No one had touched the scarf until Laurie had arrived. Donning a pair of disposable gloves, she had placed it in the evidence bag. Flora had seen enough bloodstains to be sure she knew what she was looking at. What remained to be seen was whether the blood was human and, if it was, to whom it belonged. Jennifer? She tried to stop her mind from jumping several steps ahead.
Leon took the seat next to her on the sofa, not quite touching her, but comforting her with his presence. He seemed to know what she was thinking. In other circumstances, she might wonder how this had happened. How could two people who were each struggling with their own emotional issues have developed a close bond in such a short time? With everything that was going on, she didn’t bother to question it. She was just glad to have him there.
“What happens now?” he asked Laurie.
“Now, we try to find Jennifer Webster.” She held up the evidence bag. “And I get this sent off for analysis.”
“Okay. That answers my question as far as the investigation is concerned.” Through her shock and fear, Flora noticed how authoritative Leon’s clipped tones sounded. It was almost as if he had never had a speech problem. “Now tell me what you’re going to do about protecting Flora.”
Stillwater’s police chief was not the sort of person who backed down when confronted with a stern green gaze. Even so, Flora caught a hint of unease in Laurie’s reply. “I wish there was more I could offer, but, right now, we’re looking at vandalism, a break-in when Flora first moved in and now a bizarre follow-up. It just doesn’t meet the threshold for any more police resources.” She offered a helpless shrug. “I’m sorry.”
Flora could sense Leon keeping his anger and frustration in check. “Are you saying that Flora, or the twins, have to get hurt before you can step up your official involvement?”
“We have an alert on Flora’s cell phone and on her number at the Ryerson Center. I have a patrol car driving past here every hour and we’re installing a panic button,” Laurie said. She picked up her notebook, which she’d placed on the arm of her chair, and flipped through a few pages. “I know we’ve been over this, but is there anything else you can think of that might help the investigation?”
Flora shook her head. “I gave you the notes from my conversation with Lilith Bronson.”
Laurie appeared lost in thought for a moment or two. “I’m confused.” Flora got the impression they were words the police chief rarely used. “If Alan Grayson was the person who killed Joy Valeski and Lilith Bronson, these attacks on you don’t make any sense.” She sent an apologetic glance from Flora to Leon. “What I mean is...why not just kill you as well?”
“Damn it, Laurie,” Leon muttered.
“No. I understand,” Flora said. “I don’t like it, but I know what you mean. Are you suggesting that the person who killed the two women is not the same person who is harassing me?”
“It’s too early to suggest anything.” Flora figured it was a typical police officer’s response. “Until today’s incident, I would have said you were the victim of some unpleasant, but low-level, targeted attacks...possibly stalking.” Laurie’s gaze fell on the evidence bag. “But the scarf changes everything.”
“Because it sends a different message,” Leon said.
“Exactly.” Laurie nodded. “Whether it’s true or not, the person who left that scarf here wants Flora to think that Jennifer Webster has been harmed, even killed. But to give that message, the criminal had to know something very important.”
Flora shivered slightly. “He had to know that Jennifer had one of those scarves.”
“And that there was a link between you and Jennifer, however brief.” Leon picked up on the same train of thought. “He had to know you would instantly recognize the scarf. Which means he saw you together while she was wearing it.”
“Not necessarily,” Laurie said. “The scarf is very distinctive. Jennifer was wearing it the last time she was with Flora. So the killer must have seen Jennifer on that day. Anyone who saw Jennifer would remember it. If she’s dead, and her killer wanted to leave Flora a message to let her know that, something like the scarf would be the obvious thing.”
“Do you always see the sinister side, Laurie?” Leon achieved a wry smile from the chief.
“It’s my job.” She looked up from the note she was scribbling. “I’ve been involved in several murder cases. You start to think like a killer.” She got to her feet. “Right now, I don’t know what to think. We don’t know if the person who left that scarf is the same person who killed Joy and Lilith. I might speak to Jennifer Webster tomorrow and find her scarf was stolen the day she left Stillwater. The lab results could come back and show the stains are pig blood.”
“None of that would change the fact that someone has been in my house. That was intended to frighten me, and it succeeded.” Flora wrapped her arms around herself. “I don’t know how I’ll ever sleep again.”
Even though Luella French had made threats against her three years ago, she had learned to push the anxiety to the back of her mind. Luella hadn’t acted on her warnings, and Flora had been able to get on with her life. Although Luella’s behavior had troubled her, in the cold light of day, she could reason it had
