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"I'm sorry, but it doesn't look like Ms. Sloane is in at the moment. Do you have some identification? I will—"
Lorena spun around and walked away, slamming the glass door with her hand. She should have copped a pair of gloves when she had taken the jacket from the shelter. On the other hand, she was able to flip the guy off as she walked away.
Chapter Nine
Theo Neville
February 2024
Friday — 4:46 pm
The snow crunched beneath Theo’s boots as he approached Erin Smith’s residence. The modest two-story house was located in a quiet suburban neighborhood about twenty minutes from downtown D.C. A few of the residents still had their Christmas lights set on timers. Considering the temperatures had been brutally cold this season, no one could blame them for leaving up the small piece of cheer.
He pulled his coat tighter around himself as he made his way up the small path. The snow from last night had added close to six inches, but the continuous foot traffic to and from the street by local law enforcement officers had made it so there was nothing more than a layer of sludge on the thin walkway. That would all change come Sunday afternoon when another stormfront hammered the city. The last weather report had warned the residents to expect anywhere from twelve to sixteen inches of snow.
As Theo kicked his boots against the top step of the porch, he scanned the quiet neighborhood. Last night, Detective Beeson had a few officers go door to door for statements, though nothing had stood out in the paperwork sent over from the department. Theo had spent time reading through as many statements as possible while waiting for Graham to show up at the office. He’d gotten caught in traffic on his return to the office, so they had decided it was best to meet up tomorrow.
It was best that Graham stop by the hospital, anyway. Bit could use a small break. He’d been glued to Sylvie’s bedside all night and day. Theo hadn’t needed to ask him during their last call if he was still searching for Brook. As a matter of fact, Theo had steered clear of bringing Brook into the conversation at all. Had she reached out to any of them, they would have alerted each other to that fact.
Theo pulled out the key to the front door that had been provided by Detective Beeson. It had been in Lorena Dobbs’ purse that she had left at Sylvie’s apartment. Other than a wallet with false identification claiming her name was Erin Smith, all that Lorena had kept in her bag was a pack of spearmint gum and a few dental picks. Their assumption over the belief that she had either been shot or grazed by a bullet had not yielded any leads, but Detective Beeson had agreed to have one of his officers pay a visit to each hospital, clinic, and veterinarian office within a forty-mile radius.
As Theo stepped inside, he was greeted with a mixture of eerie silence and a lingering foul odor of garbage. He reached for the light switch, having taken note of where it was when he had canvassed the residence last night. The artificial light had a golden hue, so it didn’t take long for his left eye to adjust to the reduced brightness.
Forensics had left the house exactly as they had found it, apart from specific miscellaneous items that had been collected to test for DNA. There were empty takeout cartons and dirty dishes littered across the coffee table. An overflowing ashtray was amid the clutter, giving credence to Lorena’s agitated state. There was even a half-eaten sub on top of its wrapper. From the look of the lettuce, it had been there for days.
This setting was Brook’s forte. Her expertise in profiling was invaluable, and she would have been able to paint a clearer picture of Lorena Dobbs. While he had been a federal agent long enough to make assumptions about a suspect, he had never met anyone quite like Brooklyn Sloane.
Her insight into the criminal mind was extraordinary.
Unfortunately, Theo was on his own. He fought back the persistent anger that had remained since he had received her text. It would do him no good to fixate on the reasons behind her decision.
Theo shoved the key into his coat pocket before closing the door behind him. His phone chimed right as he was removing his gloves, and he was thankful for the reprieve.
“How is she?” Theo asked, not bothering with a greeting. Bit’s name had been on the lighted display of the phone. Since they had spoken less than thirty minutes ago, he had either discovered more background information on Lorena Dobbs, or he was calling about Sylvie. Theo hoped it was the latter. “Any improvement?”
“No.” The one word contained every emotion Bit was currently undergoing, but there wasn’t a damn thing Theo could do to ease the man’s worries. They were all experiencing the same reactions. “I just got off the phone with one of Little T’s aunts. Joyce can’t get any flights out of Colorado due to the stormfront sweeping the Midwest.”
Joyce Flowers was the sister of Sylvie’s father, not that the two of them were very close. Most of Sylvie’s family had disowned her after she had agreed to take care of her father in the last few months of his life. Joyce had been the only one to remain in contact.
“I’m calling about the real estate listings that we talked about earlier. Big T, there are thousands of listings. Thousands. And that doesn’t include a lot of the neighborhoods outside the city limits. Maybe a third of those are empty, but that is still a lot of ground to cover.” Bit didn’t need to point out that it was an endeavor that Theo wouldn’t be able to do himself. “Should I request additional agents from Harden?”
Supervisory Special Agent Matthew Harden had been vital in securing the consulting agreement between S&E Investigations and the Bureau. Unfortunately, he had no idea that Brook had gone off the grid. Theo also didn’t want there to be scrutiny into how they had come by certain information during their investigation. Bit had not exactly waited for the warrants to come through before accessing specific sites.
“No. Send me the list. I’ll contact Beeson, and he can have some officers start the search.” Theo had begun to move methodically through the house. Since the residence had already been searched from top to bottom, Theo wasn’t interested in the insignificant details. He was hoping to create a profile based on Lorena Dobbs’ living arrangements these past two months. “I’m at Erin Smith’s house. When I’m done here, I’m swinging by my place for a change of clothes. I’ll be at the hospital in a few hours.”
Theo was eventually able to disconnect the call, and he was glad that Graham would be there soon. Bit didn’t do well when he had too much time on his hands to go over every scenario that could possibly play out.
Theo slid his phone into the pocket with his keys. Seeing as he already had a good foundation for the profile, he was looking for both confirmation and more insight into Lorena Dobbs. The shattered picture frame near the far wall of the living room validated her temper, but it was a butcher knife sticking up from the coffee table that spoke of the woman’s violent streak. Every step drew him into her world, and he was nauseous by the time he had returned to the front door.
The inspection of the house had taken him longer than he had anticipated. The time taken out of his day had been worth it, though. He had picked up a few more things about Lorena’s personality that could come into play should they get her cornered somewhere.
Seeing as Lorena had driven Erin Smith’s vehicle to Sylvie’s apartment building, the small compact sedan had already been towed to the police impound lot. Forensics had already recorded the contents of the car, not that there had been much on the list besides garbage.
Theo made sure to lock up the residence. There hadn’t been any signs that Lorena had attempted to return to the house. He hadn’t expected there to be, but it was still a place that he could mark off his list.
He put his gloves back on before settling behind the steering wheel of his Jeep Wrangler. While the engine warmed, he kept his gaze trained on the house. The two large red maple trees in the front yard had some very low branches, so it was no wonder that the neighbors hadn’t really noticed anything unusual. She would have been smart enough to pull the car into the garage and enter the house through that entrance versus the front door, as well.
Lorena Dobbs was full of contradictions.
