Lin realized that Tim had probably shared all that he knew. She would’ve loved to ask about others who might’ve seen what happened, but she decided not to press her luck. Maybe Ken Parker would tell them more. She wanted to know who their prowler was. Maybe he was one of the locals who made this place a regular hangout.
She thanked Tim for sharing with them and, once again, complemented the barbeque. “The Irish coffee was really good too.”
“Come back again,” Tim said rising to return to the bar.
The clouds had completely lifted and the skies above were starry and clear as they drove back to Kate’s house. Lin was quiet, deep in thought, trying to sort out all the information they had learned that day. She was still having a hard time seeing Billy Thornton as a killer, but she really didn’t know him. Didn’t know what he might be capable of if he were drunk or high.
It was almost ten when they arrived home. Sparky was eagerly awaiting their arrival. Neal grabbed his leash. “Let’s take him on a short walk through the neighborhood. Things are pretty dry now and I could use some fresh air myself.”
As they walked through the quiet neighborhood, Neal put his arm around Lin’s shoulder. “This has been quite a day, too much information to process. I don’t know how Matt Johnson held up as well as he did.”
“I’m sure all this has been shocking to him,” Lin replied, “I just hope he isn’t being too hard on Dorrie in his mind. I doubt any of this was really her fault. After all, Billy’s evidently the one who provided the pot, and she may have taken other drugs unknowingly.”
“I know,” Neal replied, “I guess when your kid has had problems in the past, it’s easy to think they’ve just slipped back into old habits but…who knows what really happened.”
“I feel confident Ken Parker will find out, he’s a good man,” Lin responded.
As they walked quietly, she reflected on all the information they’d received, trying to fit things into a sensible picture of what might have occurred. She did trust Ken Parker to handle the criminal side of this story, but she was really worried about the Johnsons and their memory of their daughter. In spite of the fact that Ken Parker had implied that Dorrie might have been date raped and might not have been aware she was being drugged, Lin realized that Matt Johnson had his doubts. He and Sara had been through a lot with their daughter in the past. It was hard to let go of all that. Lin wished that she could somehow restore Dorrie’s reputation, for the sake of their memories. It was hard to imagine Dorrie driving herself to Nags Head Woods in a drugged state, hard to visualize her getting stung and falling down that slope bouncing her arms and shoulders into trees but not getting bruised anywhere on her lower extremities.
Lin thought about the photographs with the ME’s report. The areas of lividity on Dorrie’s back could mask other bruises, but the front of her abdomen and her legs appeared clear. The more she thought about it, the more Lin realized that she didn’t think Dorrie had fallen from the trail. After all, she had fallen down that same slope herself. She had quickly lost her footing landing on her rear, and she was stone sober. She didn’t find it likely that Dorrie had managed to bounce from tree to tree breaking her fall when she was supposedly hung over and suffering a severe allergic reaction. It just doesn’t make sense, she said to herself. The more she thought about it, the more she realized something else must have happened. Dorrie was in that water, but she didn’t fall from the trail.
“A penny for your thoughts,” Neal gibed as they arrived at Kate’s and headed upstairs. “You’ve been a million miles away for the last two blocks.”
“Sorry,” Lin said sheepishly. She quickly related her thoughts to Neal and the questions she felt were unanswered. “I just don’t believe her bruises look like a fall down that hill. Did you see the photos Ken brought?”
“I did look at them and I see your point,” he playfully patted her rear end, ”I recall that lovely bruise you had when I first arrived.”
“Stop that,” Lin blushed, “shoving his hand away. It’s true that I lost my footing and I think Dorrie would’ve also. Of course, the lividity could’ve covered any bruises on her rear or back,” she added.
“True, but I think you’re right that if she were bouncing from tree to tree she would have some other frontal bruises—not just on her arms and shoulders.”
At that moment Lin remembered something else. She was reviewing the photos she had seen in her mind, and her thoughts focused on the strange bruise or scrape on Dorrie’s upper arm. She described it to Neal, “Did you notice that? What could have made that?”
Neal was thoughtful for a moment, then he suddenly jumped up and raced downstairs, “Back in a minute,” he called.
When he returned, he had the small wire-covered box they had found on their walk when they had gone to Nags Head Woods and revisited the place where Dorrie had been found.
“I forgot all about this,” he said. “This bait box, or whatever it is. That bruise or scrape looks like this thing, an oval shape and wires across, could’ve made it. Maybe when she fell she landed on this. We did find it in the mud there.”
“You mean, Sparky found it,” Lin smiled recalling how muddy the dog got.
“Yeah, yeah,” Neal agreed, “but I forgot all about it. Maybe we should give it to Ken. It might not mean anything but who knows.”
“You’re right, it’s probably not significant, but we should let him decide that. I’ll take it by the station tomorrow sometime; you’re going to be tied up with the archeological team.”
Lin was secretly happy to have the chance to talk to Ken once more. She was increasingly sure that whatever Dorrie did on Friday, after her evening with Billy, could be important. She hoped she could persuade him to look further into her activities. Was she simply hung over and trying to shake it off on a walk or did she go anywhere else or talk to anyone before going to Nags Head Woods? Lin realized that finding another witness to Dorrie’s activities might confirm what her physical state was just before her accident.
Lin realized that Neal had already left the kitchen while she wasn’t paying attention. She checked all the doors and windows before heading to the master suite upstairs.
Neal was in the office, hunched over his laptop. The strange little bait box, or whatever it was, was sitting on the desk.
“I’m trying to identify this thing,” he mumbled, “I’ve checked every sporting goods site I can think of and can’t find a bait box that looks like this.”
Lin picked up the small object and examined it. There appeared to be some sort of logo stamped on the bottom but it was faint and streaked with mud. She took the box over to the small bar sink and washed it carefully. Returning to the desk, she focused the high-density desk lamp on the logo.
“This looks like ‘Myers’ or something close to that, it’s hard to read,”
Neal typed in the name and googled it, getting a long list of possible websites with Myers as part of the name. “This is going to take some time,” he confessed, “but I think I’ll work on it for a few minutes anyway.”
“See you later then,” Lin said, “ I’m heading for the shower.”
She realized how tired she was as the warm steamy water ran over her body soothing away her aches. She decided to shampoo her hair because the rain had made it frizzy. She was still drying it when Neal burst into the bathroom.
“I found it!” he exclaimed. “You’ll never guess what this is.”
“Then just tell me,” Lin responded.
“It’s something that beekeepers use called a Mini Queen Cage. It’s used to transport queen bees to new hives, it seems. Basically it’s a bee cage.”
Lin was dumbfounded. She put the hair dryer on the counter and turned to Neal. “That changes everything,” she said.
Chapter 16
Thursday promised to be a pleasant and sunny. Neal was off early to meet the archeological team at Fort Raleigh for what promised to be a busy day. The guys from the security company arrived to begin their
work and Lin took Sparky for a long walk around the neighborhood largely so he wouldn’t be barking at their every move. She felt restless, eager to be out and about. Finally, she decided she might as well clean house since she had so much pent up energy.
The security workers had finished installing sensors on the porch, so she put Sparky out there. Apparently he was becoming used to their presence as he had ceased to bark at them. Tired from his walk he curled up on the rug for a nap.
As she worked her way from the lower level shower and laundry up through the main floor to the master suite upstairs, Lin kept thinking about that strange little box that Neal had identified as a Mini Queen Cage. It seemed to her that the oddly shaped bruise or scrape seen in the photo of Dorrie’s upper arm looked as if it were an imprint of that small device. Could Dorrie have landed on it as she fell? Something just didn’t fit here. Maybe there was no connection, but Lin couldn’t shake the feeling that this was significant in some way. Call it intuition, but she felt like it was an important find that needed to be shared with the police.
As she wiped mirrors and fixtures in the master bath, she found herself thinking about fingerprints. What would be found when the police examined Dorrie’s car? Maybe nothing, but maybe there would be some evidence there that shed light on what Dorrie was doing the last time she drove the vehicle. Lin’s mind was literally buzzing with unanswered questions.
Fortunately, by the time she’d finished cleaning the house and putting in a load of laundry, the security crew had completed the inside work placing sensors on doors and windows. “We’ll be working outside for another hour or so, but we don’t need access to the interior of the house,” the crew chief told her when she asked about leaving to run errands. She gave them her cell number in case they needed to reach her, grabbed the small bag that contained the bee cage and her grocery list, and escaped. It was almost noon.
As she was leaving, Lin decided to call Ken Parker. The receptionist reported that he was in but tied up currently so she left her number, asking that he return her call as soon as possible. She had hoped to go to the station first before shopping, but apparently that wasn’t going to happen, so she headed for Harris-Teeter.
An hour later she was back at Kate’s this time with several stuffed bags of food for the two of them plus some ingredients to do some holiday baking. It wouldn’t be long before her family would be arriving, and she had promised Eloise to share in preparing some food for the get together they were planning.
The security workers were packing up their gear as she arrived. “I’ve left instructions on how to set the codes and arm the system on the table beside the control panel near the kitchen door,” the crew chief told her. “It’s really very simple but don’t hesitate to call if you have questions or need help.”
“Thanks,” Lin replied, as she grabbed the first two bags of groceries and headed upstairs. She probably should stop and check on all that, but she had frozen stuff that needed to be unpacked right away. Her cell phone rang deep in her purse before she could reach the kitchen. No way could she retrieve it in time to catch the call.
Thinking it might be Ken Parker returning her call, she hurriedly put the bags down and dug for the phone. The call was from Neal checking on the progress of the security system installation while on his lunch break. She’d call him back later after the food was put away.
It was close to two by the time Lin had stowed all the groceries and made a sandwich. She took her lunch to the porch and decided to call Neal. He didn’t answer, probably was back in the field and had the phone off, so she left a message letting him know that the system was now installed and that she planned to be out most of the afternoon. As she was rinsing her plate and thinking what to do next, her cell rang again. This time it was Ken Parker.
“Sorry, I’m so late returning your call, I’ve been up to my ears in this mess all morning; I had to meet with Billy Thornton and his attorney,” Ken sounded as if he wished the day were already over.
Lin apologized for adding to his workload as she told him about finding the strange little box that seemed to match one of Dorrie’s bruises. “I thought I’d bring it in so you could see what you thought. I’d like to talk to you for a few minutes, if you can spare the time,” she tried not to sound too eager.
Ken sighed, “Sure, I guess I could see you now if you can get down here in the next few minutes. Matt Johnson is due sometime to pick up Dorrie’s car and I want to have time to talk to him.”
“I’m on my way,” Lin said. She took a few seconds to think about the rest of the afternoon and decided to grab her swimsuit and some sweats. It was Thursday, and she hadn’t yet been to the Holiday Inn to exercise. She had planned to start a regular routine, but somehow the week had slipped away from her. She packed a tote, not forgetting to take the completed application forms with her. Before she left, she let Sparky out for a short visit to the yard as she wasn’t sure when she would return.
As she pulled into the parking lot at the police station, Lin saw that Dorrie’s car was parked near the entrance; evidently the examination of the vehicle was complete. When she checked in with the receptionist she was told that Mr. Johnson was with Sgt. Parker. “I’ll let him know you’re here,” the young officer at the desk smiled.
Lin had just taken a seat when Ken Parker appeared, “Come on back, Mr. Johnson is here but that’s ok.”
As she entered the conference room, Lin realized that Matt Johnson had been without transportation all morning. She wished she had thought to offer her help, but it was too late now. She apologized for her oversight.
“Not a problem,” Matt smiled as he rose and pulled out a chair for her. “These folks have been most helpful. They dropped me off at the Outlet Mall after I brought the car in, and I was able to finish up my Christmas shopping. They picked me up and brought me here just now.” He glanced at his watch, “I’m hoping to be on the road within the hour and back in Richmond in time for a late dinner.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem,” Ken spoke up, “we’re through with the car, really didn’t find much of anything. The only fingerprints were yours Mr. Johnson.”
“That’s strange,” Lin spoke without really thinking, “If Dorrie drove herself to Nags Head Woods shouldn’t her prints be on the doors, the steering wheel…?”
“ It is a bit unusual,” Ken admitted, “but she might have worn driving gloves—there were some in the glove box and the Sheriff’s department probably cleaned the car up a bit after they checked it, before they gave it to Mr. Johnson.” Lin didn’t find that explanation very convincing. Personally, she doubted that the car had really been examined at all earlier, but she didn’t say anything more.
“Let me see that box you found,” Ken changed the subject.
Lin produced the small object and explained how it was found and how it reminded them of the strange mark on Dorrie’s arm. Ken retrieved the medical report from his file and looked at the pictures again, passing them to Matt and Lin so that they could look again also. He turned the small box carefully in his large hand.
“It does seem to match those marks,” he said. “Not sure how she would have hit it, but strange things happen when somebody falls.”
Lin seized the opportunity; something else had just occurred to her. “That’s true, you’ll recall I took a tumble down that same slope the day Sparky and I found Dorrie. Got a huge bruise on my rear to show for it, but I just realized something today. I didn’t grab for a branch or tree to break my slide because there weren’t any right in that area—only small shrubs and leaf litter. I slid most of the way down on my butt.”
Ken appeared thoughtful, digesting what Lin had said. Matt Johnson spoke up, “Are you saying that the bruises on Dorrie’s arms can’t be explained by the circumstances of her fall?”
Lin didn’t say anything; she didn’t have any answers for that.
Finally Ken Parker broke the silence. “What you say is true for you, Lin. We can’t be sure that Dorrie fell fro
m the same spot. There are other areas along that slope where there are more trees. We can’t be sure exactly where she was when she was stung.”
Lin wasn’t ready to drop the subject, “But maybe you should look at that area again. Were you able to determine where exactly she fell when you first examined the site? Shouldn’t you try to determine how Dorrie might’ve landed on this strange little box? What if that isn’t what happened?” Almost immediately, Lin realized that she had probably pushed Ken Parker too far.
“What do you think, Ms. Hanna?” Ken’s expression was grim and he was obviously struggling to be polite. “ I’m not sure this little box you found is even related to this entire scene. Those marks could’ve come from a knot on a tree or log Dorrie hit in her fall, but I assure you we will examine it and look again at the photos. We’ll do our job.” He didn’t have to add, “if you’ll let us”—Lin got the message.
Throughout this exchange, Matt Johnson had been silent. Now he rose to leave extending his hand to Sgt. Parker. “I want you to know that I appreciate all you have done—looking into Dorrie’s death again, trying to get some answers for us. We know much more now,” he hesitated “…about her own behavior while she was here. Hopefully, you will find out more about what happened leading up to her death, but at least we no longer think she was guilty of murder ten years ago. You can’t imagine what a relief that is. Sara and I have both of you to thank for that.”
Ken rose and extended his hand to Matt. “We will keep looking,” he assured him. If there are more answers out there, we’ll find them. If we think we have enough evidence to do so, we’ll bring charges of date rape against Billy Thornton and, I feel sure, Sheriff Midgett will look at him hard in the Liz Frazier case. Sometimes it’s hard to prove a case that’s grown so cold, but we have a good case against him where Connie is concerned. He won’t escape that, I assure you.” He turned to Lin.
Sandrift: A Lin Hanna Mystery Page 17
