Shoot / Don't Shoot

“Where is he?”

“In a red Ford Fiesta registered to someone named Kimberly George. One of the patrol officers looked through the window of one of the APOA outbuildings. It turned out to be a garage with a red car inside it. He broke in as soon as he realized there was someone sitting slumped over in the front seat. The ignition was on, but the engine wasn’t running. It was out of gas.”

“He’s dead, then?”

“Yes.”

Joanna closed her eyes, feeling an odd combination of both sadness and relief. “I’ll meet you there,” she said. “I’ll be on my way as soon as I drop Jenny off with one grandmother or the other.”

CHAPTER TWENTY

Carol Strong had obviously cleared the way. When Joanna arrived at the APOA campus, there was no question about whether or not she was to be allowed through the barriers and given access to the crime scene. A young patrol officer named Reiner walked up to the Blazer as she was shutting off the ignition.

“This way, Sheriff Brady,” he said. “Detective Strong is expecting you.”

Officer Reiner led Joanna into a two-car garage, where, even though the roll-up doors were wide open, the smell of auto exhaust still lingered in the air. As she approached the car, Joanna recognized another smell as well—the ugly odor of death. In a matter of weeks, Joanna had learned the unpleasant truth—that investigating death scenes was anything but antiseptic.

She bent over and peered inside the car. A slack-jawed Dave Thompson slumped over the steering wheel. Wrinkling her nose in distaste, Joanna straightened back up. “It’s him,” she said.

“I thought so,” Carol said. “We’re trying to find the car’s registered owner. No luck so far.”

“Have you checked with the hospital?” Joanna asked.

“What hospital?”

“St. Joseph’s. My guess is she’s in the waiting room keeping Lorelie Jessup company.”

“You know her?”

“Not exactly. I’ve never met her, but I was told Kimberly George is Leann Jessup’s former lover.”

“Lover?” Carol Strong repeated sharply. “Are you telling me Leann Jessup is a lesbian?” Janna nodded.

“I didn’t know that.”

“Neither did I,” Joanna admitted. “Not until this afternoon.”

“How did you find out?”

Joanna shrugged. “After we left your office, Jenny and I went down to the hospital to check on Leann. We talked to her mother and to her brother. What a jerk!”

“Well, that certainly explains a lot,” Carol Strong mused, almost to herself.

“Explains what?” Joanna asked.

“What happened here. Was