Page 31 of Investigation of a Quest

“Probably why this March Kin shipped the tin man there,” the sheriff said. “They could pick it up without being noticed.”

“Why would the shipping company leave the package here, though?” Bel asked. “It’s clearly abandoned.”

“I don’t know,” Griffin said. “Drivers get paid to drive to the addresses on the labels, not ask questions, so whoever had it probably just dumped the box and moved on. We can try to track down who delivered it, but I doubt that will help. Whoever March Kin is, they were careful not to leave a trace. They wouldn’t be hanging around an abandoned building to greet the delivery man.”

“So we’re back at square one,” Olivia groaned as Bel parked and got out to look around. “We’re out of leads… and getting another call.”

“I’ll let you go.” Griffin hung up, and Bel returned to the SUV to answer her cell.

“Detective?” Deputy Dorothy said without waiting for a hello.

“Is something wrong?” Bel asked, praying there wasn’t another body.

“A local woman called my station. Her nephew is missing.”

“How old?” Both detectives’ spines straightened.

“Forties,” Dorothy answered. “Sorry, not a child.”

“Okay.” Bel fell back into her seat as the spiked adrenaline drained from her veins. “How long has he been missing?”

“She isn’t sure,” Dorothy said. “She hadn’t heard from him, so she checked his apartment, but he wasn’t there.”

“It’s not unusual for an adult not to be home,” Bel said. “Were there signs of forced entry?”

“She didn’t say, but her nephew never leaves his apartment. That’s why she called.”

“Never leaves, as in he’s usually home, or he literally never leaves.”

“The latter.”

Bel cursed. “We’re on our way. Text me the address and wait for us. We’re not in Bajka.”

“Will do. See you soon.”

Bel hung up and turned her car around, the abandoned buildings and their thick layers of dust offering nothing but disappointment. They drove the long trip back to their neck of the woods, pulling up to a red-brick apartment building in Dorothy’s jurisdiction, where the deputy and a woman in her sixties stood outside waiting for them.

“Sorry for making you wait,” Bel said as she introduced herself and Olivia.

“I’m Emily.” The woman shook their hands. “But everyone calls me Em.”

“Why did you call the police, Em?” Bel asked.

“My nephew, Leo Craven, is an agoraphobe,” she started. “He traveled out of the country about twenty years ago and hasn’t left his apartment since. He works from home and orders everything online, and for things he can’t get delivered, I help him since I’m the only family he has in the area. Leo isn’t crazy. He just cannot bring himself to step outside, so when I didn’t hear from him for a few days, I stopped by. He’s gone. He’s never gone, so I panicked.”

“Were there any signs of forced entry?” Bel asked.

“Nope. Door was locked, and everything looks normal.”

“Do you mind if we take a look?”

“By all means. I’m worried.” Em led them up the stairs to her nephew’s apartment and let them into the neat space.

“Definitely no sign of a struggle,” Olivia said. “Was your nephew specific about where he put things?”

“Yes, why?” his aunt asked.

“Because if there was a struggle, someone might have cleaned up afterward to hide it. I was just wondering if anything is in the wrong spot.”