Chapter 10
Gabe wanted to rush out of the room and get the jacket to the forensic lab for testing, but he forced himself to remain calm.
Not only so El didn’t pull him off this investigation because he couldn’t control his emotions, but also to see what she had to say.
To get that second opinion is so important in law enforcement. In life generally.
Her eyes lit up. “Definitely too strong of a lead to leave here.”
“When word gets out about Kenna’s death, the jacket owner could come back for it. Especially if he’s the killer. Or even if he isn’t, he probably doesn’t want to get involved.”
“I have large evidence bags in my kit in the family room. We can go bag it there.”
He followed her, but hadn’t missed her strong emphasis on we. She wanted him to accompany her. She didn’t need his help, but she couldn’t leave him without supervision.
They made quick work of bagging and labeling the jacket, then returned to the bedroom where El looked under the bed, while he completed his closet search.
She soon got to her feet. “Nothing here. Moving on to the bathroom.”
He finished the last storage box and followed her to the only bathroom.
El went straight to the mirrored medicine cabinet, revealing toothbrushes and toothpaste, along with children’s acetaminophen and ibuprofen, and a bottle of adult acetaminophen.
“No illegal drugs.” She closed the door and squatted to look under the sink. “Nothing here either.”
Gabe grabbed the trashcan and held it out to El. “A positive pregnancy test.”
“She did know she was pregnant. I’ll bag it for DNA and prints.”
Another secret Kenna had kept from him. “With the test sitting on top of the trash, the father could know too. Or what if she was seeing two men and the second man found out it was the other guy’s baby?”
El looked at him. “A definite motive for murder, but you didn’t even know about one guy, do you really think she was hiding two men from you?”
“Doubtful, but we have to look at all possibilities. Maybe her neighbors have seen men coming and going and can help us figure that out.” Gabe didn’t wait for El, but hurried through the house and into the living room.
He fixed his hands on bended knees, and dragged in air, his lungs aching for it. His heart aching too. He didn’t want to spend a moment of time thinking he didn’t know Kenna as well as he thought. But he had to do his job and that meant considering things he didn’t want to think about.
El entered the room, and he expected her to give him a lecture on going ahead of her.
When she didn’t say anything, he rushed out the door. She had to secure the building and he went to the back of her vehicle, where she couldn’t see his emotional meltdown, giving him time to clear his head.
El soon joined him and opened her trunk to secure the evidence and her kit. “The jacket is too good of a lead to wait on getting the DNA processed. I’ll have a deputy pick it up and bring it to Sierra to include in the package she’ll have delivered to the lab today.”
She took out her phone and talked with Ulrich.
And Gabe looked across the drive at Mrs. Z.
’s bungalow, where she sat on her porch in an old cane rocker.
The bright blue house color had faded, but lovingly tended garden beds surrounded the structure.
Still, the building needed major repairs that her money didn’t stretch to.
Gabe had offered to help her, but like Kenna, she refused financial help.
He’d settled for making minor repairs for her.
El pocketed her phone. “We’ll meet up with a deputy and give them the jacket, pregnancy test, and photos of the suspected boyfriend.”
“I appreciate your sense of urgency. This could be the guy who has Lucy.” With that horrific thought in his brain, he headed across the drive.
Mrs. Z moved her rocker in a rhythmic dance. As he got closer, he could make out her pink-and-purple house dress with a flowered apron over the front.
She caught sight of them, came to her feet, and waved. “Gabe. Gabe. Yoohoo. Over here.”
She met him at the top of the steps and swept him into a fiercely tight hug. Her body round and padded, she always smelled like vanilla and honey. “Land sakes. It’s been way too long since I’ve seen you.”
He pushed free of her arms. “Sorry. I’d like to have come by more often, but we’ve been swamped with setting up the new business.”
“Kenna told me you all have made quite a success of it. She’s not home, as I’m sure you know, since you were just there.”
Of course she saw them arrive and him go around to crawl into the house. She didn’t miss a thing, which would make her a valuable witness.
But before asking any questions, he had to tell her about Kenna and Lucy. “Why don’t we sit down?”
She drew her eyebrows together and looked past him. “And who is this?”
“Oh, sorry. Meet El Lyons.”
“El? Like the letter L? What kind of name is that?”
If El was offended by Mrs. Z.’s comment, she didn’t show it. “It’s E-l. Short for Elaina.”
“Well now, that’s a beautiful name, and I’ll call you Elaina.” She gestured at the rockers. “Have a seat. I’ll run inside for some iced tea and the sugar cookies freshly baked for Lucy. They’re her favorite but she won’t miss a few of them.”
Gabe reached for Mrs. Z.’s arm. “Let’s sit. There’s something I need to tell you.”
Those eyebrows drew together again, and she frowned at him. “It’s about Kenna and Lucy, right? Why they’re not home, and why she didn’t tell me where she was going? Probably didn’t tell you either or you wouldn’t have had to crawl through that wonky window.”
Gabe didn’t speak, but helped ease her into the chair. Considering she could already be unsteady on her feet at times, he didn’t want her standing when the shock hit her.
He pulled the nearest rocker closer to her and took her hands. “This will be hard to hear, but you like straight talkers so I won’t tiptoe around it. Kenna’s body was found last night. She was murdered.”
She gasped and jerked her hand free to clutch her chest. “No. No. I refuse to believe it.”
“I thought the same way, too, but I’ve seen her. She didn’t survive.”
She started sobbing, tears flowing over her cheeks. She dug a tissue from her apron pocket and dabbed at her eyes. She suddenly sat forward. “Lucy! What about Lucy?”
Gabe wasn’t sure he could get the words out to tell her, but he had to. “She’s missing. We don’t know if she wandered off or if someone took her.”
“Someone?” She planted her hands on the rocker arms. “You mean like the killer?”
“That would be the most likely scenario.”
El silently approached and knelt in front of Mrs. Z. “We’re doing everything we can to find her and find out who killed Kenna.”
“We? That doesn’t sound like something a friend would say. Exactly who are you?”
“I’m the detective in charge of finding Lucy, and Kenna’s killer.”
“She’s working with me and my team,” Gabe said. “We hope to find leads in Kenna’s bungalow. Also to ask if you know anyone who might want to harm her.”
“Kenna?” She waved her hand. “You know she was the sweetest, most lovable person, and no one would want to do her harm.”
He nodded, but obviously one person wanted to harm her. Someone not only had means, but motive and opportunity too. They just had to find that person. “Did she have a boyfriend?”
“You of all people should know that.” She gave him an appraising look.
He took it to mean he would know that if he’d been around more often. “She never mentioned anyone to me.”
“Me either, but she’s had a male visitor for the last couple of months.”
“Do you know his name?” El asked. “Or can you describe him?”
“I don’t know his name. I do know he arrives late at night.
Often leaves early in the morning.” Her chin lifted a fraction, lips pressed into a thin line, as if she didn’t approve of this behavior.
“But before he leaves the house, he flips up his hood. Then keeps his head down, and I can never get a clear look at his face.”
Probably what he and Kenna intended.
El held out her phone, the screen displaying the picture they’d found in the house of Kenna and the unidentified man. “Is this the guy, and did you ever see him wearing a jacket like this?”
She peered at the picture. “Yes. Yes. That’s him, and I saw him wearing that jacket a couple of times. He had a sweatshirt on underneath with the hood pulled up.”
“So he was a big guy?” Gabe asked.
“Yeah. Kind of like you except a little bulkier. But tall and he had kind of a swagger when he walked. You know, like some of those young guys you see on television.”
Gabe didn’t know exactly what she meant, but the man having kind of a swagger could help them.
“What about a vehicle?” El asked. “What does he drive?”
“That’s the odd thing.” Mrs. Z. leaned back in the rocker. “He parked down the street. Like he and Kenna didn’t want anyone to know who he was or that they were in a relationship.”
“Maybe she thought you would recognize him if you saw him,” Gabe said.
“Me? Not hardly. I wouldn’t recognize any younger man unless he was from church. That’s the only place I really go besides doctors’ appointments.”
“Maybe she didn’t want anyone to know a man spent the night at her place,” El said.
“You don’t think she was…that they were doing something they shouldn’t do outside of marriage? No. I can’t believe that about Kenna.”
Gabe could tell her about the pregnancy, but he didn’t think she needed to have another loss to grieve. He met El’s gaze, encouraging her not to say anything. She opened her mouth. Gabe held his breath.
“Did Lucy ever mention him?” she asked, and Gabe started breathing again.
Mrs. Z. shook her head. “I also wondered if he came over when he did so Kenna didn’t have to introduce him to Lucy.”
“Which would suggest a more casual relationship,” El said.