“Let’s hit the road and track her down. I know she works out of her house. If we’re lucky, she’ll be there,” Herb says. He pulls his phone out of his pocket and leaves the room.
“Steve, can you email me those clips?”
“Yeah, man, I’ll send them now.”
“Thanks.” I pat his shoulder.
I meet Herb at his SUV and get in on the passenger side. “Rachel confirmed that Sandy drives a Mustang and is a huge fan of romance books. She even said she carries a paperback with her wherever she goes, which she said is weird, because everyone else she knows uses e-readers, unless they’re going to the beach or something.”
“Do you think she did this?”
“I don’t know, but she was there,” he says as he backs out and drives through the hotel lot toward the exit.
“She was, but what did she use as a weapon? We know Paul was stabbed multiple times, and the murder weapon wasn’t left at the scene. I don’t know of any object that’s normally left in a hotel room for a guest that could be used as a weapon, which means if she did this, she had to have had it on her.”
“Do you think she planned it?”
“I’m not sure.” I run my fingers through my hair, my mind spinning.
“Are you thinking what I am about her coming in and asking about what happened to Chris?”
“That she was fishing to see if we had any leads?”
“Yeah,” he says as he turns onto the highway that leads to the area in town where Sandy lives.
“If she killed Paul and Chris, what would her motive be?”
“I don’t know. I guess that’s a question only she could answer. Do you know who Paul was having an affair with?”
“His wife said it was someone from their town. That said, he traveled a lot for work, so who knows if he had multiple affairs that she didn’t know about.”
“Idiot.”
“Yeah,” he agrees with a shake of his head.
We drive the rest of the way in silence. I’m sure, like me, he’s trying to fit the puzzle pieces together, even the ones that don’t fit so easily. When we pull up in front of Sandy’s house, the first thing I notice is her Mustang in the driveway, the same year and model from the surveillance video.
“How do you want to play this?” I ask as we park.
“This is just routine questioning. She was seen on video, and we want her to come in to find out if she knows anything.”
“Got it.” I check my weapon before I hop out and then meet Herb at the hood. When we reach the front porch, I open the screen door and lift my hand to knock, but a chill slides down my spine when I see the door is slightly ajar. I look at Herb and he shrugs.
“Sandy?” I shout into the house, and when I get no answer after calling her name three times, I draw my gun. I push the door open and step into the entryway.
“I’m calling this in,” Herb says, and I lift my chin.
“Sandy?” I raise my weapon and walk farther into the house, through a mostly dark living room where trophies, awards, and crowns are placed on shelves lining each wall, a clean kitchen, and then a hall lined with closed doors. The first one I clear is a bathroom, the second what looks like an office, and the third a small bedroom.
I close my eyes when I reach the last door in the hall and call out Sandy’s name; then I place my hand on the knob, turn, and push the door open. I scan the room. I see a folded piece of paper on one of the bed pillows, jewelry placed neatly on the dresser, and a pile of clothes on the floor in the corner of the room, with blood on them. I head into the bathroom and find it empty. Herb then enters behind me.
“She left a note,” I tell him.
“It’s addressed to you.” He hands it over, and I open it, hoping it’ll give us some kind of insight into where she is and why she did what she did.
Suggestion 14
FIGHT WITH EVERYTHING YOU HAVE
ANNA
I park in Calvin’s driveway and look at the house before searching deep within myself for even the smallest bit of doubt about moving in with Calvin. Not surprisingly, there is none. All I feel is contentment and excitement about starting a life with him. The only real worry I had was washed away after Calvin left this morning and I spoke to Edie about moving out. I was a little nervous about her reaction, but I shouldn’t have been. She told me she was happy for us and that I shouldn’t waste a second thinking about my apartment, since she gets inquiries about it all the time and isn’t worried about it staying vacant for long. She did make me promise that I would come over for wine a few times a week, a promise I look forward to keeping.