Her Every Move by Kelly Irvin

Author:Kelly Irvin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2021-02-09T00:00:00+00:00

Twenty-Five

From rags to riches. Ethan Richter’s home turned out to be a duplex off Loop 1604 and Highway 281. Not a cheap area. With its fresh white paint and manicured lawn, it looked like someone had prepared it for Zillow.

“Pricey neighborhood.” Avery clomped up three steps to the tiny porch with its chiminea filled with red and purple pansies. The welcome mat sported a sunflower pattern. “Feels like it has a woman’s touch, but it’s really small. Probably couldn’t afford anything bigger out here.”

Petra pushed the doorbell. When nothing happened, she knocked. No response.

Two for two. Time was not on their side. The bomber, irked that the city manager hadn’t stepped down, would strike again. Avery stepped in and knocked harder. “Anybody home?”

“You can shout all you want. He won’t answer.” A middle-aged lady in a pink sweatshirt and leggings, which made her look like a bunch of cotton candy on two sticks, hollered from the yard next door. “He’s not there.”

“Do you happen to know where he is?” Avery took a shot. People could be walking calendars for their neighbors or totally oblivious. “Or when he’ll be back?”

“His schedule varies, depending on his caseload. He works a lot of night shifts. When he has to be downtown, though, he’s usually out of here around six fifteen.” The woman introduced herself as Richter’s landlord, Marie Castaneda. She had that self-important air people assumed when they knew something others don’t. “He even works Sundays when he’s undercover. Why?”

Meet the walking calendar neighbor. Undercover? Avery held up his badge. “SAPD. We just want to talk to him.”

“That’s funny.” She poked her blue-framed glasses up her skinny nose. “Can’t you just catch him at the station?”

“What do you mean, undercover?” Petra’s eyebrows got a workout. “What station?”

“Your station. He’s an undercover officer. Vice.” She chortled. Her double chin wobbled. “He tells some whopper stories about the crazy things people do.”

“Huh. Someone must’ve gotten their wires crossed.” Avery backpedaled. “We’ll check our info. When was the last time Officer Richter was home?”

“I took him some brownies Friday night. I do that sometimes, being he’s a widower and all.” Her sugary tone suggested she deserved sainthood for this mission of mercy. “He said he might be undercover for a while and asked me to take care of his pooch. Pogo. He’s a Dalmatian—like the one in 101 Dalmatians, you know?”

Avery didn’t know, but he nodded anyway. “Does he do that a lot?”

“Sure. It’s okay with me. Pogo and I get along great.”

“We’d like to take a look around his duplex.”

“I watch Blue Bloods and Law & Order. Don’t you need a warrant for that?”

“Not if you’re the property owner and you give us permission.”

Scowling, she thought it over, probably comparing it to the many cop shows she’d watched throughout the ages. “Why would you do that to another cop?”

“We just want to make sure he’s all right.” Petra offered a solicitous glance. “Something may have gone wrong with his undercover gig.”

Ms. Castaneda didn’t seem convinced.

“It’s a matter of life and death.

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