Pretty Broken Dolls by Jennifer Chase

Chapter Sixteen

Friday 1100 hours

Mandy Davis worked in an office building downtown as an administrative assistant for a real estate broker. She had not wanted to meet with them initially, but McGaven had managed to convince her, explaining that it was routine. She insisted that they meet at the park, which was next to her work premises.

The morning was still chilly and overcast, so Katie paced back and forth to keep warm. The park was small with two rows of immature trees and bushes strategically planted and benches along the walking path. It was clean and pleasant. The space seemed generally used for running or walking workouts. As they waited, Katie looked around and noticed that most people who passed by were oblivious to what was going on around them.

A tall woman with long, flowing fiery-red hair approached, puffing on a cigarette which she quickly discarded before meeting with them. Dressed in a tan suit, she looked professional but it was clear that she was nervous—anxious about speaking with them.

“Mandy Davis?” said Katie.

“Yes.”

“Ms. Davis, I’m Detective Katie Scott and this is my partner, Deputy Sean McGaven.”

She nodded at them.

Katie noticed that she fidgeted with her hands and nails frequently.

“I’m sorry it’s so cold, but I didn’t want them to talk at work. You know…”

“Of course,” said Katie as she gave McGaven the subtle signal for him to ask questions.

McGaven gestured for them to sit down on a bench. “Ms. Davis,” he began.

“Please, call me Mandy.” She began to relax a bit. Her shoulders eased downward and she stopped fiddling with her hands.

“I’m sorry to have to ask these questions about your friend Jeanine since you’ve answered them before. But we’re here as cold case detectives and we want to hear from you in person, since you were the one that found her body. Are you feeling up to a few questions?” he asked.

Smooth, thought Katie as she took a backseat to the interview. She stood about ten feet away watching the cityscape, but still hearing the conversation, glancing every once in a while to observe body language.

“Yes, I’m fine,” she said, her voice calm.

“I understand that you were both to meet at a party.”

“Yes.”

“When did you decide to go to Jeanine’s house?”

“Well, she was usually late so I didn’t think much of it at first. Time had got away from me when I realized that Jeanine didn’t show up. It wasn’t like her to completely blow it off. You know?”

McGaven patiently listened and nodded, letting her continue.

“I called her a couple of times but she didn’t answer…”

“You called her from the party?”

“Yes, and then once when I was driving.”

“Did you have any idea that something was wrong? Had Jeanine confided in you that maybe someone was bothering her?”

“No. She wasn’t happy at work, but she had said that she was looking for another job—a small medical facility, she said. That’s just it. She didn’t tell me anything—nothing that indicated someone would want to harm her. I can’t…” She stopped. “I’m sorry, but it’s taken me a while to sleep through the night after finding her…”

“Please take your time,” he said. “We just wanted to clarify a few things. I promise I won’t make you go through every horrible detail.”

She nodded. “Okay.”

“If you can please think back to that night. When you arrived, what did you see?”

“Um, when I got there it was about eleven, maybe eleven thirty. I pulled into the driveway and it was dark. Very dark.”

Katie knew the police report had said it was closer to 12:30 a.m. She watched Mandy’s mannerisms when she answered McGaven’s questions.

“Dark outside or inside?”

“Both.”

“What about next door?”

“I don’t…”

“When you drove up, did you look next door? And was it light or all dark?”

“It was dark. I’m pretty sure. The neighborhood was dark, but Jeanine’s house didn’t have her usual motion lights or flower-bed lighting, and there wasn’t any light from the inside that I could see.”

“What did you do?”

“I walked up to the porch and…”

“And what?” he gently pushed.

“It’s funny, I didn’t remember it at my initial interview with the police, but something crunched under my shoes. I remember thinking that I didn’t want to cut my feet because I was wearing sandals.”

“What do you think was crunching under your feet?”

“I don’t know, something like glass, I guess.”

“Could it have been a light bulb?”

She looked confused.

“For example, from the outside light?”

“I guess.”

“Okay, what else did you see?”

Mandy looked at a couple walking by as if she knew them but she then quickly looked away. “The door was slightly open and her screen looked broken. She was very particular about her house and her things, so I guess I thought it was strange.”

“Why didn’t you call the police right then?”

“I didn’t think there was anything wrong. I know now, of course, I should have gone back to my car and called 911, but…”

“I know these questions are tough even after a year, but any small thing you might remember that you didn’t think at the time was important could be very helpful to us.”

“Of course. It’s okay.” Her voice was shaky.

“Did anything seem strange or disarrayed once you were inside?”

“What do you mean?” Her demeanor changed, and there was a definite edge to her voice.

“Like, was there anything out of place? You said that Jeanine was a tidy person.”

“Um…” she stammered. “Well, I remember a green vase, maybe it was blue, I don’t know.”

“A vase?”

“Yeah, it was on the floor and it seemed strange—out of place.”

McGaven moved a bit closer to Mandy, his expression sensitive and understanding—intended to make her feel more secure. Katie watched him and knew that he would be outstanding in any area of law enforcement. She was lucky to have him as a partner.

“I don’t know, the place just gave me an uneasy feeling,” she said.

“I’m sorry, I have to ask you about this. It was in the statements that Jeanine was dating your boyfriend.”

Mandy remained quiet, almost stoic, as she sat there. Her jaw clenched. “I know what you must be thinking. The original detective asked me about this too…” She pushed her wavy hair back. “Yes, she dated my boyfriend after we broke up. I don’t know why everyone gets this wrong. Brady and I broke up, and then he started dating Jeanine.”

McGaven paused. “It had to put a strain on your relationship with Jeanine.”

“No… well, yeah, it did for a bit. But we had known each other for a while and our friendship was more important.” She looked away as she spoke. “They only dated for three months anyway.”

“What about Jeanine’s experience in the army?”

Mandy shrugged. “I don’t know much. I mean, I knew that she was in for two years.”

“Working as a K9 trainer,” added McGaven.

“Yeah, I guess.”

“She never talked about it?”

“Not really. She loved dogs and would foster sometimes, but that’s all I know.”

“Was she dating anyone at the army training facility?”

She shrugged. “Not that I know of. She was pretty quiet about her time in the army.”

“Does the name Sergeant Anthony Serrano mean anything?”

“No. I’ve never heard that name.”

“I see. One more question, for now. Can you think of anyone who might have wanted to hurt or take revenge on Jeanine? Anyone at all?”

“No,” she said. “I’ve thought about this ever since… ever since I found her that night. Oh God…” she trailed off.

“Anything you tell us is confidential, I promise you,” said McGaven as he appealed to her sensitivities.

She wiped a tear away. “Like I said, I’ve thought about this a lot. She said that she was having trouble with her next-door neighbor, but nothing that would make her… murder her.”

“What did she say about the neighbor?”

“It’s what she didn’t say. When I would come over, she would usher me inside because she didn’t want the neighbor to see us. At least, that’s what she said.”

“Anything specific?”

“No, it was little things.”

“Like?”

“She made sure her curtains and blinds facing her neighbor’s house were always closed. She would hurry me inside and close the door quickly, locking it immediately. Just little things like that.”

“If we have some follow-up questions, may we call you?”

“Of course,” she said. Then Mandy took McGaven’s arm. “Please, please find out who did this. I miss her every day.”

McGaven stood up. “We are doing everything we can. Thank you, Ms. Davis.”

Mandy hesitated for a moment, as if she wanted to tell them something more, and then decided against it. She turned and headed back to work.

Katie joined McGaven.

“What do you think?” she said.

“She’s evasive and telling partial truths. She seemed hesitant with questions that were more routine and averted her eyes when she explained what happened.”

“You think she’s hiding something?”

“Yes, but it’s something that she doesn’t want us to know. My guess, it’s something personal.”

Katie glanced at a few people passing by. “I think she tried too hard to put suspicion on the neighbor.”

Katie received a text message from John. It said: No prints or evidence at the Trenton house.

“What’s up?” he said.

“John couldn’t find any fingerprints at Jeanine Trenton’s house.” She was disappointed. Although it would be too easy.

“Too bad. Just means we need to keep digging.”

They briskly walked back to the sedan and got inside to get out of the cold.

Katie drove out of the parking lot, heading to the Community Health Alliance where Jeanine had worked, to see what they could find out.

“So,” said McGaven. “We have the best friend who can’t commit to the exact time that she came over, tried to make it seem like when her best friend dated her boyfriend it wasn’t any big deal, and tried to divert suspicion to the neighbor. That about right?”

“Just about.” Katie rolled what Mandy Davis had to say through her mind and found herself unconvinced that she was telling them everything.

“We have our work cut out for us.”

McGaven received a text. “Looks like we have been given the green light to take a look at Jeanine Trenton’s personal belongings.”

“Well, let’s make that our first stop,” said Katie.