Flashback (Kendra Michaels #11)

“The Wicked Witch.”

“What?”

“And Toto, too.” Kendra nodded toward the house. “There’s a picture of the Wicked Witch in the upstairs window. And there’s a statue of Toto on the front porch.”

“I see,” Lynch said. “And aren’t those ceramic ruby slippers by the mailbox?”

Kenda gasped and pulled out her phone.

“What is it?” Lynch asked.

“Just one second.” Kendra typed in the street address and read the search results. “Wow.”

“Time to share,” Perry said. “What did you find?”

“Chloe and Sloane weren’t talking about ‘the bomb place,’” Kendra said.

“Then what were they discussing?” Perry asked.

“The Baum place.”

“What?”

“The Baum house.” Kendra smiled broadly. “L. Frank Baum wrote three of his Oz books in that very house over a hundred years ago. That’s what Chloe and Sloane were talking about. Not the bomb place, but the Baum place!”

“Bingo,” Lynch said softly. “By George, I believe she’s got it.”

“Well, you’re the one who pulled this location out of your hat,” Kendra said. “Now we’ve got to figure out what it means.” She hugged him impulsively. “You might just be as brilliant as you think, Lynch.”

“I tried to tell you.” Lynch was grinning. “But I’m glad you finally came to see the light on your own. That’s always inspirational.”

Perry stepped closer to the house. “The Baum house… Is it a museum?”

“No.” She looked at the Tripadvisor write-up on her phone. “Just a private residence, as it apparently always has been. Now occupied by a family that obviously appreciates its place in literary history.”

“I’m still not sure why Chloe and Sloane suddenly appreciated it,” Lynch said.

“Me neither. And judging by the flyer we tucked into the front doorjamb, no one has been home to answer any questions.”

“It’s not just the police flyer,” Kendra said. “There are two restaurant take-out menus and a local coupon book on the porch. I’d say the residents have been out of town for at least a week.”

Lynch stared at his phone. “By residents, you mean Ted and Lucinda Nichols, and their children Mark and Sasha.”

Kendra looked over at his screen. “You found that already?”

“Real estate records, then a quick trip to the last census. They’ve lived here for nine years. I’m sure Detective Perry could have just as easily pulled this up from his police databases.”

Perry chuckled. “Mine are a bit more sluggish than the ones you’re using. I usually end up calling someone and waiting for them to get back to me.”

Kendra couldn’t just stand here. She stepped closer to the house. “Up for a little bit of trespassing?”

Lynch smiled. “Sure. Coming, Perry?”

“Why not?” Perry made a wry face. “It’ll give me a chance to count up all the other Oz-related clues that my officers probably totally missed.”

Kendra, Lynch, and Perry opened the side gate and walked down the length of the yellow house. The backyard was just as beautiful as the front, with stunning pops of color coming from the flowers and lawn ornaments. Dozens of ceramic winged monkeys dangled from the two lemon trees, and stone pavers had been painted to give an approximation of the Yellow Brick Road.

“They’re really leaning into the whole Oz thing,” Lynch said.