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“Vera owned a 2005 Buick LeSabre,” Cord supplied. “Brad Radcliff bought it for a nice sum, and we added the proceeds to the balance in the bank. We thought it might come in handy for the renovations on the house to get it ready to sell.”
“We hired Troy and Zach to paint the exterior,” Keegan added. “They finished that job before July ended. But as you can see, Vera’s house hasn’t been a priority. We haven’t had time to focus on renovations, let alone come up with decor ideas. Then sometime before school started, Gideon contacted us about his mother, who he calls Lolly. Lolly’s been looking for a house to buy here. She wants to relocate and get out of the cold winters in the Midwest to be closer to Gideon. But she doesn’t have a lot of money to spend.”
“That’s when I suggested we could cut Lolly a deal,” Cord supplied. “That way, Lolly could handle the renovations and pick out specifically what she wanted. She could pick out new cabinets, fixtures, paint color, flooring, you name it.”
Brogan nodded. “So you’ve held off making any of those upgrades, so Lolly could make the house hers.”
“There you go,” Cord said. “It makes sense when you think about it. According to Gideon, she sold her house in Illinois last week and can now move forward. Of course, now she may not move forward on this house.”
“Who could blame her?” Keegan muttered, sipping her coffee. “I’m not sure I could buy a house knowing a dead body stayed in the upstairs bedroom for decades.”
“Maybe we could knock the house down and start over,” Cord hinted.
“Not a bad idea,” Lucien commiserated. “It’s an option.”
Keegan rolled her eyes. “You’re missing the point. We may be stuck with this death house because we dragged our feet too long.” She glanced over at Brent. “To think, Vera Lockhart kept that body at the end of the bed where she slept. That’s not easy to dismiss. Do you think Vera murdered him?”
Brent shifted his weight and leaned back. “If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say yes, I do. But do not repeat that. You asked. I gave you my take because you own the house. You deserve to get my first impression.” He swiveled in his chair and traded looks with Brogan and Lucien. “We’re done here. I don’t have any more questions. If I do, I know where to find both of you.”
Lucien offered his hand to Cord, then to Keegan. “I’m sorry about this whole thing.”
“Me too,” Brogan said, reaching out to hug Keegan. “If you want to talk, don’t hesitate to call me.”
“I will. Thanks.”
When the couple had gone, Lucien angled toward Brent. “While we were talking to them, something occurred to me. I didn’t want to bring it up to them. But if you left a house to someone and went to the trouble of drawing up a will, wouldn’t you make damn sure you got rid of the body before you died?” He held up a hand. “I’m not finished. I know Vera probably didn’t think she was at death’s door. But you get to be eighty, there’s a distinct possibility that you could die in your sleep. So why didn’t she get rid of that blanket box? She had years to hire someone to get it out of the house. Yet—”
“She decided to keep it around,” Brent finished. “She chose to hang onto the box right to the end. The person in there had to mean something to her.”
“Maybe Vera thought she had another ten years,” Brogan prompted.
“Doesn’t matter,” Lucien said. “At any point over the last three decades, she could’ve opted to get the body out of the house. She didn’t.”
Brent’s phone dinged with a text message. “I’ve got to get back to Beacon Lane. The medical examiner just drove up. Could you guys catch a ride with someone else? I want to be there when the forensic team gets a look at the remains.”
“Sure, go ahead. Don’t hang back on our account. I’ll text Beckett to pick us up.”
“Do you mind waiting outside? I should lock up.”
“No problem.”
As they walked Brent to his cruiser, Brogan thought of something Logan had said earlier. She brought up the serial killer Carl Knudsen. “According to Logan, we can rule him out as the guy who murdered Gidget.”
Brent bit the inside of his jaw and scratched the stubble on his chin. “Those rumors have persisted for years despite the numbers not adding up. Some people refuse to listen to reason or facts. But it’s good to know Logan believes in details versus gossip.”
Brent wasn’t in the mood to stand around making small talk. They waved him off while waiting for their ride under the glow of a lamppost.
“Do you ever wish you were a full-fledged cop? You know, the kind who carries a badge?” Brogan asked Lucien.
“Nope. I like what we do. Never thought I’d be doing this, though.”
“Me either. Did you ever encounter Vera Lockhart anywhere in town?”
“Not that I remember. Nobody has an unkind word for her, though.”
“Goes to show how you never really know your neighbor. Did you hear back from Beckett, or are we out here waiting for nothing?”
“Not yet. How do you feel about walking home?”
