in a relationship now? Could he relate to a woman in a way that would honor God?
“Come on, Neil, help me get the card table set up,” his father called.
Great. Games until midnight. Neil liked to play cards, but he knew he’d put in a long day tomorrow. Yet there was no way he could leave his family’s house early again.
“Sure, Papa.” He jumped up to help his father.
At the police station the next morning, Connor and Neil brought the other detectives of their unit up to speed on the case. Connor assigned Harry Fowler, the senior detective who would retire at the end of the week, to processing the fingerprint evidence, and asked him to supervise Lance and Jimmy, the two newest members of the unit. They’d recently passed the detective’s exam and were still new to the intense investigative work of the Priority Unit. Neil and fellow detective Tony Carlisle were tapped to return to the Rileys’ house with Connor.
Tony had held detective’s rank only a year. Neil was often paired with him and was expected to make sure Tony did everything by the book. That could be trying, as Tony was a bit of a hotshot and sometimes bordered on arrogant. His uncle was the current governor of Maine, which made some members of the police department resent him. Connor wouldn’t tolerate favoritism in the Priority Unit. Tony received the same treatment as the other men, and Connor expected the same respect and precise work from him as he did from his other detectives.
When the three of them arrived at the brick house, Connor sent Tony and Neil to find the neighbor who had been entrusted with a house key while he went inside to look for Mrs. Riley’s purse.
The neighbor, Mrs. Endicott, was older than the Rileys. She puttered around for a while and finally came up with the key, but she didn’t want to give it to the men.
“How do I know you’re really policemen?” she asked.
Tony was impatient, but Neil showed her his badge and ID a second time. He asked her if she’d like to call the station and confirm their identity. She did. The two men waited. Finally, she gave Neil the key.
“Thanks, Mrs. Endicott. Did you happen to notice anyone walking in the neighborhood, or any strange cars parked in the area Christmas morning?”
“No. Sorry. I wish I could help you. It’s just terrible, what happened to Edna.”
Neil and Tony left with the key.
“Talk about an old fussbudget,” said Tony as they walked down the sidewalk toward the Rileys’ house.
“Old people need to be careful,” Neil replied. “She was right, we could have been anybody.”
Connor had found Edna Riley’s purse and the fifth key. “I just talked to Harry,” he said when Neil and Tony entered the living room of the brick house. “All the fingerprints we got yesterday were Mr. or Mrs. Riley’s.”
“So the perp wore gloves,” said Tony.
“Maybe. Tony, let’s say you want to kill a woman, and she lets you in the front door. You shoot her. How do you leave?”
“By the front door.”
“It was locked. All five keys are accounted for.”
“So. I have an extra key you don’t know about.”
Connor nodded. “Any number of people could have made one. The Rileys kept the spare hanging in the kitchen, where anyone could ‘borrow’ it. The neighbor had one. Who knows how many people had access to that one? You’re probably right. Somebody used one of these five or made a copy of his own.”
They went back to the office, and Neil called the medical examiner’s office. The autopsy wasn’t finished, but the doctor had recovered the .22-caliber bullet.
“Carlisle, go get it,” Connor said. “Run it on the IBIS system.”
Neil doubted it would do any good, but anything was possible. If the bullet had been fired by a gun that had been entered in the Integrated Ballistics Identification System, they would find out.
“I’ll be upstairs,” Connor said. That meant the chief’s office. Mike summoned Connor frequently, or came down
“Come on, Neil, help me get the card table set up,” his father called.
Great. Games until midnight. Neil liked to play cards, but he knew he’d put in a long day tomorrow. Yet there was no way he could leave his family’s house early again.
“Sure, Papa.” He jumped up to help his father.
At the police station the next morning, Connor and Neil brought the other detectives of their unit up to speed on the case. Connor assigned Harry Fowler, the senior detective who would retire at the end of the week, to processing the fingerprint evidence, and asked him to supervise Lance and Jimmy, the two newest members of the unit. They’d recently passed the detective’s exam and were still new to the intense investigative work of the Priority Unit. Neil and fellow detective Tony Carlisle were tapped to return to the Rileys’ house with Connor.
Tony had held detective’s rank only a year. Neil was often paired with him and was expected to make sure Tony did everything by the book. That could be trying, as Tony was a bit of a hotshot and sometimes bordered on arrogant. His uncle was the current governor of Maine, which made some members of the police department resent him. Connor wouldn’t tolerate favoritism in the Priority Unit. Tony received the same treatment as the other men, and Connor expected the same respect and precise work from him as he did from his other detectives.
When the three of them arrived at the brick house, Connor sent Tony and Neil to find the neighbor who had been entrusted with a house key while he went inside to look for Mrs. Riley’s purse.
The neighbor, Mrs. Endicott, was older than the Rileys. She puttered around for a while and finally came up with the key, but she didn’t want to give it to the men.
“How do I know you’re really policemen?” she asked.
Tony was impatient, but Neil showed her his badge and ID a second time. He asked her if she’d like to call the station and confirm their identity. She did. The two men waited. Finally, she gave Neil the key.
“Thanks, Mrs. Endicott. Did you happen to notice anyone walking in the neighborhood, or any strange cars parked in the area Christmas morning?”
“No. Sorry. I wish I could help you. It’s just terrible, what happened to Edna.”
Neil and Tony left with the key.
“Talk about an old fussbudget,” said Tony as they walked down the sidewalk toward the Rileys’ house.
“Old people need to be careful,” Neil replied. “She was right, we could have been anybody.”
Connor had found Edna Riley’s purse and the fifth key. “I just talked to Harry,” he said when Neil and Tony entered the living room of the brick house. “All the fingerprints we got yesterday were Mr. or Mrs. Riley’s.”
“So the perp wore gloves,” said Tony.
“Maybe. Tony, let’s say you want to kill a woman, and she lets you in the front door. You shoot her. How do you leave?”
“By the front door.”
“It was locked. All five keys are accounted for.”
“So. I have an extra key you don’t know about.”
Connor nodded. “Any number of people could have made one. The Rileys kept the spare hanging in the kitchen, where anyone could ‘borrow’ it. The neighbor had one. Who knows how many people had access to that one? You’re probably right. Somebody used one of these five or made a copy of his own.”
They went back to the office, and Neil called the medical examiner’s office. The autopsy wasn’t finished, but the doctor had recovered the .22-caliber bullet.
“Carlisle, go get it,” Connor said. “Run it on the IBIS system.”
Neil doubted it would do any good, but anything was possible. If the bullet had been fired by a gun that had been entered in the Integrated Ballistics Identification System, they would find out.
“I’ll be upstairs,” Connor said. That meant the chief’s office. Mike summoned Connor frequently, or came down
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