Page 336 of Rangers Unexpected Return

“He’s our best chance.”

We drove to Elizabeth’s neighborhood.

Police vehicles lined the street without lights or sirens.

Neighbors watched from windows.

The front of Elizabeth’s house looked ordinary.

That somehow made it worse.

A broken window gaped beside the front door.

Blood marked the white curtains.

Mace stepped in front of me as we entered.

“I’m a homicide detective.”

“I know.”

“I’ve walked into hundreds of crime scenes.”

“I know that too.”

“Then why are you blocking the doorway?”

He looked over his shoulder.

“Because I got here first.”

I nearly smiled.

Nearly.

The living room had been destroyed.

A lamp lay shattered beside the couch.

A coffee table had been overturned.

Blood marked the hardwood floor in small droplets, leading toward the kitchen.

Not enough.

Detective Avery had been right.

Elizabeth had been injured.

But she had been moving.

Mace crouched beside a smear on the back door.

“She opened this with her left hand.”

“How do you know?”

“The print is partial.”