Leftovers by Chloe Kendrick Read Free Book Online Page A

the top of the stairs and hearing my ascent made me walk quietly. I gently turned the knob and pushed the door.
    There was no one greeting me at the landing. I let out the air I’d been holding in my lungs and relaxed. I seemed to be alone. I did a quick survey from room to room. The first floor held what would have been the parlor in an earlier age and the kitchen. The room was bright and polished, far different than it would have been when the house was built.
    I took the stairs quickly, knowing that any of the neighbors might wonder about me and call the police at any time. I didn’t want to have to explain myself to the police.
    On the second floor were the bedrooms. I found the master bedroom—and more than I anticipated. A woman’s body lay on the floor. I did a quick check. Taking her pulse, I could tell that she was still alive and breathing, which was good. There was some blood on the side of her head, so it was apparent that someone had rendered her unconscious and then gone to meet me, presumably the unknown woman. I didn’t know the woman’s motives, but as long as Mariel was alive, there was a chance I could find out those answers.
    I grabbed my phone and dialed 911. I explained the situation, saying that I’d come into the house through a window after hearing a woman’s moan. It seemed plausible if not true. No one could conclusively deny it, not even Mariel.
    They promised to send someone out immediately. I walked back down to the first floor and unlocked the front door. I stood on the porch until the first responders arrived. I pointed them to the bedroom and told them what I’d found. They nodded and headed off with a gurney and medical bags.
    I had barely turned around when another car pulled up. Even though I didn’t recognize the car, I knew the driver well. Detective Jax Danvers, who was looking rather peeved, stopped the car in front of the house and got out.
    “What are you doing here?” he asked without any introduction. “I told you that we couldn’t get a warrant.”
    “I thought I heard someone moaning upstairs so I got in and found a woman knocked unconscious. It’s a good thing that I got here when I did. There was a lot of blood, and I don’t know how bad off she is.” I tried to present myself as a girl scout helping others, though I knew he wouldn’t buy it. I was content that he couldn’t prove I was lying.
    Danvers rolled his eyes. I was pretty sure that the gesture was not a professional one. “I’ll just bet that’s how it went down.”
    I shrugged. “I heard a moan and investigated. But now that the door is open, and it looks like a crime was committed, you can look around, right?” I thought that he would at least be pleased with the ability to learn why Mariel hadn’t shown up.
    He laughed. “Yes, I can look around. You can go home and make hot dogs.” He gave me a little push to the stairs leading down to the sidewalk as he entered the house.
     
    I didn’t like Danvers’ response, but I had little else to do except for following his command. I wasn’t going to get a look at the crime scene; that much was clear. So I had no plans for the rest of the day. I wasn’t sure how badly Mariel was hurt, but I figured that the police would want to get a statement from her before they allowed me to talk to her as well. So they’d have a better grasp of what was going on.
    I thought about just leaving things now. My wish had been for the police to investigate the murder of Linda Zoz, and now it was likely they would. Her sister had been rendered unconscious on her way to meet with me to discuss Linda. Another woman who came to meet me at the food truck had been shot by a sniper. That should be enough to get the police interested. Linda’s death would not be swept under the rug as part of another investigation.
    However, I had my doubts. Danvers had already made it clear that the woman’s shooting could not be conclusively linked to Mariel’s disappearance. As a