Dark Signs: Northern Shores Cozy Mystery by Heidi Hinrichs

Author:Heidi Hinrichs [Hinrichs, Heidi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Heidi Hinrichs
Published: 2024-12-02T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Lights out!"

It went dark around them.

Then there was a snap and a blue light came on.

Maria Doldinger exhaled loudly. "You're right! Blood!"

Indeed, in the glow of the ultraviolet light from the special lamp, they could see glowing traces on the washing machine and the bucket. There were also streaks on the floor.

Enna's heart beat faster. "So someone wiped up blood here and put the rags in the washing machine."

"Definitely. And it wasn't just a few drops of blood."

Pavel's voice came from the darkness. "Can you light up here too?"

Maria muttered, footsteps were heard and the blue light moved from the utility room into the living area. Nothing could be seen at first, but then long streaks of shimmering blood became visible, extending towards the patio.

"Someone's definitely cleaned up in here!" Maria exclaimed, turning off the blue light. "Lights on!"

The room lights came on and everyone squinted in the bright light.

Enna said, "A violent crime after all."

"But who's the victim? Hansen?" Pavel turned to Maria. "Can we speed up the DNA comparison?"

"You're asking the wrong person. Nils is in charge of that, and he's gone for the weekend."

"Great," Pavel grumbled. "Do we have any other options?"

Enna shook her head. "We just assume Hansen is the victim. Or the perpetrator. In the end, it doesn't matter. We have to find him either way."

"Who's the other guy? The second stranger from the chat? Why would he argue with Hansen?"

Enna shrugged. "Maybe it was about Sommerfeld's death. Remember your text analysis? If Hansen was the impulsive one, which we think he was, he disagreed with the other person's suggestions and wanted to get his point across. Sommerfeld may not have listened to him and died. Hansen then freaks out because, despite his intervention, he is suddenly implicated in a murder, or at least in the failure to help. He sees his house of cards crashing down."

Pavel nodded. "One possible interpretation. But it could be the other way. Hansen became a victim because the healing ritual failed. The other person could have acted out of revenge or fury."

"But then that person must have been close to Sommerfeld. Meitinger?"

Pavel shrugged. "Impossible. He was far too shocked when he heard she was dead. Besides, he would have had to have escaped from the hospital to have been here last night for the argument. We can check, but I think it's highly unlikely."

"So we're looking for Hansen and one or two other unknown people. That's great. We have no leads!"

"The cell phone number."

"Great. The provider won't give it to us any faster. Unless it's a prepaid phone, too."

"Then I suggest we take a look at Hansen's handwritten files. Maybe we'll find out what he was up to with the selected patients."

Enna nodded with a sigh. "Didn't you say there was cash upstairs?"

"Mid-five figures, by my estimate."

"Isn't that weird? If Hansen intended to leave, he would have taken the money and the evidence with him. He wouldn't have disabled the alarm, either."

"Good point. So we're assuming Hansen is the victim?"

Enna looked unhappy but nodded.

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