“Understood. Can you do that as you take photos and set priorities for the team?”
“As in—be in charge of them?”
“I don’t think they’ll take too kindly to that.” He smiled. “But you can give me a list of things you want them to do, and I’ll relay that to get them started.”
She nodded, her mind racing over what she might be willing to let go of and allow someone else to process. She never had to do that before, and she didn’t know if she could. Only time would tell how successfully she managed it.
14
Reed had hoped to interview the daughter who called in the murder, but if Sierra was right and the Ranger could be a suspect, he needed to act on that first. Under the moonlight beaming down from clear skies, he stepped toward the house next door and noted there wasn’t a car in the driveway.
Not unusual. This was the kind of neighborhood where residents parked in their three-to-five-car garages, and Reed had noticed when he pulled up to Caulfield’s place that there weren’t any cars on the street or driveways. Only Caulfield’s daughter’s vehicle sat in his cobblestone driveway.
What was unusual was that the lights were out in this house, instantly raising Reed’s suspicions. If this Ranger was as concerned as he told Sierra, Reed doubted the man would go to bed.
Reed pounded on the door with the side of his fist. The thud echoed through the peaceful neighborhood where residents would wake up to find out one of their own had been murdered.
The exterior light flashed on, momentarily blinding Reed. He blinked a few times and raised his voice. “Agent Reed Rice. FBI. I have some questions for you.”
A gray-haired man Reed put in his late sixties opened the door. He wore paisley pajamas and a brown robe. His hair was tousled and sleep still lingered in his eyes. “How can I help you, Agent?”
“And you are?”
“Michael Driscoll.”
“Who all lives in your household, Mr. Driscoll?” Reed asked.
“My wife, LeAnn, and me.” Driscoll looked over Reed’s shoulder and frowned.
“Any children?”
“A daughter, but she lives in Washington. Nothing’s happened to her has it?” Panic wedged its way into his tone.
Reed waved a hand. “No. No. I’m investigating an incident at Ira Caulfield’s house. There was an Army Ranger standing out front who claimed to live here.”
Driscoll shook his head. “No Ranger here. Or in the neighborhood for that matter. I’m in charge of the neighborhood social committee and make it a point to keep up with everyone.”
“And you’re positive no one new has moved in that you don’t know?”
“Positive. I can get you a list of all the residents if you’d like.”
“That would be great.”
“Come on in, and I’ll make a copy.”
Reed stepped into the formal entryway that smelled like freshly baked bread and had soaring ceilings as a woman around Driscoll’s age came down the stairs. Her short black hair with streaks of gray stuck out at odd angles, and she rubbed her eyes. LeAnn, Reed assumed.
Her gaze went to her husband. “Is everything okay?”
Driscoll nodded. “Something happened with Ira, and this is Agent Rice with the FBI. I’m getting him a residents list. Be right back.” Driscoll disappeared into a room to the right.
LeAnn shot Reed a look. “Is Ira okay?”
Reed wanted to know more about Ira’s death before he started asking questions that might lead her to think he’d been murdered. “I’m not able to discuss the incident quite yet. When was the last time you saw Ira?”
“Yesterday morning when he took the trash out to the curb.”
“Good neighbor?”
“He has a girlfriend young enough to be his daughter,” she said, her tone full of judgment. “They loved to hot tub all hours of the night and play their music loud enough to be heard above the tub. The sound carried over to our bedroom windows. But they knocked that off a few weeks ago, so yeah, he’s a decent neighbor.”
“Any idea why he stopped the parties?”
“We haven’t seen the girlfriend lately and figured they broke up.” She narrowed her gaze. “Not surprising. Never could understand what a pretty young girl would see in a man twice her age.”
“Do you know this girlfriend’s name?”
“We never met her in person, but Ira called her Tricia.”
Reed committed the name to memory as Driscoll returned and handed Reed a stapled packet of paper. “This list is current as of yesterday morning.”
“I appreciate it, Mr. Driscoll. Once I have a better idea of what we’re looking at next door I might be back to ask additional questions.”
Driscoll gave a firm nod. “We’ll help in any way we can.”
“Thank you.” Reed departed, both buoyed by the fact that the Ranger didn’t live here and also distressed by it, because the guy had taken off. They likely had their murderer within reach, but now he was on the loose and free to kill again.
Reed stepped into Caulfield’s door to find Detective Miller signing in with the deputy, and as Reed slipped on fresh booties he explained his interest in Caulfield’s murder. Reed knew the detective from his time as a deputy, so when he took him to the side, it was easier to get a buy-in on their agencies working together, and the conversation was quick and to the point.
Reed started for the room where the daughter was waiting, but then ERT arrived and Reed had to find Sierra so they could hand out assignments. Then Nick stepped through the door.
He was wearing the same clothes as the last time Reed had seen him, and unlike most of the others working the scene, he didn’t look tired at all. In fact, his eyes were alert, and he looked jazzed about something. “I’m here for the watch, computers, and cell phone.”
“Phone hasn’t been located, but the watch and computers are this way.” Reed took him into a large office where Sierra had put the watch on her way through the house. The room had a separate exterior entrance in the front and custom built-ins on three of the walls. The back wall held a floor-to-ceiling sliding door that led to a small patio.
Nick gave a low whistle and headed straight for the desk. “Nice digs. Guess accounting paid off. Or not, I suppose, since Caulfield was murdered.”
“I have a favor to ask,” Reed said.
“What do you need?” Nick dropped into the expensive desk chair.
Reed held out the resident list. “This is a list of names of everyone in the neighborhood. I need to know if any of the men are Army Rangers or former Rangers.”
“Sure, man. We can run that quick enough.”
“How quick?”
“Could have something for you first thing in the morning.”
“Excellent.” Reed gave him the list. “I’d like a copy of this back.”
Nick pulled a device out of his case. “Portable scanner. I’ll scan it, and you can have it back right now.”
Reed could get used to having his every need met this quickly. If he gave the list to an analyst at his office, days might pass before they got to it. “You always have this kind of turnaround for your clients?”
“I wish. Though we’re still faster than most law enforcement labs.” Nick fed the pages through the scanner and gave them back to Reed. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll get the watch along with this machine and the laptop taken into evidence.”
“Have at it and thanks.” Reed left the room and headed straight for the study to interview Caulfield’s daughter.
She was seated on the sofa staring ahead, her eyes glazed and vacant. She wore jeans and a zipped-up brown leather jacket. Her nose resembled her father’s narrow nose, but her hair was blond and long enough to sit on. Someone had thankfully turned off the television, and it was no longer blaring in the background.
“Ms. Caulfield, I’m Special Agent Reed Rice with the FBI,” he said as he approached and caught a whiff of her cloyingly flowery perfume. “I’m very sorry for your loss.”
>
“FBI?” Her thin eyebrows rose over swollen and red eyes. “What’s the FBI doing here?”
Reed sat on the sofa a few feet from her. “We’ve been investigating one of your father’s clients. An Eddie Barnes. Do you know him?”
She shook her head. “Dad never mixed business with home life and didn’t talk about his clients.” She clutched her hands together and looked out the door. “Someone stabbed him, right? I mean all the blood and his shirt. The holes.”
“We’ll have to wait on the medical examiner’s findings,” Reed sidestepped to keep her focus off the horrific way her father died. “When was the last time you spoke to your dad?”
She looked up at the ceiling and tapped her chin. “I guess last week. He came over for dinner on Friday with me and my brother. We texted throughout the week, but never talked.”
Reed got out a notepad and pen from his jacket pocket. “Do you usually communicate through texts?”
“Most of the time.”
“And why did you call him tonight?”
“I texted him a few times after dinner, and he didn’t reply. He has a heart condition, so I finally got worried and called. When he didn’t answer, I called my brother, and he said if I was worried to come check on Dad.”
“Is it normal for your father to be awake at this time of night?”
She nodded. “We’re a family of night owls. All of us. Even Mom was.”
“Was?”
“Breast cancer took her from us fourteen years ago.”
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Reed said, feeling worse now that he knew she’d lost both parents. “Can you think of anyone who might want to harm your father?”
She shook her head and started crying. “He is—was—a great guy. Everyone loved him. Well, I mean in his personal life. Like I said, I don’t know anything about his business.”
“He has quite an extensive office here, but did he also have a separate office?”
She dabbed a tissue at her eyes. “Just here.”
“How about your father’s attitude? Has he been himself lately? Worried? Distracted?”
“He seemed normal, but then I haven’t seen him as much as usual. He has—had—this new girlfriend.” She frowned. “We do family dinners every Friday night, but he bailed most every night for the last few months to be with her.”
“Sounds like you didn’t like her,” Reed said wondering if it was the age difference.
“Never met her, or even talked to her, but I didn’t like that she took all of dad’s time.”
Reed would circle back on that. “Were these dinners held here or at your place?”
“My house. Dad isn’t—wasn’t—much of a cook. In fact, I don’t know the last time I was over here.” She frowned. “When mom was alive we spent a lot of time here, but since then, not so much.”
“Tell me about the girlfriend. Do you know her name?”
“Dad called her Tricia, but like I said, I’ve never met her. My brother either.” She shook her head. “We kept telling him to bring her to dinner, but he just clammed up and said no.”
“Do you have any idea why?”
She shrugged. “My brother and I figured she was too young for him and she was just after his money.”
Reed didn’t believe the girlfriend was behind the stabbing as it took a great deal of strength to inflict the wound that sliced Caulfield’s neck. Plus, women typically didn’t kill using such a violent method.
“And you can’t think of anyone who might want to hurt your father?”
“No. But they did, didn’t they?”
“Yes.” Reed closed his notepad. “Is there anything else you can tell me that might help with finding the person behind this?”
She shook her head.
Reed gave her his card and stood.
She stared at the card, turning it over and back again. “I spoke to a detective, too. Who will be handling the investigation?”
“We’ll be working it together. You can feel free to call either one of us if you have a question or want to share additional information.” He gave her a tight smile. “For now, you’re free to go.”
“That’s it?” She gaped at him. “My dad is murdered, and I just go home?”
“I’m afraid so.”
She shook her head. “This isn’t easy.”
“I know,” Reed said.
“Do you? Have you had it happen to you?”
“No, but sadly, I’ve seen others in your situation many times. Support groups for people who are victims of violence can be very helpful.”
“It’s a sad world we live in if such groups even exist,” she muttered.
“I can walk you to the door.”
She shook her head and kept shaking it. “I’m staying until they take his body.”
“That’s fine as long as you remain right here and don’t touch anything.”
“I…I…”
“I know that might be hard, but if you wander around it might confuse the forensic evidence and take us longer to find your father’s killer.”
“Then I won’t move except to walk him out.” A sob wrenched from her throat.
Reed wished he could do more for the grieving woman, but she would have to live through this and take the time to heal. He knew that from the sudden loss of his parents. “If you give me your key, I’ll make sure the house is locked up when the techs finish.”
She slipped a key from her ring and planted it in his hand.
“Remember to call me if you think of anything.” Feeling unsettled, he left the room to look for Sierra and spotted Detective Miller staring at the patio door. Reed joined him, snapping on gloves on the way.
“I’ve checked all the doors,” Miller said. “No signs of forced entry.”
“Either Caulfield knew the killer or he had a key. His daughter had hers to get in tonight, but she might have given a copy to someone else. Or the son could’ve. He also had a girlfriend named Tricia. The family doesn’t know her last name nor have they met her.”
“Hopefully his phone or computer will reveal more about her.”
“The Veritas computer expert is taking the computer into evidence as we speak, but as far as I know, Caulfield’s phone hasn’t been found.”
Miller frowned.
“What’s wrong?”
“Just don’t like all these people I don’t know at my crime scene.”
Reed nodded his understanding, though he was glad to have Nick, Sierra, and ERT present. “You find anything of interest in your walk-through?”
Miller shook his head. “I didn’t go into much depth in the office. Thought I’d leave it to you as that’s your area of interest in this investigation. Just make sure I get copies of everything you find there.”
“I’ll forward on everything I receive. I’ll also get a warrant going for his phone records and banking information. And email and social media while I’m at it.”
Miller stiffened at that comment but didn’t speak. His negative reaction made sense as these areas could provide many investigative leads.
Reed’s best bet was to move on. “I’m going to check in with the forensic staff to see if they’ve located anything of interest.”
Miller frowned. “You say you want this to be a joint investigation, but you’ve taken over.” He crossed his arms over a broad chest. “With your prior affiliation with our agency, I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt here, but don’t be playing me, man.”
“I’m not,” Reed said. “And same goes for you. I don’t want to take over this investigation, but know that I will if pushed. So if you want to be involved, don’t push me.”
Reed left the frustrated Miller behind and went in search of Sierra. He walked through room after room, all professionally decorated with muted colors, the furnishings expensive and implying a designer’s touch.
Caulfield obviously made good money as an accountant. Maybe Reed should keep more of an open mind about this guy potentially stealing the money f
rom Eddie’s clients.
In the master bedroom, Reed spotted Sierra on the small deck outside. She was frowning and staring at a hot tub on the back side of the large lot that climbed up steeply from a retaining wall. The area above was filled with scrub and wild plants. The yard—and the neighbor’s yard—went on beyond what Reed could see in the dark.
A wooden walkway led from the deck to the hot tub. Maple tree branches hung over the tub and lush greenery surrounded it. Lights were strung on a pole and around the area, illuminating the large tub and casting Sierra in shadows.
Reed stepped into the cool night and briefly noted the stars sparkling overhead and the moon shining above. But his focus quickly returned to Sierra. Even in shapeless coveralls, she sent his pulse beating faster. What was it about this woman that he found so compelling?
She opened the bulging hot tub cover and gasped, then clamped a hand over her mouth and nose. Steam rose up from the tub into the cooler night air, carrying a smell that nearly brought Reed to his knees. He covered his mouth too and looked inside the tub. What should be sparkling clear water resembled sludgy red soup.
“Another victim?” Sierra looked up at him, her eyes wide, shock giving her a glazed look.
“Could be,” he said, but the woman’s blouse snagged on the edge of the tub told him they would indeed find another victim in the tub. It was only a matter of time.
15
The moon had darted under clouds, casting Sierra in shadows as she remained frozen in place and stared at the tub. Hand over mouth. Eyes still wide. Her body rigid. Reed’s heart creased. He couldn’t let her remain here staring at this horrific scene.
“Dr. Albertson is still here. Let’s get her and see what she thinks.” He took Sierra’s hand and led her away from the hot tub.
She didn’t argue or fight, telling him more about her state of mind than the wide eyes still dark with shock. Her hand trembled in his, and he had to work doubly hard not to pull her close to his side and hold her until the shaking subsided. If he did, he wouldn’t mind what others thought, but once she came out of the fog of shock, he knew this fiercely independent woman would be upset with him taking over in front of her associates.
Dead End Page 12
