never met Land’s grandmother before. I’d only met Sabine through finding another dead body and another investigation. In a normal day, I would likely have gone on oblivious to her existence. Now I was going to get to meet his grandmother because of another murder investigation. I wondered what would be required to go to a family reunion?
I was surprised because when Sabine started driving, we seemed to be going in the direction of Land’s apartment. I hadn’t realized that his grandmother had lived so close to Land, especially since he rarely talked about her. I had only known that Sabine had lived with her for a while and that grandma lived in town.
I was even more surprised when Sabine pulled into the lot for Land’s apartment complex. She swung the car wide into a spot right outside of his apartment. “Grandma wanted to meet you here. She thought it might be better.”
I wasn’t sure what better meant. It would be less intimidating to meet her in a neutral environment, but without Land present, the situation would be rather tense for me. I didn’t know if she would blame me for his arrest or not. I felt terrible at the moment, worried and heart-sick, so meeting new family members was not an experience I wanted to add to my life right now.
We got out of the car. An older woman, perhaps in her late 60s, stood in the doorframe. She stood very erect, almost like a mannequin. Her dark hair had mostly faded to gray, but I could still see the signs of her younger self. Her face was impassive, and I couldn’t read her emotions at all, which must be a Mendoza trait.
“Come in,” she said, standing aside for me to enter. “I’m Maria Mendoza, Land’s grandmother.” She watched me for a reaction, but I had none to give. I wasn’t sure what was going on here, or if I wanted any part of it.
I walked into the living room and was astounded to see that the room had been torn to shreds. Pillows had been opened. Papers lay strewn on the floor. It looked like a hurricane, or the county police, had been through here.
“Did the police do this?” I asked, wondering how Land would feel about this disorder. He was a private person, and this would be seen as a major intrusion.
Maria shook her head. “No, I’ve done this. I am looking for clues that will help you prove my grandson did not do this.”
I looked at her with shock. She’d made this mess by herself! She’s come into Land’s apartment and torn it apart. While I understood how you would want to help someone you loved, I also felt that I immediately had a better feeling for why Land tended to be so reserved. It would be natural to keep your emotions to yourself when your grandmother feels it’s okay to go through your things like this. I would have been livid if my parents had done such a thing.
Beyond the intrusion of privacy, I wasn’t sure what good this would do. Land would not be stupid enough leave incriminating papers just lying around for people to find. Granted, the police were unlikely to get a search warrant to look for papers here. If they would look for anything, it would be cyanide, if indeed that was the poison. However, the crime had taken place elsewhere so there was a limited amount of information that could likely be found at his apartment. I tried to explain this to Sabine and Maria, but they continued to look through all of his papers as I tried to rationalize with them.
Occasionally, they would stop and share a paper between themselves. I tried to glance at a few of those papers without appearing to condone what they were doing. Since Sabine had driven me here, I had little choice, but to sit and wait for it to be over.
After they’d finished the living and dining room, they moved on to the kitchen which went much faster. They practically sprinted into the bedroom, and I cringed, wondering what remnants of mine had been left there that I’d be confronted with later.
However, they came out with nothing from the bedroom. They sat
I was surprised because when Sabine started driving, we seemed to be going in the direction of Land’s apartment. I hadn’t realized that his grandmother had lived so close to Land, especially since he rarely talked about her. I had only known that Sabine had lived with her for a while and that grandma lived in town.
I was even more surprised when Sabine pulled into the lot for Land’s apartment complex. She swung the car wide into a spot right outside of his apartment. “Grandma wanted to meet you here. She thought it might be better.”
I wasn’t sure what better meant. It would be less intimidating to meet her in a neutral environment, but without Land present, the situation would be rather tense for me. I didn’t know if she would blame me for his arrest or not. I felt terrible at the moment, worried and heart-sick, so meeting new family members was not an experience I wanted to add to my life right now.
We got out of the car. An older woman, perhaps in her late 60s, stood in the doorframe. She stood very erect, almost like a mannequin. Her dark hair had mostly faded to gray, but I could still see the signs of her younger self. Her face was impassive, and I couldn’t read her emotions at all, which must be a Mendoza trait.
“Come in,” she said, standing aside for me to enter. “I’m Maria Mendoza, Land’s grandmother.” She watched me for a reaction, but I had none to give. I wasn’t sure what was going on here, or if I wanted any part of it.
I walked into the living room and was astounded to see that the room had been torn to shreds. Pillows had been opened. Papers lay strewn on the floor. It looked like a hurricane, or the county police, had been through here.
“Did the police do this?” I asked, wondering how Land would feel about this disorder. He was a private person, and this would be seen as a major intrusion.
Maria shook her head. “No, I’ve done this. I am looking for clues that will help you prove my grandson did not do this.”
I looked at her with shock. She’d made this mess by herself! She’s come into Land’s apartment and torn it apart. While I understood how you would want to help someone you loved, I also felt that I immediately had a better feeling for why Land tended to be so reserved. It would be natural to keep your emotions to yourself when your grandmother feels it’s okay to go through your things like this. I would have been livid if my parents had done such a thing.
Beyond the intrusion of privacy, I wasn’t sure what good this would do. Land would not be stupid enough leave incriminating papers just lying around for people to find. Granted, the police were unlikely to get a search warrant to look for papers here. If they would look for anything, it would be cyanide, if indeed that was the poison. However, the crime had taken place elsewhere so there was a limited amount of information that could likely be found at his apartment. I tried to explain this to Sabine and Maria, but they continued to look through all of his papers as I tried to rationalize with them.
Occasionally, they would stop and share a paper between themselves. I tried to glance at a few of those papers without appearing to condone what they were doing. Since Sabine had driven me here, I had little choice, but to sit and wait for it to be over.
After they’d finished the living and dining room, they moved on to the kitchen which went much faster. They practically sprinted into the bedroom, and I cringed, wondering what remnants of mine had been left there that I’d be confronted with later.
However, they came out with nothing from the bedroom. They sat
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