UNSEEN

by Felicia Mires

  "Yes, we do," said Laurel. "Jeffrey Seymour."

  "That's impossible," said Zack. "I've double-checked the security footage at his firm. He never left the building, and his employee card shows that he used the elevator to go to his office during the party, log into his computer, and then ride the elevator back to the party. All within our time frame, and it's on camera."

  "That's the sort of thing that exonerated him in high school. You're missing the big picture. Jeffrey Seymour is the one who got me started on computer hacking. He knew how to manipulate the school computer programs, and he knows how to break into his building's security."

  "Laurel, there's a lot more to it than that. You're saying he also broke into Destiny's cell phone records and disguised his handwriting to look like yours, Penny's, and Destiny's."

  "Yes!" She rolled her eyes. "He can do all that."

  Destiny raised her hand. "I know someone who could verify that, his co-worker Janie Gallant. While Caleb searched Jeffrey's office, I had a little conversation with Janie. She says Jeffrey's job at the firm is not so much as an accountant but as a computer specialist. He shows the clients how to protect their accounts online. Janie told me Jeffrey can stop a hack from anywhere. If he can stop one, he can certainly initiate one."

  Caleb stared at her. If only he'd thought to ask her at the time about her conversation with Ms. Gallant, but he'd gotten sidetracked.

  "I was going to tell you, Caleb. Really, I was."

  "What's his motive, ladies? Why did he attack you in high school and why in the world would he wait all this time to come back and kill Penny Weathers?"

  "I went into forensics for a reason," said Laurel as she leaned forward. "I wanted to prove I was innocent and that my father died for nothing. I knew someone else was responsible, but I didn't know how to figure it out."

  Her eyes lit with an inner passion, and she punctuated her words with hand gestures as she spoke. This was a Laurel that Caleb had never seen. Had everything about their relationship been staged?

  "Although the evidence was stacked against Destiny and Penny, I wanted it to be someone else." She glanced down the table at Destiny. "I never felt comfortable around Jeffrey, so I profiled him. He didn't exactly have an ideal childhood. His father left when he was five, and his mother was an alcoholic. The only people he hung out with in high school were geeks and science nerds. He got his arm broken against a locker and multiple wedgies in the locker room."

  "What has that got to do with now?" asked Zack.

  "When he came back from college, he started over as a new person, but those old injuries never left him. After her grandparents died, Penny must have found him when she needed an accountant. He saw this as his chance to get back at the three women who supposedly ruined his life in high school."

  "How did we ruin his life?" Destiny huffed as she wadded her trash.

  "When you asked him to tutor me, he thought you were inviting him into your world as the hero. Think about it, Destiny. We never saw him that way."

  Caleb interrupted. "You did say he tried to act as your protector against Laurel, that he warned you she was unstable."

  "Exactly," Laurel nodded. "When we didn't adopt him, so to speak, he began a systematic plot to split us up and make us more dependent on him."

  "But you pushed him further away, Destiny," Caleb added.

  "So, he vandalized his own mother's car, which took a lot, because he was devoted to her." Laurel relaxed against her chair back. "I think that's when he really went over the edge. He hurt his mother, but he still didn't get the attention from us that he wanted…or the revenge. He's methodical. He's been waiting and planning for years."

  Destiny's gaze dropped to her clasped hands, and she sighed. "That's nuts…and so pitifully sad."

  "I'll tell you what's sad," said Pemberly. "Say we believe Seymour is some super-genius. How in the world was he supposed to commit the murder, plant the gun and shoe at Destiny's house, get the yearbook to Laurel's trunk, and arrive back at work in a little over an hour? A jury will have a hard time believing that."

  "That's easy," said Laurel. "He committed the murder and left evidence at Destiny's while she was at the movie theater. He went back to work to prove his alibi. He could have left the yearbook in my trunk at any point during the night. I live in apartments, and there's no garage."

  "How did he get Destiny's shoe in the first place? She was wearing it when she visited Penny."

  Destiny raised a finger. "I changed shoes after I went to Penny's. My shoes were home the rest of the day. He could have come at any time."

  "You need to get home security," said Caleb, scowling. "What we want now is a way to connect Seymour to the crime. The man can't have changed the security footage of every ATM or traffic camera between his office and Penny's house. At some point, he has to have gotten caught in your neighborhood, Penny's, or at Laurel's apartment complex."

  "If there are any cameras," said Zack. "This town isn't exactly overflowing with traffic cams."

  "There's another way." Laurel held up a finger for emphasis. "One of the things I've been analyzing about Jeffrey's writing sample isn't just the way he wrote. It's the words he used. That's like a stylistic fingerprint. I compared the letters I had with everything I could find that Jeffrey wrote for school, English papers, science fair…whatever. He liked certain words and used them with repetition. He was very quantifiable, rational, and succinct."

  "Would that stand up in court?" asked Zack. "Can you verify it?"

  "In court, the handwriting expert would say he analyzed the idiolect or the linguistic variations that identify a specific author then he would use multivariate analysis to compare anything written by Jeffrey with my writing samples. My psychological style is nothing like Jeffrey's. I'm certain an expert would discover the same. But…"

  "But what?" Caleb shifted in his seat. "We need something concrete."

  "The latest threats are short, and there's not enough material to really identify Jeffrey. Besides, I don't have any recent writing samples for comparison."

  "Then we're back to searching for video footage of his drive from the office to Penny's neighborhood."

  Zack pushed his chair back. "There's still Penny's work records…her appointment calendar. She might have made some type of reference. I'll verify the alibis, Caleb."

  The lawyer stood as well. "That should be all, Detective." He stooped to help Laurel from her chair. "Call me if you need anything else."

  And suddenly, Caleb was alone with Laurel and Destiny. He wasn't sure which one to look at first, so he kept his eyes on his notes. Thankfully, the two women began a conversation of their own.

  Laurel moved closer to Destiny, held out her hand then let it drop. "Destiny, I'm sorry about Penny. If there's anything I can do…"

  "The funeral is tomorrow. If they ever let us out of here, would you go with me? She didn't have any family left after her grandparents died."

  Laurel turned to scowl at Caleb. "They can't keep us after they verify the alibis."

  "It's all just so…so…he cut out her tongue." Destiny's head bent, and she covered her face with her hands as quiet sobs shook her body.

  Laurel wrapped her arms around her. "Of course, I'll come."

  Caleb dug in his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief then reached across the table to stuff it in Destiny's clenched fingers. If he spent much more time around this particular female, he night need to purchase more hankies.

  "Thank you, Caleb." She pulled back from Laurel and dabbed at her eyes.

  "You're welcome. If the two of you are feeling up to it, I'd like your help reading through Penny's work diary and her computer."

  Chapter 7

  How do I love thee? Let me count the ways: sliced and diced, bleeding and bloody, poisoned, screaming in terror, breathless with horror, aching for freedom. Alone. Dead.

  Three hours later, Caleb leaned away from the table and stretched his back. Destiny had been drooping for a while, and she'd fin
ally given up. Her head lay on the table, cradled in her arms. He wanted to reach out and smooth the hair from her cheek, get her a pillow, or something, but Laurel was watching. He settled for walking around the table to lay his jacket across her shoulders then returned to his seat.

  Laurel's gaze followed him. "You like her, don't you."

  "Just being courteous, Laurel. Don't read anything into it."

  "It's all right. She's easy to like. Interesting. Vivacious. Attractive."

  "Is this going anywhere…like why you spent time with me the past couple of months when you clearly had another agenda?"

  She closed the laptop to face him squarely. "You're a good friend, Caleb. I respect you. I even like you."

  "But?"

  "You and I will always be friends, and I want you to know that being friends with you was my only motive for spending time with you."

  "Thanks for letting me know where we stand."

  "Oh, come on. If there'd really been that kind of a spark, don't you think you'd have tried to kiss me by now?"

  "Maybe I was just being a gentleman." When Laurel rolled her eyes and smiled, Caleb relented. "Ok, we're friends. I like being with you because you understand the job. You don't mind talking about things that offend the sensibilities of a more sensitive type woman. You're rational, intelligent, and humorous."

  Laurel laughed softly. "You could say that about one of the men, you know."

  "You're easier on the eyes."

  "Well, I'm glad we got that cleared up. By the way, I didn't find anything on Penny's laptop. Do you think Destiny made it through the desk calendar before she passed out?"

  Caleb carefully slid it out from under Destiny's elbow and read the date. "No, but she's close." He flipped back through the pages to one that was flagged. "She's got a lot of yellow tabs flagging certain pages. Looks like she started at the point where Jeffrey and Penny made contact."

  Laurel picked up Destiny's notebook. "According to Destiny's notes, Jeffrey contacted Penny after he saw a notice in the newspaper about the death of her grandmother. That's significant."

  "The datebook says, 'Heard from Jeffrey Seymour today. Can't believe he saw the funeral notice about Nana. Find all the documents he'll need for taxes. What a relief!'"

  Destiny stirred then slowly raised her head. She blinked several times before she smiled at Caleb. His stomach did a little flip. She certainly was cute with hair in her eyes. She reached up to brush it back then yawned.

  "Sorry. Didn't mean to crash. Where are we? Did you find something?"

  Laurel shook her head. "Not in her laptop."

  Caleb whistled. "I did. Destiny, you stopped just short of the mother lode. Listen to this entry for two weeks ago. 'Give Jeffrey gun and owner's registration. Seven o'clock.'"

  "That doesn't mean she ever gave it to him."

  "It's enough for a warrant to search his house and home computer."

  Destiny shook her head. "I don't get it. Why is that enough for a warrant?"

  "According to what his co-worker Janie Gallant told you, he could break any firewall, which means we can check to see if he tampered with the security cams and the logs. And now, we can connect him to the gun. We also have his car parked in the neighborhood. The judge will see all that as reason to look further."

  The door swung open, and Zack lumbered through, smiling. "You ladies will be sleeping in your own beds tonight."

  "Not until I take a bath," said Destiny. "I feel as if all kinds of creepy things are crawling on me."

  "What did the captain say?" asked Caleb, so he wouldn't have to think about Destiny in a tub, rubbing soap all over her body.

  "He said with alibis that solid, we could cut them loose. According to the P.I., Destiny met Penny at her house at…" Zack flipped pages on his notebook. "Ten-thirty, just like the neighbor said. Destiny left around eleven-thirty. She stopped to get gas, texted on her phone while she waited for the tank to fill…"

  "See there. I told you I texted my grandfather." Destiny raised her chin to meet Caleb's glance.

  His heart felt so light he wanted to lean across the table and kiss her. "I never said you didn't. We need proof."

  "Yeah, well…you aren't going to believe this," Zack began, "but that P.I. cloned Destiny's phone. He saw the texts between her and whoever was acting as her grandfather. He even has a record of it."

  "What!" Destiny jumped out of her seat. "That's illegal. He can't do that."

  "You should be thankful you're in the clear. May I continue?"

  "Sorry, Zack. Go ahead." Her eyes got big as saucers. "He didn't tap my house and listen to me in the tub or take pictures, did he?"

  "Destiny, please. If you'll just listen."

  "Sorry. Sorry."

  "As I was saying, she drove to the store, bought milk, grapefruit, and two packs of breath mints, then drove home where she stayed until she went to the movie theater. She sat in the parking lot for over half an hour, during which time she made a call, then she returned home."

  "He certainly was thorough," said Destiny. "I feel a little creeped out. How in the world did I not notice some dude watching me?"

  "Exactly what I'd like to know," said Caleb, frowning. "Do all authors walk around with their heads in the clouds?"

  "I will not even dignify that with a response. What about Laurel? Did you find her cabbie?"

  Zack nodded. "Same thing. He met Laurel at her house, followed her to her rendezvous, staying pretty far back, then he followed her home. All the while thinking she was a nut, a nut who tipped really well."

  Laurel shrugged. "I'd rather be a nut than stuck in jail for a murder I didn't commit."

  "Me, too." Destiny reached for her hand. "Thanks, Lorelei. I mean, Laurel. I guess you're done with that other name."

  "It's all right, Destiny." She yawned. "If you guys are finished…"

  "Wait," said Zack. "Tell me you found something to link Seymour to Penny."

  Caleb slid the date book across the table. "She said she was giving him the gun."

  "Finally, a break. Now, we get a warrant, but I think Laurel and Destiny can pick up their belongings and go home."

  Go home? Caleb didn't like the idea of Destiny going home alone at almost two in the morning. She looked dead on her feet.

  Laurel shook her head. "They didn't take anything of mine. It was all in my employee locker. See you tomorrow."

  "I'll walk you out."

  Zack and Laurel left the room, and Caleb began to stack the evidence. This was going to the evidence officer and getting locked up for the night.

  Laurel shrugged his jacket off her shoulders and passed it to him. "Thanks, Caleb. I guess I'll leave now."

  "I'll go with you to retrieve your things."

  Twenty minutes later, they stood awkwardly in the parking lot under a bright fluorescent light. When Destiny shivered, Caleb reached to take off his jacket.

  "No, it's ok. I'm going home."

  "I'm not sure how I feel about that. I'd really like to take a look inside your house."

  "I think I've had enough officers traipsing through my home. I can just imagine what it looks like."

  "Sorry about that, but I'm afraid I'll have to insist."

  She backed against her car and scowled up at him. "You insist? I don't know who you think you are, Caleb Forest, but you can't force your way into my home. You already used up that warrant."

  "Hush, woman. I'm the man who's going to make sure you live through this investigation." He took a light hold of her elbow. "Come on. We're going in my car. After I'm sure you're safe, you can yell at me for messing up your house then throw me out."

  "Fine, but if they tore up my first editions, I really will yell."

  Convincing her to ride with him had gone better then Caleb anticipated, but she remained silent the whole way to her house, except for the occasional directions. He couldn't imagine how she must feel. The past few days had been a walking nightmare, from the threatening letters, to Penny's murder, and th
en the arrest. He hoped Zack and the other officers hadn't completely trashed her home.

  "This is it." She pointed at a small bungalow with detached garage.

  In the dark, it appeared well-maintained but eerily blank.

  "You didn't leave a light on."

  "It was early morning when I left. I didn't expect to get arrested."

  "You keep harping on that. Considering Jeffrey Seymour broke in your house and planted evidence, you should be thanking me for providing police protection."

  She paused before the front door with the key in her hand. "I…forgot about that."

  "Here, let me."

  Caleb opened the door and reached inside for the light. After flooding the room with a bright glow, he stepped aside to let her in. "Not bad, huh?"

  Destiny stopped beside him, and her gaze traveled the room. From what Caleb could tell, nothing looked out of place. He studied the floor. Maybe a little fingerprint dust, but that would vacuum right up.

  Destiny moved to the bookshelf and ran her fingers across the spines of the books. "They're all here." She glanced back at him. "Zack didn't throw them on the floor."

  "I asked him to go easy."

  She smiled and took a step closer. In another second, she was in his arms. "Caleb, thank you. Thank you so much. I don't know what to say."

  He patted her back and reached in his pocket for a hanky. "Oops, I think you've already got my handkerchief."

  She backed away and pulled it out. "I just…thank you."

  "Sure. Well…I'm going to walk through the house. Do you want to go with me?"

  "I want to know where Jeffrey left that bloody shoe and the gun."

  "Why? The area's been photographed and cleaned. Do you really need to dread a certain area of your home?"

  "I want to pray over it."

  "Why don't you pray over the entire house? That's even better."

  She shifted her weight from one foot to the other. She was wavering. He could tell from the range of emotion that passed over her face. Finally, her expression cleared, and she sighed. "I guess you're right."

  They spent the next ten minutes investigating every nook and cranny. The entire house smelled like her, especially the bedroom. It felt more intimate than any investigation he'd been on as she pattered along beside him.