Leann Harris - Guarded Secrets

The next six months were a blur. He was drunk most of the time. The first time he shown up at work drunk, his captain suspended him. Captain Morse blistered the paint off the wall with his words and told him to clean up his act or resign.

One night after a particularly bad binge, Jon showed up at Dave’s house, railing. Most of the details of what happened were hazy, but he remembered crying and blaming God for what had happened. How Dave calmed him down, he didn’t know, but when Jon surfaced the next morning from his liquor-induced sleep, Caren, one of the twins, was standing over him. She cupped his cheek and softly pronounced that Jesus could heal his hurt.

Those sweet words rolled around in his head for weeks, until Jon went with Dave to church. Caren had been right. Jon gave his heart to Christ and started down the road to healing. Some things, such as the girls’ birthday, he had to skip, but his life was so much better. More than once, God had brought people into his life that he could comfort in the same way he’d been comforted.

The night he’d told Lilly Burkstrom of her ex-husband’s murder stood out in his mind. She’d collapsed in a chair and, although the man was her ex, Jon had seen her honest grief. But what had nearly brought him to his knees was when Penny came into the room and learned of her father’s death.

What he’d seen in Lilly’s eyes as she comforted her daughter had reached into his heart and touched him. He couldn’t figure out if it was her strength in comforting her daughter or if it was the pain in her eyes when she’d met his gaze. There was an understanding there, a shared sorrow. Pain. He didn’t know what to do with this understanding, but he found himself thinking of Lilly at odd times. Something had sparked between them, making him jumpy. He knew the Lord could use him to comfort others, but heaven knew that he didn’t want another relationship. He would be the forever bachelor.

Pulling up to Lilly Burkstrom’s house, he saw her sitting on a bench by the front walk. He parked behind the patrol car and got out.

She stood, brushing off her pants. “The patrolman just got here. He’s looking through the house.”

Stepping to her side, he asked, “So you don’t know how someone got into the house?”

“No. The front door was locked when I got home.”

He nodded. “I’ll go inside and see what’s going on.”

“Thanks.”

Jon moved into the house and surveyed the living room. It wasn’t in as much disarray as Peter Burkstrom’s apartment had been in, but the drawers of the coffee table were open and the cushions on the couch were out of alignment. He moved through the dining area and into the kitchen. Drawers hung open and cabinet doors stood ajar.

He heard someone behind him. He turned and saw the uniformed officer, Miguel Aguilar. “What are you doing here, Littledeer? I haven’t seen any bodies.”

“The lady’s ex-husband was murdered last week. She called me before she dialed 911. Earlier, the ex’s apartment was broken into and trashed. This place is in better shape, but…How’s the rest of the house?”

“It’s been tossed.”

“Any indication where the perpetrator got in?”

“The sliding glass door in the master bedroom was jimmied. It has one of those cheap locks.”

“You call for the evidence team?”

“Yeah. They’re on the way.”

He moved through the rest of the house. Whoever had broken in had been more careful than they’d been at Peter’s apartment. It sure seemed as if someone was after something—which led him to believe Lilly’s assertion that maybe her ex-husband’s death wasn’t the random event they thought it might be.

As he turned to leave the master bedroom, he noticed the framed picture on the dresser. It had been knocked on its side. He picked up the frame. Penny, who was maybe twelve or thirteen months old at the time, sat on her mother’s lap. They were both smiling. It was the kind of picture that any husband or grandparent would view with joy and pride.

He remembered the picture of Roberta, Wendy and Rose on his mantel at home. It had been taken right before they knew the killing truth. Wendy had been two and a half; Rose two months. It was a picture he hadn’t been able to look at since he’d buried Roberta.

He carefully replaced the picture and walked back outside. Lilly and an unknown woman quietly talked. When Lilly saw him, she ushered the woman toward him.

“This is my neighbor, Sandra Tillman. She thought she saw someone in the house,” Lilly explained.

“What did you see?” Jon asked.

The woman rubbed her arms. “When I went out to bring in Lucky, my dog, I saw a light flash inside Lilly’s house. I stopped and watched. The light never appeared again, so I shrugged it off as my imagination, but seeing the patrol car, I thought I’d tell Lilly what I saw.”

“Did you see a car near the house? Or anyone leave?” he asked.

The woman shook her head. “Sorry.” The slump of her shoulders gave away her disappointment at not being able to provide more information.

“Thank you for your help. I wish more people would step up to the plate. What you’ve told me is that the man, assuming it is a man and he worked alone, might have parked his car on the next street over. I’ll be sure to question the neighbors on that street.”

The woman’s spine straightened. “I’ll keep my eyes open.” She turned and walked back to her house.

“That was nice of you,” Lilly whispered to him.

“No, it wasn’t. It was the truth. I know where to look for the suspect.”

She turned, her brow raised.

“You doubt me? You think I wasn’t sincere?”

“I guess I hadn’t thought—”

“Littledeer, I’m done,” one of the evidence guys interrupted. “I’ll be sure to check for what you asked.” He moved down the sidewalk to his car.

“What did you ask him to do?” Lilly asked Jon.

“To compare the prints he lifted here and at your ex-husband’s apartment. And remember, we’ll need your and Penny’s prints.”

“You think it was the same person?” Fear tinged her voice.

He didn’t want to panic her, but she needed to know. “I don’t know, but I don’t want to overlook anything.” She didn’t need to dwell on the fear. “C’mon. Let’s go inside and fix your sliding glass door.”

“You don’t need—”

“That’s what cops do, help make the public safe. Now, if you know how to secure that door, I’ll leave it for you.”

“You win. I have to beg my friend to come over and fix things.” Shaking her head, she confided, “Zoe is one handy lady. She’s working at the local home improvement store while she puts herself through college.”

“I’m impressed.”

They walked through the living room and into her bedroom. The lock on the sliding glass door was a simple lever, which opened when turned to the right.

“It’s not broken,” Lilly said.

“True, but it’s easily opened. A slim blade here—” he pointed above the lock and motioned downward “—and the intruder’s inside.” He looked around the room, then walked out, thinking he could find what he needed in the kitchen. In the pantry, he found a broom. He brought it back into the bedroom. Holding it up, he asked, “You willing to sacrifice this for your safety?”

“Yes.”

He snapped the broom handle over his knee and placed the piece without the bristles in the door’s track. “That will do until you decide what other locking mechanism you want for the door. Zoe will know what other safety measures are out there. Oh, one of the officers secured the sliding glass doors in the living room, but you’ll need to buy new locks for those doors, too.”

“Thank you.” Turning, she glanced around the room. “At least it’s not as bad as Pete’s.” After a moment, she dashed out of the room.