Killer Listing by Vicki Doudera Page A

of the building. “What caused the blaze?”
    Detective Briggs pursed his lips. “The Fire Marshall’s office is still investigating. I’m here because of the building’s owner, Jack Cameron.”
    Darby whistled under her breath. “This belongs to Jack? The poor guy. First his wife, and now this …”
    “Hmm.” Jonas Briggs squinted in the sunlight. “Getting too hot to be out here jogging, Ms. Farr. How about if I give you a lift home?”
    “Only if you’ll stop calling me ‘Ms. Farr.’ My name is Darby.”
    Jonas Briggs smiled and pointed toward a navy Volvo parked a few spaces away. “And I’m Jonas. A pleasure to meet you.” He opened the door for Darby and she slid in. It was impeccably clean, without as much as a ballpoint pen out of place.
    Detective Briggs climbed in and started the engine. “The air will be on in a second,” he said.
    Darby buckled her seat belt. “You car is spotless. Is that a department regulation?”
    The detective chuckled. “I like a clean environment,” he said. “Helps me think. I’m in here so much that I don’t think I could take it if it got sloppy.” He adjusted the air conditioning and smiled. “You let me know if you get too chilly.” Backing out of the parking space, Jonas Briggs eased the car onto the main street.
    “Do you always work homicides?”
    “Nah. Whatever comes my way.” He scanned the streets and turned down the leafy road where Darby had been running only minutes before. “Generally, this is a pretty boring jurisdiction. White collar crime, your occasional crime of passion, but none of the random violence you find in Tampa or Miami.” He glanced over at Darby. “The murder of Kyle Cameron is very unusual. A first in my fifteen years with the department.”
    “How did you know it was part of a series of killings?”
    “We relayed the information to OSI—that’s the Office of Statewide Intelligence, a fusion center for data—and they got a hit. The guy’s MO is the same. He preys on attractive real estate agents, ambushing them at an open house just before it begins. His weapon is a long, thin, blade. The victims are stabbed multiple times in the throat and chest area, and there is no sign of sexual assault. All three have been found by clients coming to look at the property.”
    Darby shivered and Jonas Briggs adjusted the air conditioning, although her shiver had nothing to do with the temperature.
    “How will the investigation be handled?”
    “I’ll work with the guys on the East Coast through the Department of Legal Enforcement,” he said. “The pressure is on to solve it quickly, before a statewide panic sets in. But these are the crimes that generally take a while. You’re not dealing with someone who’s jealous of a co-worker, or mad at his ex-wife. You’re dealing with a psycho, and getting into their mindset is pretty tricky.”
    Darby nodded and Detective Briggs turned into Helen’s neat little driveway. “Here you go. I hope you’re being careful about jogging alone around here. It’s pretty safe, but still …”
    Darby held up the palm-sized can of pepper spray and smiled. “I bring along a friend.” She didn’t tell the detective that she was a graduate of San Diego’s coveted Akido Academy and had competed in countless martial arts competitions.
    “Good.” Jonas Briggs put the car in park and opened his door. To Darby’s amazement, he came around the Volvo and opened hers with a flourish. “There. I hope I’ve in some way made up for my rude manners this morning.”
    “Yes,” Darby said, emerging once more into the heat. “Your mother would be proud.”
    _____
    After a shower and a check of her e-mails, Darby drove the black Mustang to Helen Near’s office on Serenidad’s main street. She found Helen on the phone, an intense look of concentration on her face.
    “Tomorrow morning will be fine,” she said, jotting something down on a yellow pad of paper. “Nine a.m., and I’ll bring my