“Well, honestly, it didn’t comfort me that my cousin’s husband, the father of those sweet little children, was the one who killed her. I would much rather it be someone else,” Suzanne said. “Now, when will we have the autopsy report?”
“It was supposed to be today,” Jennifer said. “I texted Jimmy earlier to apologize for my hijinks last night. Thankfully, he thought it was funny. Anyway, he heard from the chief that the coroner was just dotting his I’s and crossing his T’s. The report is going to be delivered tomorrow.”
“Ugh, the waiting. I can’t stand it!” Suzanne said.
“You can’t stand it? Imagine how I feel,” Jennifer replied. “Hey, we’ve done four laps. I’m ready to call it.”
The women were approaching Jennifer’s house. She opened her mailbox and started thumbing through her mail.
Suzanne stretched her arms out and yawned. “Me too,” she replied. “I have to get home.”
“It’s William’s nap time, anyway.” Jennifer’s voice trailed off as she stared at one particular letter in the pile.
“What’s so interesting?” Suzanne asked. “Win a million dollars from Publisher’s Clearing House?”
“I wish,” Jennifer replied wistfully. “It’s mail for Ethan. That mail carrier is always mixing things up.”
“Is it junk?” Suzanne asked.
“I don’t think so. It’s from a company called Fident. Deliver-ease, the business name, is in the address. Looks like it’s for Ethan’s app. Deliver-ease. That’s a cute name for it.” Jennifer frowned.
“That app was a great idea,” Suzanne said. “What are you going to do with it?”
“I’m not sure,” Jennifer replied. “Maybe I’ll send it off to Vinny, and he can make sure it gets to Ethan’s mom. I’ll wait a few days to see of anyone comes to get the mail and maybe give it to them.”
“Good plan,” Suzanne said. “Well, I’m off. I have tons to catch up on. The twins have probably destroyed the kitchen this morning. Talk later?”
“Sounds good,” Jennifer replied.
She made her way into the house and plopped the mail down on the counter. She was tired, and contemplated taking a nap with William. Then she took a good long look around her house. The sink was full of dishes, several loads of laundry sat piled by the washing machine, and a thick layer of dust covered just about everything. She decided that Peter was going to come home to a clean house tonight.
She put William down for his nap and got to work cleaning the house. Peter might not be getting a home-cooked meal, as she planned to order Chinese, but it was a start.
Chapter 15
Jennifer lay awake, staring at the ceiling, taking deep breaths, her chest pounding. It was 1 AM, and she couldn’t sleep.
What do I have to panic about now? she wondered. Her evening had gone swimmingly. Peter had been surprised and happy about the clean house and having dinner waiting for him when he arrived home. They had played with blocks as a family, and they’d put William to bed together. Saucy Jennifer had even finally made an appearance afterward.
That was the unfortunate nature of panic attacks, though; sometimes, there was no reason for them.
Jennifer couldn’t lie there anymore, so she decided to take an antihistamine, watch some TV, and try to fall asleep. She slipped out of bed and started to make her way down the hall.
As she rounded the corner into the living room, she sensed a presence. The hair on the back of her neck started to stand up, and she was covered in goosebumps. Her senses heightened as she stood there frozen in the hallway.
Jennifer turned and looked back at her room. She could clearly see Peter’s silhouette in the bed. She flicked on her phone to check the monitor and saw that William was sleeping soundly.
She was famous for imagining supernatural occurrences only to have them simply explained later. There didn’t seem to be a simple explanation for this, other than the fact that adrenaline was likely pumping through her from the panic attack.
She tried to shake the feeling and continued to walk toward the living room. Then she heard it: the sound of smashing glass coming from the kitchen. She was already in fight-or-flight mode, but as a mother whose child was sleeping nearby, her fight instinct always won, and she bolted towards the kitchen. She saw the figure of a person panicking and trying to open the back door.
“Peter, call the police! There’s someone in the house!” she screamed, and she ran towards the intruder. He or she managed to get the door open and flee as Jennifer approached.
Peter shot into the room, fumbling for his phone. “Jennifer, stay here, please. He may be armed!” he yelled, but it was too late. This person could be the killer, and Jennifer wanted to catch them. She ran after him or her as fast as she could.
The intruder ran around to the front of the house towards the street. The figure knocked into the mailbox with a heavy thud that Jennifer thought might incapacitate them for a second. However, it didn’t slow them at all, and they made it to the road.
The intruder disappeared into a wooded patch at the end of the cul-de-sac and ran straight through to the next road. They must have had a car waiting, because Jennifer heard screeching tires and was blinded by the headlights through the trees. She could feel her heart pounding inside her chest, and it was getting harder for her to catch her breath. Her whole body began to sweat and pulse. Her vision started to get blurry, and her throat ran dry.
Jennifer was terribly out of shape and was no match for whoever this was. She stopped at the wooded patch and was trying to recover a bit when she heard Peter’s footsteps finally catching up to her. That was the last thing she was aware of before she passed out completely, right there on the edge of the road.
“Jen! Jen! Are you all right?” The sound of Peter’s voice was frantic.
Why’s he so frantic? Jennifer wondered.
She was being lifted onto a gurney and was surrounded by strange faces and lights. Her eyelids started to flutter, and her mind started to race. She was completely confused.
“How did I get here, and why does my head hurt?” she managed to mutter.
“Everything is going to be okay,” Peter said. The look of worry on his face didn’t match the words coming out of his mouth, and that sent Jennifer right back into a panic.
“William! Where is he?” she asked as she tried to sit up.
“He’s okay, and he’s back to sleep, honey. Lie back down,” Suzanne said.
It all flooded back to her: the glass, the figure, the chase, the passing out.
“You cracked your head pretty badly on the concrete,” Peter said. “The paramedics want to take you to the hospital to get checked out.”
Tears started filling her eyes. This was all too much. Could Sarah’s and Ethan’s killer be after her family too?
“Jennifer, I’m so sorry. I completely forgot to lock the kitchen door tonight. This is all my fault,” Peter said. He sounded as if he was going to cry. “Why did you go after the intruder?”
“I-I had to. They were in my home, where my child sleeps. I just reacted. It was my —”
“Gut,” Jimmy interrupted.
It seemed like the whole town was there. He had arrived shortly after the paramedics.
“Yes. My gut,” Jennifer said.
“Well, you could have been killed,” Peter said. “Please don’t do that again.” He squeezed her hand.
“Okay, Mrs. Temple,” the paramedic said. “There’s a pretty sizable gash on your forehead, and your husband said that you hit your head on the concrete. We’re going to take you down to the hospital to get checked out. Okay?”
Jennifer nodded. Did she really have a choice? she wondered.
The paramedics loaded the gurney into the back of an ambulance. Jimmy popped his head in before they closed the doors.
“I’m going to take Pete over to th
e hospital. I’ll interview him, and once you’ve been checked out, I’ll get your side of the story. You’ll be fine. You’re a tough broad.” Jimmy did his best Vinny imitation and gave her a smile as they shut the doors.
Jennifer managed a little giggle, but that was all she could muster. Her head was pounding. She was still confused and completely overwhelmed with emotion. She really wasn’t sure how much more of this ‘excitement’ she could take.
How had a quiet evening at home turned into Jennifer in an ambulance on the way to the hospital? All she wanted was for life to get back to normal — and she surprised herself with that thought. A week ago, she had been bored and trying to find herself. Now, she wished she was home with her munchkin and her husband.
Chapter 16
The sun shone brightly in Jennifer’s eyes as it rose, waking her up. She stretched and looked around quickly, remembering what had happened the night before. Then she looked at her clock, and it was 3 AM. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d slept this late.
She and Peter had arrived home from the hospital at 5 AM. Suzanne had to get home to get the twins off to school, but she promised to come back afterwards to relieve Peter and let him get some rest.
Luckily, the doctors had decided Jennifer didn’t have a concussion. She’d had to have a plastic surgeon stitch up her forehead, but then she and Peter were sent on their way.
She could hear voices in the living room, and she wondered if she had company or if it was the TV. She stood up slowly, shuffled to the door, and looked on either side of the hall. No Peter.
She locked eyes with Suzanne, who came running for her.
“Jennifer, let me help you. You shouldn’t be walking on your own,” she said. She grabbed Jennifer’s arm and guided her back into her bed.
“Who’s here? Where’s Peter?” Jennifer asked.
“Peter is running around like a madman, changing the locks and installing security cameras,” Suzanne replied as she tucked Jennifer back in. “I made him take a power nap earlier and gave him some lunch. He’s running on fumes at this point. William and I have had quite the nice day together. He’s in with Chief Fitzgerald right now.”
“What? Why is the chief here?” Jennifer asked.
“I suppose for the same reason that Peter is turning your house into Fort Knox. He’s worried about you. Well, that and he wants to get your statement,” Suzanne replied.
The latter sounded more like the chief. Jennifer highly doubted that he was worried about her.
“Suzanne, while I’m grateful that you’re worried about me walking, I really want to get out of bed and get washed up. I can’t talk to the chief in my bedroom, and I certainly don’t want him to see me looking and smelling like this.”
Suzanne looked at Jennifer the same way Jennifer’s mom used to when she was worried about her. Jennifer appreciated her help, but she really wanted to try to get back to normal.
Suzanne shook her head and said, ”Well, all right. Let me help you to the bathroom, and you can shower. I’ll keep the chief occupied for a few more minutes, although I think he’s quite taken with William. I’ve known this man for 25 years, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen him smile!”
Suzanne helped Jennifer to the bathroom and gave her a change of clothes. Jennifer took a hot shower, brushed her teeth and pulled her hair up into a messy bun. Her head still hurt, and she was nauseated from the pain medication, but she was eager to send Suzanne and the chief along and just be with Peter and William.
Jennifer walked towards her living room, where the chief and William were playing with cars. The smile on the chief’s face faded as he met Jennifer’s eyes.
“I knew I was wrong about you,” Chief Fitzgerald said as he rose from the floor, brushing off his uniform. “Armchair detectives don’t usually give chase to intruders. They leave that kind of work to us.”
He chuckled. He seemed to be attempting humor. Jennifer wasn’t in the mood.
“What are you doing here?” she asked. Before he could answer, she turned to Suzanne. “Could you please take William to his room?”
William reached out for Jennifer, and she gave him a quick squeeze before Suzanne picked him up.
“If it’s all right with you,” Suzanne said, “I’ll take him to my place. The twins can play with him while I catch up on some laundry.”
All Jennifer wanted was to hold her little guy, but she needed to get this conversation out of the way first.
“That’s a great idea, Suzanne. Thanks so much,” she replied.
The chief smiled and waited patiently until Suzanne and William were out of earshot.
Suzanne popped her head back into the living room and said, “Don’t go riling up my patient, Hank. I’ll tell Clara when we play bridge next week. She’ll give you a talking-to.”
“Clara and I have been married nearly forty years. Not a day goes by that I don’t get a talkin’-to.”
They both chuckled. This was the friendliest interaction Jennifer had ever witnessed between the chief and anyone, really. She’d had no idea that Suzanne was on a first-name basis with the chief. She was learning new things about her friend every day.
Jennifer looked out on the front porch and saw that Peter was installing one of those doorbell camera mechanisms. He likely didn’t know she was up yet. At least that was what she hoped.
The chief quickly switched back into police mode as he turned back toward Jennifer. “I’m here because I need to get your story. I want to catch whoever broke into your home. It’s important.”
“Houses get broken into every day. Why is this burglary so significant?” Jennifer asked.
She felt slightly guilty for being so snippy. Not that she didn’t have an excuse to be. The chief was being so friendly and kind this time, and she was still holding a grudge for how he had treated her at the station the other day. She decided to ease up a bit.
“We need to talk,” he said flatly. Those four words made Jennifer nervous. “I’ll cut right to the chase. The coroner gave me the report yesterday.”
Jennifer was about to interrupt and ask why he had lied to Jimmy about the report not being ready, but thought better of it.
“The findings were peculiar, to say the least,” he said.
Jennifer perked up in her chair. He had her full attention. “How so?” she asked.
“Well, our original theory was that what happened to Sarah and Ethan was a murder/suicide. Ethan killed Sarah, lit the fire, then killed himself. However, there were no signs of soot or smoke in either of their lungs.”
“Ethan died before the fire started,” Jennifer said.
“Exactly. You saw how quickly that fire spread. There was no way he could have lit that fire without even a trace of soot in his lungs. Then, there’s the blood you found. I’ve already sent that off to the city crime lab. Finally, there’s the matter of the prints.”
Jennifer was confused. “Prints? What prints? I never said anything about prints.”
“Not directly, no,” the chief replied. “However, you mentioned the window being open. After I read through the autopsy results, I sent someone over to dust the window, and we lifted some prints. We’ve already ruled them out as Sarah’s or Ethan’s, and they’re too big to belong to the kids. It was your tip and your keen observation that led me to think of it. Well done.”
Jennifer was speechless. Had the chief actually complimented her? She started to smile.
“Don’t get too happy there, Sherlock,” he said. “I know about your field trip with Jimmy. He confessed the whole thing to me.”
Jennifer’s joy quickly turned to guilt mixed with a dash of fear.
“Now, you’re a smart gal, so I don’t even need to get into how dangerous it was for the two of you to go on an adventure like that. However, I do need to remind you that while you’re smart and have really good instinct
s, you are not a police officer. I’ll take any tip or thought you have, but no more stakeouts. Okay?” He scolded her in a way a grandparent might scold a grandchild.
“Typically, I would debate you over this,” she replied. “But after last night, I’ll have to agree. No more chasing suspects, and no more stakeouts.”
Jennifer then recounted the story of the break-in to the chief. She wasn’t sure how it was going to help, but she gave him every detail she could remember.
The chief stood and said he wanted to ask Peter a few more questions before he left. While she had actually enjoyed her conversation with Chief Fitzgerald, she was anxious to talk to Peter too.
She sat for a moment trying to take in what she had just heard. She’d thought she would be more surprised to hear that both Ethan and Sarah had been murdered. She’d thought she would feel relief for their children and Ethan’s family, but she didn’t. The chief had confirmed what she’d known all along, so maybe it hadn’t come as much of a surprise to her.
She felt validated, and even a bit badass. She then caught her reflection in the living room mirror, and it quickly stomped out that feeling. True badasses didn’t faint after giving chase to suspects.
“Suspects,” she said out loud. Now, the reason Jimmy and the chief wanted to get her statement was pretty apparent. The person who had been in her home was likely the person who had killed Ethan and Sarah. That thought sent shivers down her spine.
Jennifer needed to find a way to get to the truth without landing back in the hospital, or worse. She also needed to work with the chief, and not behind his back, which was going to be tough. She was more determined than ever to get to the bottom of things. Her life, and the lives of those she loved, depended on it.
Chapter 17
After spending a few minutes alone in her living room, Jennifer stood up and started walking around her house, trying to take it all in. She couldn’t quite put her finger on why, but it seemed different to her, almost like it was someone else’s house. It no longer felt like the sacred space it had once been, and she wondered if it would ever feel the same way again.
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