I had to bite back a sigh. What had I done to deserve this horror?
25 Twenty-Five
I parked in the same spot as my previous visits, mostly because I figured it was safest. The sheriff’s department was no longer monitoring the site, but the police tape surrounding the area remained.
“What do you think?” Sabrina was all bright eyes and pink cheeks as she watched me drift near the tracks.
“I think I want to see where Ray’s house is in proximity to where the bodies were dumped.”
“You don’t think someone would be stupid enough to toss bodies in their backyard?”
It was a fair question. “No, but Ray might not be all that smart.”
“It seems to me that he would have to be to pull this off.”
“He hasn’t pulled it off ... yet.”
She opened her mouth to speak again, but I pressed a finger to my lips. “It’s quiet time now. Unless you see a bloody weapon in Ray’s backyard, I need you to be quiet until I tell you otherwise. Got it?”
Despite the momentary flash of annoyance in her eyes, Sabrina nodded. She fell into step a few feet behind me, allowing me to take a slow trek down the railroad tracks. Derrick’s team had combed this area, but I still needed to look.
Only four houses backed up to the tracks. The house next to Ray’s ramshackle abode had painted street numbers next to the rear door. I wasn’t sure why anyone would want to do that, but I was grateful all the same. The gate that led to Ray’s yard led to a fence so tall there was no way to look over the sagging wood.
“It’s a privacy fence,” Sabrina offered.
I shifted to offer her a pointed glare and she immediately mimed zipping her lips. I shoved at the gate with my shark-mittened hands. It didn’t open. I studied the lock. I could follow the rules and turn back the way we’d come or call Derrick and tell him what I’d discovered and allow the sheriff’s department to swoop in and grab all the glory. Or I could do what I wanted to do. It wasn’t a hard choice.
I dug in the inside pocket of my coat and came back with the small assembly of tools Eliot had given me months ago. He’d also shown me how to use them. I pulled out the appropriate metal probe that boasted a hook at one end and went to work.
“Are you breaking in?” Sabrina was breathless as she watched me work. “Do you think that’s a good idea?”
I wanted nothing more than to gag her with a really thick bandana, maybe even douse it in chloroform first for good measure. “Shush.”
She shut her mouth, swiveling to look for anyone around. I was willing to break a few rules to get the story. That was never going to change.
I wanted to cry out in triumph when the telltale snick of falling locks sounded. I kept it together and pocketed my tools before pushing open the gate. I gestured with my hand, as if to say “after you,” but she adamantly shook her head. It was almost as if she didn’t believe I was about to break the law and didn’t want to be the first through the gate in case it turned out to be some elaborate prank. I was fine with that.
The small backyard was cluttered with junk. An old lawnmower rested on its side in the corner. The yard was overgrown with grass that had gone dormant months ago. I was careful as I stepped through the yard, taking a moment to stick my head through the open door that led to the detached garage. There was nothing of note — at least nothing I was willing to go through, because I figured the place was infested with rats — but a pile of clothing at the entrance caught my eye.
I leaned over and pawed through it, frowning when I took in a pair of oversized rubber boots and what looked to be one of the sharp-edged tools county parolees used to pick up garbage along the street. I tilted the stick to study the sharp end, but there was nothing of note. Then I went back to looking at the boots. I almost missed it on the first glance, but a raised pattern caught my attention just as I was about to drop the boot. When I tilted it, I could just make out the Macomb County Sheriff’s Department logo.
“What does that mean?” Sabrina asked in an exaggerated whisper from behind me. “Is that a clue?”
Was it? Part of me wanted to say no. I had no doubt that Ray had been forced to perform community service a number of times. My heart hammered hard enough to make me think otherwise. I was missing something.
I returned the stick to where I found it, taking a step out of the garage and staring at the house. I considered seeing if I could open the back door and take a look inside, but that seemed far too dangerous. If Ray was there, he would be suspicious. If he caught us, he might kill us, despite the fact that he seemed afraid of Eliot during our brief interaction.
“What do we do now?” Sabrina asked. “I mean ... there’s nothing here.”
I wasn’t convinced we hadn’t found anything, but I knew better than to break into a house with a witness ... at least this particular witness. If I wanted to go through Ray’s things I would have to return when I knew he wasn’t present. I would also need backup in the form of Eliot. My boyfriend might believe I had a warped sense of self-preservation, but he was wrong.
“We go back.”
Sabrina looked so relieved by my answer that she didn’t waste a second, scampering for the gate I’d left open and disappearing from sight. I took a long, wistful look at the house and then
