Whisper in the Night (Detectives Kane and Alton)

“How so?”

Kane rubbed his chin. “They have too many levels of security. In one package, they offer a panic button. So rather than call 911 if they fear for their lives, the homeowner must rely on a security guard to protect them.” He cleared his throat. “Some of the options, the motion sensors and lights, are good, so is the storing of any triggered CCTV footage to the cloud, but I figure the nanny-cam option should be something only available to parents, as in they set it up themselves and run it through their cellphones. Having a company collecting that data, for me, is a little disturbing.”

“I can’t see why.” Jenna turned into the road leading to the Rosens’ ranch. “If I had a baby at home, I can’t watch twenty-four seven so I’d be ecstatic to know someone else was watching on my behalf.”

Kane snorted. “If I had a baby at home, I’d be there caring for them myself.” He glanced at her and grinned. “I’d be more than happy to be a stay-at-home dad. Sit around watching football all day and changing a few diapers. How hard can it be?”

“You wouldn’t last a day.” Jenna’s eyes flashed as she glanced at him. “You were all tuckered out watching Wolfe’s girls for a couple of hours, and a baby is full-time. Trust me, there aren’t enough hours in the day to get things done.”

Kane held up both his hands in surrender and chuckled. “Okay, okay, I believe you.” His eyes danced with mischief. “I’d still rather work my tail off than have a nanny for my kid. I was an army brat and my dad never had too much time for me growing up. Later we were best buddies but by then it was too late.”

“Ah, that makes a lot of sense.” Jenna turned into the Rosens’ ranch and headed along the driveway to the house. “Did Mrs. Rosen say where Kittredge and Packer are working today?”

The awkward conversation filtered back into his mind. Speaking to a distraught woman planning her daughter’s funeral had been difficult, but at least she was civil when he explained they were chasing down leads on Lindy’s killer. Mr. Rosen was unavailable. His anger had come close to stroke level after identifying his daughter at the morgue and the local doctor had sedated him. “Yeah, Packer’s inside the house and Kittredge is working on the grounds somewhere. There’re four gardeners here today.”

“We tread lightly around the Rosens.” Jenna pulled to a halt beside a pickup parked outside the house. “Make sure we speak to the people of interest way away from any family members.”

Kane slid from the car. “Sure.” He opened the back door and allowed Duke to jump onto the ground. He moved to Jenna’s side. “We’ll see if Duke picks up anything when we speak to the men. I have Lindy’s PJ top in an evidence bag in the back of your cruiser; we’ll give him the scent before we speak to them.”

“Won’t he be confused?” Jenna frowned. “If there’re two scents on her clothes, how will he know which one to follow?”

Not able to figure the mind or workings of a dog’s sense of smell, Kane shrugged. “I have no idea, but I figured it’s worth a try. Right now, we have zip. Wolfe couldn’t find as much as one foreign hair on her clothes.”

“Okay, so we’ll have to rely on good old police work to find this killer. I’ll question Packer and you watch his body language and see what you can get from him.” Jenna headed toward the steps, and then turned. “Wait here, I’ll ask Packer to come outside for a word.”

Kane hustled back to Jenna’s cruiser and opened the back door. He was out of sight of the Rosens’ front door and offered Duke a sniff of the clothes. “Seek.”

Duke walked a few feet in every direction, then came back and sat at his feet. Kane patted his head. “Keep that smell in mind when we talk to these men.” He leaned against Jenna’s vehicle and watched the front door.

Mrs. Rosen appeared looking distraught, red-eyed and ashen. She looked horrified at Jenna’s appearance but after Jenna offered an explanation, she stepped to one side to admit her. A few moments later, Jenna was ushering a man from the house. Kane took out his notebook and pen and waited for them to join him by the cruiser. Packer was of medium height, Caucasian with light brown hair and a muscular body. He wore surprisingly clean coveralls and a tool belt around his waist. He was what he would consider quite ordinary in appearance, quite bland-looking with no outstanding features, scars or tattoos he could see.

“Mr. Packer, this is Deputy Kane. You’re not under any obligation to speak with us but we are interviewing anyone who came in contact with Lindy before the kidnapping.” Jenna spoke in a low, direct tone. “We need to have some idea of who was coming and going over the last couple of weeks.”

“Sure, but is this gonna take long?” Packer glanced at his watch. “I usually take a break around now and need to head into town.”

“We won’t keep you long.” She lifted her chin. “How long have you been working at the Rosens’?”

“I’ve been working here for some time now.” Packer rubbed the end of his nose. “Mrs. Rosen wants most of the fixtures and fittin’s changed. So, I’ve been changin’ doorknobs, kitchen cupboard door handles, those sort of things.”

“Do you have any interaction with the children?” Jenna tilted her head. “Mrs. Rosen mentioned you put shelves up in Lindy’s room a week ago.”

“Yeah, I’ve spoken to all of them.” Packer narrowed his gaze. “They live in the house – it’s hard not to speak to them when they’re runnin’ past me every few minutes.”

“Did you hear Lindy mention anything before her disappearance, about a boyfriend, or her nightmares?”

“I know about the nightmares. They spoke about them all the time.” Packer rubbed his chin. “That’s why Lindy wanted shelves in her room. Her father wanted another wardrobe but she was frightened someone might hide inside.”

“When did you last see Lindy?” Jenna folded her arms across her chest and leaned casually against the cruiser.

“Day before she went missin’. I didn’t speak with her; I was workin’ in her parents’ bathroom.” Packer frowned. “Terrible thing that happened to her.”

“Was it?” Jenna straightened and moved a step closer. “We don’t know exactly what happened to her. Do you know what happened to Lindy?”

“I know she was kidnapped and murdered.” Packer took a step backward. “It’s all over the news and I heard the family talkin’ about it.”

“Where were you the night she disappeared?” Jenna stared at him.

“At home. Where else would