Page 46 of In Her Bed
“But I put you in an impossible position.Lying to another officer.”
“It wasn’t a lie,” he said, his voice firm.“We did receive information that led us here.The source is just too ...complicated ...to try to explain.”
Jenna smiled weakly.“That’s one way to put it.”
For a long moment she just stared at the warehouse that stood silent and imposing against the clear blue sky, its windows dark and empty like dead eyes.But her mind was at work, still trying to connect the pieces of this increasingly complex puzzle.
“I’ve been thinking about the victims,” she said.“Marcus Derrick and now Sandra Reeves.”
Jake nodded.“Both Pineville residents, both well-known in their own circles.What’s the connection?”
“Howard Mitchell’s estate sale,” Jenna said, the realization crystallizing in her mind.“Marcus bought that ham radio set there.And Sandra purchased that antique phonograph from the same sale.”
Jake’s eyes widened slightly.“So you think our killer might be targeting people who bought items from Mitchell’s collection?”
“It’s the only link I can see between them so far,” Jenna confirmed.“We need to talk to Rebecca Mitchell again, find out more about her buyers.”
“That’s good thinking,” Jake said, a hint of pride in his voice.“But that sale has been going on for weeks now.There must have been a lot of buyers, though I guess it should be possible to get a list of them.Do you think they’re all at risk?”
“I don’t know.Maybe there’s also some other connection that we’re not seeing.”
They both fell silent as a patrol car pulled into the gravel lot, followed by an unmarked sedan.Two uniformed officers exited the patrol car, nodding respectfully toward Jenna and Jake.Chief Morgan emerged from the sedan, looking less friendly.He approached them with a frown on his face.
“Sheriff Graves.Deputy Hawkins.”His greeting was curt, his sharp eyes assessing them both.
“Chief Morgan,” Jenna replied.“Thank you for coming.”
“Let’s get down to business,” Morgan said, adjusting his belt.“Tell me again why you’re here.”
“Given the timing and the...well, some similarities to the Derrick case,” Jenna said, “we felt that our tip warranted immediate investigation.”
Morgan’s gaze shifted from Jenna to Jake and back again.“And your ‘unknown source’ led you here specifically?To this warehouse?”
Jenna answered simply, “Yes.”
After a skeptical glare, Morgan said,” Let’s take a look, then.”
Jenna led the way toward the building, stopping at the loading dock where a large metal roll-up door was slightly open.Her skin prickled with déjà vu as she remembered Sandra’s description of the attack.
Jenna gestured towards the slightly raised door.“I think Sandra was chased into the building here.”
Morgan’s brows lifted slightly at her words, but he remained silent.He scanned the ominous gap before he motioned to his officers with a curt nod, instructing them wordlessly to prepare their firearms.Jake moved instinctively closer to Jenna.His hand hovered protectively over his holstered weapon.
“Stay behind us,” Morgan commanded, his tone cold as steel as he unholstered his own gun.
One of the officers crouched low and slipped under the partly-raised loading dock door, disappearing inside.A few moments later he called out in a hushed tone, “All clear so far.”
Jake joined the other two men, and they managed to pull the sliding door upward another two feet, the metal groaning in protest.The darkness inside seemed to swallow the morning light, leaving only shadows and silhouettes.
Jenna ducked through the opening and followed the officers into the warehouse, her eyes adjusting slowly to the dim interior.Dust particles danced in the few shafts of sunlight that managed to penetrate the high windows.The air was stale and cold, with a metallic undertone that made her skin crawl.
“Lights don’t work,” one officer reported.“I guess the power is off.”
“The place has been abandoned for a long time,” Morgan said.“Spread out.But stay within sight of each other.”
Their footsteps echoed in the cavernous space as they moved forward, flashlight beams cutting through the dimness.Rows of shelving units and abandoned machinery created a maze of hidden corners.
Jenna’s gaze swept the concrete floor, searching for any sign of disturbance in the thick layer of dust.Twenty feet in, she spotted it – a series of scuff marks and footprints, some large and deliberate, others smaller and chaotic.
