No Place to Die Read Online Free PDF Page B

could be compared to the samples on file in the state’s database or in CODIS, the FBI’s database of DNA samples collected from criminals nationwide.
    As Greg suggested, it was possible that our killer was a prior offender and that he might have been required to submit a DNA sample. Unfortunately, in the normal course of things it would still be several days before the tests would be completed and we’d have an answer one way or the other. In the meantime, we’d have to pursue the investigation using more traditional techniques.
    Looking to Elaine, I said, “Do we know how Fletcher’s killer got in?”
    “We’re assuming that she let him in. There was no sign of a forced entry, so we figure that he rang the front doorbell. She answered it, and he backed her into the living room and shot her.”
    “Did anyone report seeing an unfamiliar vehicle in the neighborhood that morning?” Maggie asked. “In particular, did anyone notice a black van?”
    Greg shook his head. “Naturally, we asked about strange vehicles, but no one indicated that they saw one.”
    “Still, you’ll want to go back and ask them again,” I suggested. “We believe that last night the guy was driving a black van that looks like it might belong to a tradesman of some sort. Maybe one of Fletcher’s neighbors saw it but didn’t realize the significance. If so, there’s at least a chance that we can get a better description.”
    “Sure,” Elaine agreed.
    “In the meantime,” I said, “we need to dig into this woman’s life and see where it intersects with either David or Beverly Thompson. So far, we don’t know which of the Thompsons was the killer’s real target. Was he after her and the husband blundered into it, or was it the other way around? I’m assuming the killer didn’t simply pick these people at random. There must be some connection that ties Fletcher to one or possibly both of the Thompsons.”
    “How do you want to carve it up?” Greg asked.
    “You guys go at it from Fletcher’s side; Maggie and I will go at it from the Thompsons’. Assuming that they weren’t related in some way by blood or marriage, the most obvious question is, was Fletcher a client of Beverly Thompson’s or perhaps a patient of David Thompson’s? There’s gotta be a link there somewhere. Let’s find it.”
    Greg rose to get out of his chair, but I waved him back down. “There’s one other thing,” I sighed. “Chris Doyle is back from vacation tomorrow. The lieutenant’s going to assign him to work with us until Bob gets back from his father’s funeral.”
    Maggie rolled her eyes. “Oh, that’ll be a big fuckin’ help. Even if Doyle is back in the building tomorrow, he’ll still be on vacation, and the lieutenant knows that as well as all the rest of us. The time we’ll have to spend babysitting that asshole is time that we could be spending doing something productive.”
    Pierce and Chickris understood Maggie’s history with Doyle almost as well as I did, and none of us was going to dispute her observation. Unfortunately, though, the lieutenant had left us little choice in the matter. I shrugged and said, “Sorry. But whatever the case, that’s the situation we’re in. So obviously the best thing for all concerned would be for us to get out there, find our killer, and rescue Beverly Thompson before the close of business today. Then we won’t have to worry about Doyle.”
    While Elaine and Greg went off to reinterview Alma Fletcher’s husband and friends, Maggie and I decided to start with the staff at David Thompson’s office. Maggie said that she wanted to hit the john before we left, and I nodded my acknowledgment. Five minutes later, she returned and said, “Are you ready to roll?”
    “Yeah. Who’s going to drive?”
    “To Scottsdale—at this time of the day? Are you fuckin’ kidding? You drive.”
    I could’ve pulled rank and insisted that she do it, but I enjoyed driving and found it oddly therapeutic, even in