Hidden Deception

“Hey, Stillwater, you get this case?” Patrolman Mark Sanchez called out.

“We did. You the first responder?”

“Yeah, Icenhour and I caught the call. He’s inside with the lady who found the body. She’s not in too good a shape, crying and blubbering, but you know what a talker Icenhour is. He can soothe things over.”

Daniel stepped into the antique shop and looked around. The overhead lights beat down harshly on the old furniture and elegant collections in the room. He couldn’t figure out what folks saw in this old stuff. It looked like some of the stuff in his aunt’s house. The evidence lieutenant looked up from his evidence kit.

“Find anything?” Raul asked.

“No.” The tech stood. “There was a collection of smudged prints on the doorknob, but there’s nothing I’ve discovered in the shop. The vic was stabbed several times in the chest and bled out.”

“Thanks, Greg,” Daniel replied. He scanned the shop and didn’t see anyone else. A set of wooden stairs divided the room, leading to the second floor. “Where’s the witness?”

“She and Icenhour are upstairs in the office.”

Daniel and Raul climbed the stairs, their shoes echoing heavily on the worn wooden treads.

“Is there anyone I can call for you?” Icenhour’s voice floated out the open door at the top.

When they reached the top riser, they scanned the area. To the right, the space opened out to a storage area piled with boxes, chairs and carpets. To the left was a door marked Office. Looking inside, Daniel saw Icenhour sitting in a chair next to a woman. She held an ice pack to her left temple. In her late twenties, she had shoulder-length straight black hair with a sprinkling of bangs across her forehead. Those bangs brought a man’s gaze to her golden-brown eyes. Twin tracks of tears ran down her pale, smooth cheeks.

She looked up, and Icenhour turned.

“Detectives, this is Elena Jackson, who found the body.” He finished the introductions then stood. “I’ll go downstairs and see if they need any help.”

Raul took Icenhour’s seat. Daniel grabbed a chair in the corner and pulled it close. He took a notebook and pen from his coat pocket. “Tell me what happened this evening, Ms. Jackson.”

She set the ice pack on the desk. “I forgot some papers I needed and was coming back to the shop.” She looked from him to Raul. “I found the back door to the shop unlocked, which alarmed me. Joyce is—was always so reliable about store procedures. But—”

Daniel waited for her to continue. He knew when to push a witness and when to back off and let them proceed at their own speed.

She wrapped her arms around her waist.

“But…” Raul prompted after several seconds.

Daniel threw him a look and Raul shrugged as if to say “someone had to.”

“Joyce seemed to be distracted lately. I should’ve been more diligent and asked her what was wrong.”

“So you think something odd was going on in her life? Did she have any family issues?” Daniel asked.

“I don’t know. I think Joyce might have been divorced. She never talked about her past and wasn’t looking for another relationship.”

“Why do you say that?” Daniel asked.

“I’ve seen a couple of customers try to flirt with her. She shut them down. Politely, but she discouraged men. This last week, though, she was remote, as if something was bothering her.”

“Have any idea what?” Rodriguez pressed.

She shook her head. “No.”

Daniel’s gut reaction told him the woman was hiding something.

“Did you have any cash on hand? Maybe someone was after money?” Daniel asked.

She shook her head. “I make the deposit run in the late afternoon. We don’t keep a lot of money in the store.”

“Is anything missing?” Raul questioned.

“Where is she?” A woman’s voice floated up the stairs.

“Ma’am, you can’t go up there,” Icenhour replied.

“You want to try and stop me?” The steel in her voice caught both Daniel’s and Raul’s attention.

For the first time, Elena smiled. That smile tugged at Daniel’s heart.

“That’s Mom. You might as well let her up. She won’t stop until she makes it up here.”

They didn’t need a scene. Daniel stood and walked to the door. “Icenhour, let the woman come up here.”

Instantly, a woman appeared in the doorway and brushed by Daniel. In her early sixties, with blond hair and deep-blue eyes that burned with concern, she was a handsome woman, who bore no physical resemblance to her daughter. Instantly, she scooped Elena into her arms.

“Are you all right?” She pulled back and brushed Elena’s hair from her face.

When Elena tried to speak, she couldn’t say a word, but nodded.

“What have you done to my daughter?” the older woman demanded, turning to the detectives and glaring.

Daniel understood her reaction, but her attitude wasn’t helpful. “Your daughter’s—”

“Mom, the detectives have done nothing. Seeing Joyce’s…body…reminds me of—”

The older woman nodded. “I want to take my daughter home.”

Daniel glanced at Rodriguez, who nodded. “That’s fine.” Daniel reached inside his sports jacket, pulled out a business card and handed it to Elena. “If you remember anything else, please get in touch with me.”

She took the business card and clutched it in her hand.

As the women started to leave, Elena paused and handed Daniel her keys. “Will you lock up?”

“Yes.”

Once they were alone, Rodriguez stood and shook his head. “Talk about a mother bear protecting her young. I wouldn’t want to get between that woman and her daughter.”

Daniel slipped the keys in his pocket, then joined Rodriguez at the door.

“I know. Let’s see if the guys downstairs have finished up.”