Page 36 of Still Afraid

She dropped her head against Josh’s chest and let him hold her close until Gabe and Buck arrived a few minutes later.

As soon as Gabe was inside, she went from Josh’s arms to Gabe’s for a brief hug.

When he stepped back, Gabe held her by the shoulders. “Are you all right?” His gaze pierced through her, making a fake “I’m fine” impossible.

She shrugged under the weight of his hands. “I will be … eventually.”

Gabe and Buck analyzed the scene for about ten minutes before a crime scene unit arrived.

Chloe tried to stay out of the way in the kitchen while the team processed what had happened. The only thing left in the kitchen were a few dishes in one cupboard and food in another. The food had been taken out, and the dishes scooted to the side, though still in the cabinet. All the doors were open.

The bedroom and bathroom had been similarly disturbed. The biggest mess was her pack, but probably because it had been dumped. There wasn’t enough left in the house to make too big a mess.

This was the last thing her already frayed nerves needed.

Chapter Thirteen

Josh hung near Chloe as CSU finished up. She sat on a stool at the island. Sat was a stronger word than what she was doing. More like slumped. Weariness oozed from her being, but he didn’t know what to do for her. She was beyond tired and simply needed to go to bed.

He ran his hand along her back before he went to the living room where Gabe and Buck talked in hushed tones.

“Thoughts?” he asked them.

Gabe shrugged. “It’s hard to say what the intruder hoped for in breaking in here.”

Buck nodded. “There’s no evidence of forced entry. If you guys are certain you locked the door, the intruder was either so skilled with a pick set they left no clear marks, or they obtained a copy of the key somehow. The front door was the only compromised entry point.”

Josh thought through when they left the house earlier in the day. “I remember Chloe locking the door.”

Gabe said, “Same. But wait. Does she still have her spare hidden out back?”

“Maybe. We should check.”

Buck said, “Show me.”

Gabe led the way through the kitchen to the back door.

Chloe gave Josh a half-hearted smile. He kissed her temple. “We’re going to check for the spare key. It’s still out back?”

She nodded.

“Rest.”

She folded her arms on the counter and laid her head on top of them. He squeezed her shoulder before following the other guys out back.

Buck’s flashlight illuminated the dirt in the garden along the back of the house. Barely peeking out from underneath some hosta leaves were two halves of a fake rock that once held her hidden house key.

“I guess that explains the lack of forced entry,” Josh said.

Buck asked, “But how many people know she keeps this here?”

Gabe and Josh both shrugged.

Gabe said, “I wouldn’t think too many. That’s not the kind of thing Chloe would tell just anyone.”

Josh added, “But it only takes the wrong person noticing it’s there.”

Buck took a photo with his cell phone then, careful not to touch the fake rock, put both halves into an evidence bag. “We’ll get this processed as soon as possible, but I’m afraid we won’t have answers anytime soon.”