbox was taken. It contained a handgun.”
While Mrs. Whitten gasped and her knuckles tightened over the handle of the cane that rested against her chair, Mark quickly noted the weapon's type and registration number as Brad gave him the information.
Mr. Whitten sighed and shook his head. “I bought the weapon years ago and used to go to the firing range for practice. I have it in the lockbox under the bed so that if there was a home invasion at night, I could get to it, but I confess that I haven’t thought about it in months. It just didn’t hit me when Julia discovered her jewelry box was missing that I should look for it. Not until Detective Stowe asked me to make sure nothing else was missing.”
“And cash? Any cards?” Mark asked.
“No. I had my wallet and Margorie had her purse with her.”
“Where had you gone?”
“Margorie had a physical therapy session. We go to Shore Rehab twice a week for her physical therapy. We’ve been doing that for a couple of weeks.”
Finishing their time with the Whittens, they checked with forensics, then headed back to the station. “It struck me that three of our victims have had surgeries lately.”
“Yeah, I noticed that,” Brad said. “But how does that tie in with the others? What’s the common denominator?”
Mark sighed and shook his head. “I don’t know, but I want to go back and dig into the other cases from the past six months.”
Brad agreed. “Got to tell you, that’ll be our Monday morning job. Right now, I’m ready for the weekend.”
A smile slid across Mark’s face. “Me, too.”
Brad glanced to the side. “What the hell is that smile for? You got a hot date lined up?”
“Actually, yes.”
“No shit?”
Mark chuckled. “I asked Karen Drummond out to dinner?—”
“Thank God! Bess kept telling me that she thought you two would be a good match.”
“I have no idea if we’re a good match, but we’ve talked a little bit, and I’m looking forward to getting to know her more.”
Brad pulled the SUV into the parking lot and said, “Happy for you, man.”
“Thanks.”
With that, he walked back into the station, a smile still on his face.
The following day, dew still clung to the grass, and a light mist hovered over the bay as Mark stretched alongside Benji and Scott Redding, one of the other AL running group sponsors. Scott was an accountant in Baytown. Before the first time Benji had come for a run with them, Mark prepared his son for Scott’s prosthesis, explaining he had lost his leg when in the service. He hoped to avoid any innocent, albeit uncomfortable comments from his son. But the moment Benji watched Scott switch out his daily prosthesis for his running blade, Benji’s mouth dropped open, and he’d gushed, “That’s so cool.”
Mark rolled his eyes as Scott laughed, then let Benji inspect the running blade prosthetic and explained how it worked. Now, Benji barely gave it a second thought and stretched along with the two adults as other kids were being dropped off. Laughter and chatter filled the cool morning air.
Mark checked the parental permission forms as they came in, scanning the group with pride. The kids were talking and laughing, naturally falling into age groups. If Benji noticed someone standing by themselves, he jogged over and started talking to them. Watching his son move with such kindness and confidence brought a warm swell to Mark’s chest.
As another small SUV pulled up, Mark’s lips curved into a grin. Karen stepped out of the driver’s seat, followed by two girls who could only be her daughters. Both had the same honey-blond hair, though Karen’s was pulled back with clips while the girls wore theirs in ponytails. His gaze lingered on Karen, drinking in the sight of her as she approached.
“Hey, Mark,” she greeted as she neared, her voice soft but bright.
“Karen,” he said, dipping his chin. “It’s good to see you.”
He turned his attention to the two girls standing beside her. The older one had already caught up to Karen’s height, and he figured she’d probably end up taller. She had her mother’s warm brown eyes, while the younger girl, who stood just below Karen’s eyeline, had lighter brown eyes, perhaps more like her father’s. Both girls smiled at him, and he nodded again.
“This is my eldest, Laura, and this is Olivia,” Karen introduced. “Girls, this is one of your running sponsors, Mark Robbins.”
“Hey,” Laura said with a bright smile.
Olivia giggled, a sweet sound as she echoed her sister. “Hi!”
Before Mark could reply, Benji came running over, his energy radiating as always.
“Are we about ready to start?” Benji asked, his excitement evident.
“Almost,” Mark replied, glancing down at his son. “But first, I’d like you to meet a friend of mine. This is Ms. Karen Drummond and her daughters, Laura and Olivia. Ladies, this is my son, Benji.”
Benji grinned and quickly reached his hand out to Karen. "Nice to meet you!" Olivia giggled again, and Laura gave Mark a careful, assessing look before smiling as Benji darted back to his friends.
Mark’s attention was momentarily caught by Laura leaning over to whisper something to Karen. He caught only a snippet of the exchange. “Is he the one you’re going out with tonight?”
Karen’s soft smile widened as she replied, “Yes, that’s him.”
“Cool,” Laura said with a grin before her name was called by a group of girls. She kissed her mom’s cheek and ran off to join them. Olivia followed with another smile.
Now alone with Karen, Mark let out a breath and chuckled. “Well, introductions are over. I guess that went well.”
Karen laughed softly, shaking her head. “I haven’t done this in a while, so I’ll take your word for it.”
Her gaze swept over the group of kids. “You’ve got your hands full here.”
“Scott Redding co-sponsors, and we have a few other adults running with us,” Mark explained. “You’re welcome to wait or come back.”
Karen smiled and shook her head. “I have to hit the grocery store. The girls are having a popcorn, cookies, and ice cream TV night while you and I are out, so I need to stock up on some junk.”
Mark laughed. “Sounds like a fun night. My dad will probably do the same with Benji.” He glanced at the kids lining up, then back at Karen. “I have to go, but I’ll be by around six?”
“That’s perfect,” she said, her eyes twinkling with warmth. “I’m looking forward to it.”
Without thinking, Mark placed a hand on her shoulder and leaned in to kiss her cheek. The moment his lips touched her soft skin, he was overwhelmed by how soft her cheek felt and how delicious she smelled—vanilla and something floral. Holy shit , he thought, startled by his own boldness in kissing her cheek.
He jerked back slightly, and his mind raced to apologize, but before he could say anything, Karen’s radiant smile bloomed. A light blush colored her cheeks, and she reached over to squeeze his hand, the simple gesture sending a rush of relief and something deeper through him.
“See you tonight, Mark,” she said softly before turning and heading to her car.
His eyes followed her the entire way, still in a daze from the unexpected moment.
“Dad!”
Benji’s voice jolted him out of his thoughts, and he shook his head, trying to clear the Karen-induced fog. He jogged over to where the kids gathered, but his mind was already looking forward to six o’clock.