Touch & Go Read Online Free PDF Page B

everything neatly on the kitchen island. The parents, at the very least, must have realized the full implications.
    That this was no robbery.
    That by definition, therefore, the attack was something more personal. Something worse.
    “Since you’re doing a nice job of looking, not touching,” D.D. said, “I’ll let you in on a little secret.”
    Tessa waited. D.D. pointed to the pile.
    “Beneath all those electronics, we found the family’s jewelry. Engagement ring, wedding bands, diamond studs, gold hoops, two necklaces, a Rolex. My highly conservative estimate: at least a hundred grand in easy-to-pawn items.”
    “Shit.” Tessa couldn’t help herself.
    “Yep. Some robbery.”
    “All right. Talk to me about the security system.”
    “Electronically operated. Denbe’s firm has built a number of prisons, and he incorporated a system into his own home similar to what they use for jail cells. Doors all have multiple steel bolts, which are controlled by a master panel. Punch in one code, the system automatically locks down all means of entry and exit. Punch in a second code, the system automatically disarms, unlocking all egresses. I guess there’s other codes, specifying unlocking just inner door A or outer door B, but given this system probably costs more than my entire house, I’m hardly an expert. Of course, the windows and doors are also hardwired to the security system, which would automatically contact the security company while blasting an alarm if someone tried to manually break down a door.”
    “And the system was disarmed when the housekeeper showed up at five thirty?”
    “Correct. Which is highly unusual. Justin Denbe required the house to be locked at all times, whether anyone was home or not.”
    “City life one-oh-one,” Tessa commented dryly. She went with the logical assumption. “Who knows the codes?”
    “Family, housekeeper and the security company.”
    “How often are the codes changed?”
    “Once a month.”
    “Can it be manually overridden? Wires cut, that sort of thing?”
    “According to the security company, any tampering with the wires would activate the alarm. And there’s redundancy…two sets ofwires, both fiber optics and cable. Hell, I didn’t understand it all, but Justin Denbe knows his shit, and applied it to his personal living situation. The security company can be contacted by first responders for emergency override—say, in the case of fire—but reported no such requests. Whoever gained access, they did it right.”
    Tessa turned to look at the detective. “You said the housekeeper enters through the garage. How about the family?”
    “When on foot, they use the front door, just as we did. When Libby is driving, she enters from the lower-level garage where she keeps her car. But according to the housekeeper, Justin and Libby had dinner plans for the evening. And in a his-and-her situation, he always drove.”
    “But he doesn’t park in the garage?”
    “Nope, single bay, which gallantly, I suppose, he gave to her. They also have a reserved parking space around back, but the housekeeper uses it. Guess he’s gone so much, he mostly keeps his car in the Denbe parking garage and limo’s it from there. Then, on the few days a week he’s back home, he takes his chances street side, like the rest of us schmucks.” D.D. rolled her eyes.
    “And the girl, Ashlyn? Where was she?”
    “Parents’ night out. She was staying in.”
    Tessa processed this. “So the teenager is already home. Parents return. Enter through the front door… Attacker is already inside. Ambushes Justin and Libby in the foyer.”
    “Attacker or attackers?”
    “Attackers. One person can’t subdue an entire family with a Taser alone. And Justin worked in the field, yes? Hands-on, my boss said. Big guy, fit.”
    “Big guy,” D.D. agreed. “Very fit.”
    “So attackers. At least one or two in the entryway. Element of surprise for the parents. Which just leaves the girl.”
    “If you