She steadied herself and looked more closely. There were two small circular marks. Reddish in color. There was some amount of bruising on the skin around them. “What are those?”
“Taser marks,” Chance explained. “See the bruising?” He tapped the screen again. “You only get that when whoever is holding the Taser presses it really hard into the skin.”
Rory flinched. “But there was nothing mentioned about a Taser. I didn’t own a Taser, and neither did Pete.”
“Even stranger,” Chance pointed out as he closed the laptop, “there is no mention of those marks anywhere in the ME’s report.”
Rory swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. “But that shouldn’t have been left out, right? I mean, it’s relevant to the overall condition of the…body, if not to the cause of death.”
“That is exactly right.”
“When…” She moistened her lips. “When the photo isn’t blown up the way you showed it to me, are the marks still easy to see? Maybe he missed them. I’m pretty sure the medical examiner is an older man.”
Chance smiled patiently. “The ME’s job is to find the smallest anomaly. He wouldn’t have missed anything. I imagine he has an assistant who helped. In my opinion, he either left it out on purpose, or whoever typed the final report accidentally left it out when transcribing his dictation.”
“There was no mention of it in the courtroom.” She would have remembered any mention of unusual marks on her husband’s body. Rory rubbed at her forehead with her fingers. She was so tired, and another headache was threatening. “I know we have to talk about all these things.” She lifted hergaze to his. “But it feels like we’re getting nowhere. I mean, we know there were holes in the investigation, and now we find a discrepancy in the medical examiner’s report, but what do we do with any of this? Point it out to Detective Fowler? Go to the media?”
“We go to the source. We go to the ME about his report. We go to Detective Fowler, and we ask him about the discrepancies in his work.”
The idea of going to Fowler made her stomach churn. But she would have Chance at her side. “Okay.” She squared her shoulders. “What if they both refuse to discuss the case with us?”
“Then we go around them. Trust me, Rory, I have never met a roadblock I couldn’t get around.”
Hearing him say those words was an immense relief.
“There’s something else,” he said.
Rory braced for more bad news. “What else?”
“I’ve been meaning to talk to you about my lodging arrangements.”
She grimaced. “Is the motel that bad?” It wasn’t exactly a five-star accommodation.
“No, it’s fine. My concern is leaving you here alone. I would feel more comfortable staying here with you.” He held up his hands stop-sign fashion as if he expected her to launch a counterattack. “I understand that isn’t the most comfortable scenario, but after what happened last night, I just don’t think you being here alone is a good idea.”
She blew out a breath, relief washing through her. “I would love for you to stay. Please stay.”
He smiled, gave her a nod. “Good. I believe this is the best way to ensure your safety. Would you mind riding to the motel with me to pick up my bag?”
“Sure.” She stood. “There’s a Dairy Dip just down the street from the motel. I could use a milkshake.”
He grinned as he pushed to his feet. “Let me guess. Strawberry?”
“No way.” She laughed. “Chocolate. Always.”
He laughed, and they walked out of the house together. When she’d locked up, they loaded into his car. She studied his profile while he drove. For the first time in over two years, she felt a little lighter, a little…almosthappy. And she had this man to thank for it. She wondered if all Colby Agency investigators were as nice as Chance. He was very nice and very handsome. She liked him.
A frown tugged at her lips. She turned away, stared out the window.
When Pete died, she had been certain she would never look at another man and feel anything. Were these unexpected glimmers of happiness and hope just a part of the adrenaline related to trying to find the truth? Maybe she was suffering from some kind of protector syndrome.
Whatever the case, she turned back to Chance, glad he was here.
CHAPTER TEN
Wednesday, June 17
Patterson Law Office
