Flashback (Kendra Michaels #11)

“Yes. In the living room, there’s a faint partial heel print in blood. It’s a large heel, probably a man’s size twelve or thirteen. It was tracked in there after Paula’s blood was spilled. There’s a texture to it that suggests the print was stamped through a medical bootie.”

Metcalf pointed to the bootie-clad feet of the evidence collection techs. “It could have been one of them.”

Kendra shook her head. “Not likely.”

“I agree,” a strong male voice said behind them.

Kendra and Metcalf turned to see a police detective Kendra hadn’t met before. He wore his badge and ID around his neck, identifying him as Detective Raymond Perry.

Perry nodded at Kendra. “The living room print is from an athletic shoe, which none of our people on this scene is wearing. Am I right?”

“Yes.” Kendra extended her right hand. “Kendra Michaels.”

Perry shook her hand. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“Really? It’s more than your colleague would say.”

“Breen? I’m not sure he wants to be here himself. Anyway, I’m quite confident of our ability to investigate this case without your help, Ms. Michaels. I was referring to the fact that you were among the last people to see Paula Chase alive. You’re on my list of people I need to talk to.”

“Of course.” Kendra looked back down at Paula’s corpse. “It’s still so hard to believe. I’d just met her. She seemed like a special lady. She tried so hard to do the right thing for those missing women. I’m not sure she got the respect she deserved in the last days of her life.”

Metcalf nodded. “My feeling is, she didn’t get a whole lot of help from the FBI.” He looked up at Perry. “I’m Special Agent Roland Metcalf. She came to see us, too. Who found her?”

“We got a call from the next-door neighbor. The houses are close together here, and he had his windows open. He heard a lot of strange noises from here early in the evening. Breaking dishes, toppled furniture, that kind of stuff. Shortly after dark, he saw someone leaving the residence that clearly wasn’t Ms. Chase.”

“Did he see the guy well enough to give a description?” Kendra asked.

“Not much of one. Just that it appeared to be a man dressed in dark clothing. He walked down to the corner and turned right. The neighbor could see Paula Chase’s car in the garage, so he knocked on the door to check on her. When there was no answer, he tried to look into the windows. The blinds were drawn all around, but there was one opening just big enough for him to see that the place had been trashed. So he called the police, and they came for a welfare check. They broke in and found her.”

“Security cameras or webcams in the neighborhood?” Metcalf asked.

Perry nodded. “Two webcams on this block, a few more around the corner. After sunrise, we’ll ask the owners for access and see if there is anything saved in the cloud we can use.”

“Good.” Kendra looked at the objects strewn all over the floor. “Any idea what the killer was looking for?”

“No. Her purse was emptied in the foyer. If there was any cash in it, that was taken. But credit and ATM cards are still there.”

Kendra turned and knelt on the bedroom floor. “Even the tiniest drawers and cubbies have been searched. It could be something very small. And the pillows have been shredded. What could you possibly hide inside one of your bedroom pillows?”

“Something worth killing for,” Metcalf added.

Something occurred to Kendra. “Did you find her dog?”

“He was locked in a hall closet. The doggy is fine. The next-door neighbor has him now. Her sister’s flying in from out of state, so I guess she’ll figure out what to do with the pooch.”

“That’s a relief.”

Perry half smiled. “… you say as you stand over their owner’s slaughtered corpse.”

“I’m quite sure Paula would be even more relieved. She loved her dog.”

“Judging from all the framed photos I’ve seen around here, I’d say you’re right,” Perry said.

Kendra looked at the smashed photo frames and papers spread over the floor. “You know… This may be nothing, but there is something that might have been of interest to whoever broke in here.”

“What’s that?”

“Are you aware of the Bayside Strangler case files that the Morgan sisters compiled?”