Her Broken Wings by D.K. Hood
Seventeen
After listening to Kane’s report about the conversation between Kyler Hall, Cliff Young, and the two alleged victims from the forest, Parker Louis and Tim Addams, Jenna rolled her eyes to the ceiling. “This sounds too easy.” She looked at her deputies. “And since when have any of our cases been open and shut?”
“Maybe we got lucky this time?” Kane sipped the hot coffee she’d given them on their return.
Something didn’t feel right and Jenna frowned. “This is Black Rock Falls and luck has nothing to do with it. Sure, check out the suspects, but I believe we need to investigate this case some more. Rowley, head on over to the mortician’s—Ian Clark, our other potential suspect, is working as a cleaner over there. I want you to find out his whereabouts at the time of the murders. I’ve read his sheet and I find it difficult to believe he’d break into a house, kill someone, and not take anything. Nor is he intimidating enough to hunt down two men and shoot them.” She rubbed her temples. “But I guess he could’ve changed during his time in jail.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Rowley hesitated before leaving and looked at her. “Ah, can I ask you a personal question before I go?”
“Yes, what’s the problem?”
“If I decided to get married, would I still be able to live in the house, seeing as it belongs to the department?”
Jenna couldn’t stop smiling. “Yes, of course, you can stay there for as long as I’m sheriff, but I do hope someday you’ll have a place of your own. The townsfolk might get tired of me one day.”
“I hope to buy a ranch close by in a year or two.” Rowley grinned. “Oh, and please don’t mention it to Sandy, I haven’t asked her yet. I was thinking of asking her at Christmas.”
“I won’t say a word.” As Rowley went out the door, Jenna walked around the desk and grabbed her coat. “Come on, Kane, we’ll be late for the autopsy.” She glanced down at Duke. “You’d better stay with Maggie. Come on, boy.” She patted her leg and Duke led the way out the door.
At the front desk, Jenna waited for Duke to climb into his basket behind the counter and looked at Maggie. “How’s our handyman getting along?”
“He’s a hard worker.” Maggie met her gaze. “I don’t know if he has any cash. He didn’t take a break, so I sent him down to Aunt Betty’s to get something to eat. Susie Hartwig made sure he was fed.” She frowned. “He seems like a lost soul.”
“A bear ate all his supplies and the plant laid him off.” Jenna frowned. “Pay him two hundred this afternoon and if you get time, see if you can find him any work around town.”
“I sure will.” Maggie grinned. “I’ll start with Rowley. He’s been complaining his garage needs to be cleaned out before the snow arrives.”
Jenna smiled. “Good idea.” She gave her a wave and, following Kane out the door, pulled up the hood of her coat.
She didn’t mind the snow—the cold had a refreshing, cleansing feel about it—but the sleet drove her nuts. Everything was damp, and the freezing rain seemed to seep through all her clothes. The constant fog closed in around the town, obscuring the views. It was oppressive. She ducked her head and made her way to Kane’s truck through the slow-moving pedestrians, bundled up for winter and looking like drowned rats. Inside the truck, she fastened her seatbelt and turned to Kane. “I hope this weather blows through soon. It will ruin Halloween.”
“Weather forecast said it would clear by this afternoon.” Kane started the engine and backed out of the space. “The wind has picked up; maybe it will blow the clouds away. Then the temperature will drop like a stone, and with everything wet, the blacktop will be slick with ice. Dangerous times.” He groaned. “Oh, I forgot to tell you. One of the investors in the ski resort heard about the Old Mitcham Ranch and has purchased it as a tourist attraction. They already have flyers out and advertisements all over the media for Halloween.”
A shiver radiated through Jenna as the memory of the place slammed into her mind. It had started with a murder–suicide decades ago, and more recently the brutal murder of two young women had made the ramshackle building a legend. The locals insisted the ghosts of lost souls haunted the Old Mitcham Ranch and it carried a curse. After coming close to dying there, and witnessing the fate of the previous owners, she didn’t need convincing the curse was real enough. “Who would want to go there for fun?”
“Not me but that sort of thing attracts people. They like to be scared.” Kane sounded the horn as a stray dog dashed out from the curb.
As he hit the brakes, Jenna’s seatbelt snapped so tight, she could hardly breathe. “Yikes.”
“Dammit, that dog is going to cause an accident.” Kane pulled in at the curb.
Jenna stared after the bedraggled mixed-breed. “Drive. We don’t have time to chase after it now, Kane. I’ll call the council and have the dog catcher keep an eye out for it.” She made the call.
They arrived at the ME’s office a few moments later and although the sleet had turned to light rain they dashed inside. Jenna swiped her card at the door and they dragged off their coats and then hung them on the pegs provided in the hallway. As they headed toward the morgue, Emily Wolfe poked her head out the door and waved to them. Jenna smiled at her. “Sorry we’re late.”
“We haven’t started yet.” Emily met them in the hallway and handed them masks and gloves. “I’ll let Dad know you’re here. It’s an interesting case. I’m looking forward to discovering all the victim’s secrets.” She turned on her heel and marched back inside the room.
Jenna looked at Kane and noticed a flash of amusement in his eyes. Kane’s macabre sense of humor seemed to spill out in the most inappropriate moments. She’d come to view it as his release from the stress of seeing so many dead, and sometimes mutilated, bodies. “Okay, Dave spit it out.”
“Oh, nothing.” Kane pulled on his mask but it didn’t hide the smile. “I was just wondering how much information a practically headless man can tell us.”
Unable to reply, Jenna lifted both arms into the air and then dropped them at her sides. She composed her expression and pushed through the door. The usual unmistakable smell of death and antiseptic greeted her. “Afternoon, everyone.”
“Okay, it’s getting late, but before we start, I’ve obtained positive IDs on the Stanton Forest victims. We’ll conduct their autopsies tomorrow.” Wolfe looked at Jenna over his face mask. “Let’s get on with the Robinson case. I collected blood samples and conducted a blood-alcohol test at the scene last night before decomposition set in. I’d say from the reading, Mr. Robinson had a few drinks before retiring.” He pulled back the sheet from the corpse. “I’m running a full tox screen on the samples as well.”
“Do you have reason to believe someone drugged him?” Emily’s pale gray eyes flicked toward Jenna.
Jenna shook her head. “No. From his wife’s statement, she heard someone in the house and tried to wake him before the shooter entered the room.”
“Exactly.” Wolfe pulled down the recording device from above the examination table. “The amount of alcohol he consumed wouldn’t have placed him in a stupor. So, we look for other reasons she couldn’t wake him. Even though we found no gunshot residue on the wife’s skin to indicate she shot him, we still need to rule out the possibility she was involved.”
“I sleep like the dead.” Webber cleared his throat. “Maybe he was the same.”
“I’ll take everything into consideration, but that question will have to be directed to his wife.” Wolfe looked at Jenna. “Okay, no more questions. I’ll record my findings as I go.”
Jenna waited patiently as Wolfe described a healthy male, weight normal for his height. Nothing seemed out of place until Wolfe paused the recording and Webber turned the body over. Her gaze drifted over the torso, trying to ignore the shattered neck where part of the head had been, and centered on a mark. “Is that a bite?”
“Sure looks like one.” Wolfe lowered a magnifying glass complete with light to the mark. “Webber, get a few shots of the area.” He stood back. “Any suggestions?”
“How old would you say that is?” Kane moved closer and peered at the mark.
“It’s not fresh—three or more days.” Wolfe turned to look at him. “Although the teeth broke the skin, healing is well underway. Also, note the purple tinge to the bruising. You’ll typically see a bruise change from red to blue to purple within the first few days after an injury. Maybe his wife bit him?”
The implications of the bite mark whirled through Jenna’s mind. “If she didn’t but noticed it, she’d be aware he was having an affair.” She let out a long sigh. “Heck, how do you ask Mrs. Robinson if she was in the habit of biting her husband without opening a can of worms? For all we know, she’s totally oblivious to her husband’s lovers.”
“Then we ask the girlfriend.” Kane looked at Wolfe’s astonished expression. “I’m sorry, we haven’t had time to bring you up to speed. We only just found out Robinson was a player. He was seeing Ann Turner.”
“The hair stylist?” Emily stared at them. “She was seeing him?”
Jenna nodded. “Seems so. I guess we’d better speak to Ann.”
“I’d guess she doesn’t know he’s dead.” Kane frowned. “Nothing worse than being the bearer of bad news.”