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Not even a week before, Rachel would have wondered if she’d imagined the shadowy figure. Not anymore. Someone had gone into her apartment and left a box on the floor.
Several long moments later, Griff called up to her, “Come on down.”
She left her apartment, locked the door with the spare key and tucked the key into her jeans pocket.
Everything appeared to be in order, with no signs of anyone loitering in the bushes.
Griff helped her into his truck then rounded the hood to slip into the driver’s seat.
Rachel gave him directions to the sheriff’s department and sat back in her seat.
The building was only a couple of blocks away, so it didn’t take long to get there, and they parked near the front entrance.
Griff and Rachel entered the sheriff’s office, Rachel carrying the gift.
A deputy stood at the reception desk. “Hey, West. Heard about your accident. Glad you’re okay.”
She smiled at the young man. “Thanks, Dalton. Is the sheriff in?”
“Yes, I am,” Sheriff Faulkner’s voice boomed through the open door of his office. “Come in.”
Rachel led Griff down a hallway and stopped in the doorway to Faulkner’s office.
The sheriff frowned. “What the heck are you doing, coming in here when you’re on medical leave?”
“I feel fine,” Rachel insisted. “At least until I got this.” She set the bag on the table. “Someone left me a present. On the floor…in my locked apartment.”
“Damn, West. That’s one creepy secret admirer.” The sheriff looked inside the bag.
“I haven’t opened it or touched it,” Rachel said. “I’m hoping I can pull some latent prints from it.”
“You’re off for the next few days,” the sheriff reminded her.
“And since I’m not riding patrol, I wanted to check the databases and see if I can make any more progress.”
“It’s like looking for a needle in a haystack,” Faulkner said. “People don’t always add all the information concerning a case. Have you expanded your search past the five years?”
“Not yet,” Rachel said. “I’ll do that today and see if I can get any cases older than five years of strangulations using a veil or with victims of the same hair color and age as my sister. But first, we’re going to get some breakfast at Maddie’s Diner.”
“Best breakfast in town,” the sheriff said.
“Would you like to join us?” Rachel asked.
Sheriff Faulkner shook his head. “I’ve had breakfast; I’ll wait for lunch. Thank you, though. I’ll get on checking this gift box for prints and have someone go over to your apartment to dust as well.”
Rachel smiled at her boss. “Thank you.”
She hooked Griff’s arm and left the office. “We can walk from here. It’s only a block. That will also give us the opportunity to be seen as an engaged couple.”
Griff took her hand in his and stepped out onto the sidewalk. They walked the block in silence and entered Maddie’s Diner.
Since it was just past the regular breakfast hours and too early for lunch, there weren’t many people in the diner.
“Seat yourself,” the waitress said. “I’ll be by in a minute to get your order.
Griff chose a booth in the corner. He settled into the seat with his back to the wall.
“Scoot,” Rachel said.
