Page 28 of The Holiday Puppy
Nick dropped Sniper’sleash and bolted into the room, ready to take onanyonewho dared hurt his Lucy.
The place was a shambles.
Drawers had been pulled from the dresser and dumped. Clothes had been ripped off hangers. Linens had been torn from the queen bed and the mattress now hung askew off one end of the frame.
Even the kitchen had been senselessly torn apart.
But the one thing Lucy was staring at was in the bedroom closet.
Someone had tried to bash in the safe door with a hammer. The sheetrock around it was battered and hung in chunks.
“I can’t believe anyone would do this. It would take pure rage,” Lucy whispered. She looked over her shoulder at Nick, her face ghostly white and stricken. “Did you see the message on the bathroom mirror? If I had been here...”
Nick glanced into the bathroom and clenched his teeth. Then he turned back and pulled Lucy into his arms and tucked her head beneath his chin. “I don’t believe in coincidences. The police apprehended the wrong man.”
She nodded. “Maybe it was the shock—or pure disbelief, but I’ve been trying and trying to recall something about last night. I think I saw a glint of silver in that man’s hand—a knife. I think he planned to kill me.” She swallowed hard. “If not for you and Sniper scaring him off, I would be dead.”
Nick called 911, then led her over to the sofa and sat next to her, holding one of her hands in his. “He obviously thinks you can identify him and figures he’ll go down for life without parole if you testify.”
“But I don’tknowwhat he looks like. Not exactly.” She stilled for a long moment. “But like I told the cops, I’m pretty sure he’s Caucasian. Really stocky. And after last night, I know he has a big tattoo on the back of his...um...left hand.”
“What worries me is that the guy must have slipped through the outside gate here. Maybe he got in behind some folks who politely held it open for him, then used your keycard so he could lie in wait for you. When you didn’t show up he must have torn the place apart, trying to figure out where you’d gone.”
At a sharp rap on the door, Lucy jumped.
“Police. Are you able to open the door?”
“Just stay here. I’ll get it.” Nick gave Lucy’s hand a reassuring squeeze and went to usher the officer inside.
Portly, with graying hair, he wearily surveyed the damage and shook his head. “The crime rate here is low. But this looks like a simple break-in and vandalism to me. Is anything missing?”
She glanced at his name above his right pocket. Miller. “I don’t know. My iPad and my billfold are still in the locked safe. I didn’t bring any jewelry or camera equipment.”
“I’ll file a report. If you realize any valuables are missing, let us know. It will help with your insurance claim. Have you contacted the building manager?”
“Not yet. But aren’t you—”
“I understand. You want this person found, arrested, and charged. But if he—or she—had any sense at all, gloves were worn and there wouldn’t be any prints. Even on the Mainland, there’s not enough manpower to track down every single vandal who comes along.”
“But this has to be connected.Allof it.” Lucy stood and began to pace. “Check with the police station. Tell them my name. I was near a murder scene my first night here and I was assaulted. Last night my purse was stolen and I was assaultedagain.And now this.”
He studied her closely.
“Last night, the responding officer told us that the killer had been apprehended,” Lucy continued. “But I don’t believe it. What Idobelieve is that he thinks I can recognize him. If not for the dog and Nick, I wouldn’t even be here.”
“This is my first day back after sick leave. Let me do some checking.” Officer Miller moved away and talked on his phone to someone at length, then turned back to her and shook his head. “They feel they have the right guy, ma’am. There were two witnesses.”
Her shoulders sagged as she dropped into a chair and shook her head. “They must be wrong. Tell me—is a physical assessment done when someone is charged and held?”
“Of course.”
“Then ask if the guy being held has evidence of healing dog bites on his ankles. I sure saw a lot of blood. And what about his nose? I smashed him in the face with my elbow. I felt andheardthe cartilage give way.”
Miller sighed and made another call. Fell silent while he was probably on hold. But when he started talking again, a ruddy flush climbed up his neck, and his entire demeanor changed from that of a kindly grandfather patiently placating a tourist to an officer on full alert.
“Well?”Lucy folded her arms.
“A unit will be coming here to investigate. They’ll be searching for fingerprints and any other evidence that might have been left behind.”