CHAPTER FOURTEEN

C HAPTER F OURTEEN

Out of the corner of her eye, Kaylynn saw the detectives exit Becky and Holly’s home. She was in the driveway loading her car, getting ready to take her son to the babysitter. Were they walking her way? She stood tall and brushed the wrinkles out of her pants as they drew near, hoping to find a way to shoo them off until another time. Or never, which would be even better.

“Hello,” the female detective said, holding up a badge. She was at least five inches shorter than Kaylynn, who was five foot eight. Her eyes were dark brown, her hair pulled back into a tight bun. “I’m Detective Seicinski, and this is my partner, Detective Toye, of the Sacramento Police Department. We’re investigating the murder of Rosella Marlow.”

Other than a quick nod, Kaylynn remained silent. They were detectives, just as she’d thought. She had nothing to say to them. She should have left earlier, when she’d spotted them through the window.

“I can see you’re getting ready to go somewhere,” Detective Seicinski said, “but we have a few questions, and it won’t take any time at all.”

Kaylynn glanced at her watch. “I only have a few minutes.”

“Your name?”

“Kaylynn Abbott. Truthfully, I can’t even recall the last time I saw Rosella, let alone talked to her.”

“Did you attend the fundraiser last month?” Detective Toye asked. “The one held at Becky and Holly’s house across the street?”

Kaylynn lifted her gaze heavenward, as if trying to recall. But she already knew the answer, and she was pretty sure he knew it, too. She didn’t like Detective Toye. “Oh. Yes, I was there. Was that only a month ago?”

“Closer to three weeks,” he said.

Smartass, Kaylynn thought.

“Have you noticed anything unusual in the week leading up to Rosella’s murder?”

“No. Nothing that I can recall.”

“Go ahead and think about it for a moment,” Detective Toye said.

She glanced at her watch again before shrugging. “I can’t think of anything. And I do need to get going. My son is inside alone. I need to check on him.”

“When will you be back?” Detective Seicinski asked before she could escape.

“I work at the Grocery Outlet in Midtown. By the time I finish work and pick up my son, it will be dinnertime.”

“If you’re certain you cannot spare a few minutes now, perhaps you can come down to the police station during your lunch break. It’s not far from here.”

When she failed to answer right away, Detective Toye interjected, “It’s against the law for your workplace not to provide breaks for its employees.”

“Okay,” Kaylynn said between tight lips. Let’s get this over with, she wanted to say. Instead, she softened her expression and said, “What else do you need to know?”

“Did you see anyone go in or out of Rosella Marlow’s house in the past week?”

“I see landscapers and the housekeeper coming and going once a week. Every Thursday, I believe.” She knew it was Thursday because that was when she and Archer spent time with Rosella. No way was she going to tell them everything, though. What if they talked to her husband and told him?

“And no one else?”

This time she did concentrate, since she didn’t want them to return, and she certainly had no intention of going to police headquarters. Her lips pressed together as she lifted her head toward the sky before settling her gaze on Detective Seicinski again. “I was walking with some other ladies who live on the street when I met Shannon Gibbons. She’s the new gal on the block. She was in a hurry because she was to meet with Rosella.”

“What day was that?” Detective Seicinski asked.

“Monday.”

“Did she say why she was meeting with Rosella Marlow?”

“No. She only said Rosella was the reason they had moved to the area.”

“You don’t work on Mondays?” Detective Seicinski asked.

“No. I don’t work on Mondays or Thursdays.”

Detective Seicinski tilted her head. “Is that the only time you saw Shannon Gibbons at Rosella’s house?”

“No. As I was driving off for work yesterday morning, before eight, I saw her walking toward Rosella’s again.”

“And what about Holly Bateman? Did you see her at Rosella’s house yesterday morning?”

That little tidbit took Kaylynn by surprise. “No. Why? Was she there?”

Neither detective answered her question, but something else came to mind, and Kaylynn said, “I did see a flash of light the other night.”

“Monday night?” Detective Seicinski asked.

“Yes.”

Detective Seicinski had her notebook open. She’d been jotting things down the entire time. “Could you elaborate?”

“It was around one in the morning when I got out of bed to use the bathroom,” Kaylynn said. “I guess you could say it was actually Tuesday when a flash of light caught my eye as I was washing my hands at the sink. Through the window I saw shadows, two people, the one in front holding a flashlight right outside Rosella’s house.”

“The front of the house?” Detective Toye asked.

“The west side, near the basement. But suddenly the light went out, and I couldn’t see a thing.”

“Are you sure of the time?”

“It was definitely somewhere between one and one thirty.”

“Male or female?”

Kaylynn shook her head. “I don’t know. Maybe both.”

“Short or tall?”

“The one in front was taller. Like I said, I saw mostly shadows. The flashlight only came on for a few seconds. It all happened quickly.”

“Anything else?”

Kaylynn shook her head. “I stood at the window for another minute. I even cracked the window open, but nothing happened. I decided I might have imagined seeing a light since I was still groggy with sleep. I went back to bed and fell asleep.”

“We want to show you something,” Detective Seicinski said as she used her chin to gesture at her partner.

Detective Toye reached into a tactical bag with a wide leather strap and pulled out a plastic bag with the word E VIDENCE written in bold, black letters across the top. He held the plastic bag up high enough so Kaylynn could see what was inside: a weird-looking doll made of thin branches and held together with twine. The doll had nuts for eyes, and a nail protruded from its irregularly shaped head. Kaylynn drew back, horrified. “Is that blood?”

“Nail polish,” Detective Seicinski told her. “Do you recognize this object?”

“No.”

“You’ve never seen this before?”

“No.”

“Any idea how this might have ended up in the victim’s home?”

“No idea.” Did they think she’d made the doll? The detective was making her nervous.

“You do understand why this ‘doll’ might be significant in relation to the crime?” he asked.

“Um. I told you. I’ve never seen that thing before. Why are you asking me about it?”

“Please answer the question,” Detective Toye prodded.

“Yes,” Kaylynn said, answering the question. “I see why you would want to know who might have left that in Rosella’s house. Whoever left it there probably wanted to scare her.”

“Were you friends with Rosella Marlow?”

“Friends?” Moth wings fluttered inside her stomach. “I wouldn’t say friends.”

Toye glanced at his partner.

Shit. She was a horrible liar. But it was only a white lie, since Rosella simply tolerated her. They weren’t friends. They never went out for coffee, or anything. Her palms were sweating. She would never pass a polygraph. It didn’t matter that she’d done nothing wrong. She clamped her mouth shut.

Archer ran from the house. “Mom!” He ran to Kaylynn’s side and held on to her leg, burying his face within the folds of her linen pants.

While Detective Toye put the doll back where he’d gotten it from, Detective Seicinski pulled out a card and handed it to her. “Thank you for your time. If you remember anything at all, please give us a call.”

“I will,” she said before ushering Archer back toward the house to gather the rest of their things, knowing she would never in a million years call either detective. She didn’t like anyone meddling in her life, asking questions. She needed to protect her privacy, and her family, at all costs.