She assumed Emmy’s team would run down the identities of the couples who’d been caught entering various rooms. There were dozens of photographs of cars that captured license plates. A few showed men handing over cash at the front desk to pay for rooms. Another showed a different man standing by one of the distinctive, old-fashioned lamp-posts that lined the streets of downtown North Falls. His haircut was high and tight. He was dressed in a nondescript dark suit, red tie, dark sunglasses, and black leather derby dress shoes.
Sherry said, “Looks like an insurance salesman.”
“Any news on Mandy?”
“Nothing yet, but Jesus, she’s gonna be devastated if she makes it. Allison was a terrific mom. Showed up whenever Mandy needed her. She could’ve done a hell of a lot more with her career, but she prioritized her kid.”
“Allison’s husband never hurt Mandy?”
“God, no. We woulda been here years ago, only Bill woulda been the one lying dead on the floor.”
“You think Bill is the killer?”
Sherry shrugged as if to askwho else would it be?
Jude wasn’t so sure. She had walked through enough domestic violence crime scenes to know that they tended to look a hell of a lot messier than this. “What about Reggie? He seemed very emotional about Allison.”
“Reggie’s emotional about everything,” Sherry said. “He and Allison were sleeping together a while back.”
“Did Bill find out?”
“No idea. To be honest, I wasn’t talking to her much lately. She was off the job, and all I do is work. I barely have time for my dog. Hard to make plans when you’ve gotta drop everything the second the phone rings.”
Jude knew there was more to the story. Being a friend to an abused woman was a lesson in heartache. Stepping back could oftentimes be a form of self-preservation. “Tell me about Clayville PD.”
“The state’s hands off with the department.”
“Because they’re squeaky clean or because you’ve been told to not look too closely at anything?”
“Never got an official memo, but it’s one of those unwritten rules.” Sherry shrugged again. “The Wilders are pretty connected. Reggie’s got an uncle who’s a US senator.”
“Victor Wilder. We went to high school together. He used to hide in the girls’ locker room so he could watch us change. Destined to become a politician.”
Sherry snorted a laugh behind her mask.
“Did Allison have another office somewhere?”
“It’s possible, but why pay rent when she’s working out of here for free?”
“Good point.”
Jude wasn’t going to mention the dimple key she’d spotted in the foyer. The precision keys were designed for high-security locks that were usually found on commercial and exterior doors.
Sherry asked, “You want to start upstairs?”
“Sounds good.”
Jude followed Sherry up the stairs. In the hallway, yellow markers indicated where her own blood sprayed the floor. Jude pretended to study the pattern to buy herself some time to process what had happened. Her head still ached from a mild concussion. She didn’t let herself think about how close the bullet had come. She focused on what was in front of her so she could keep moving forward.
She said, “Walk me through it.”
Sherry said, “The slug that grazed your head was lodged in Mandy’s bedroom wall. No casing found yet.”
Jude could see the marked hole in the wall near Mandy’s headboard. She turned toward Allison’s bedroom. A white-suited tech was sweeping the debris with a metal detector. He would’ve started at the doorway and worked back as he searched for the fourth and fifth empty shell casings. She found it odd that he hadn’t located them yet.
Sherry said, “I’ve got a truck coming down from headquarters to collect all the Sheetrock. We’re going to need a few weeks to put all of it back together.”
Jude followed her into Allison’s room. They both stepped carefully around the debris. Jude blinked, and she saw Emmy kneeling on the floor across from her. Heard the sorrowful wails that had come out of her mouth. Emmy probably hadn’t even realized she was making them. Jude had spent the last six weeks watching the world try to break Emmy in two. Jude’s own feelings of helplessness brought a kind of pain that was hard to describe.
