I leaned toward Clair. “Are you surprised?”
Clair shrugged. “I’ve never seen this in a foreclosure. Sometimes, when someone is selling, they stage the house, but even if that were the case this is over-the-top. It looks as if the owner just stepped out and will be back any minute.”
“We are in the correct house, right? It doesn’t seem abandoned to me.”
“Of course it….” Clair stopped and cut her eyes to me. “What if we have the wrong address? What if the owner returns home to find we’ve changed their locks? I’m calling the office.”
A car engine sounded outside. Clair grabbed my arm and we both pivoted to peek out through the window. “The automobile drove past the house.”
“Phew.”
We stood side by side like ten-year-olds in a haunted house while Clair phoned her boss and explained the situation.
“Okay Howard. If you’re sure. Yes, it will be easier to sell with furniture in it. Barely needs any staging.”
She stashed her phone in her handbag. “Howard is positive this is the correct house. He double checked the address. Let’s look around.”
I hovered close behind Clair as she walked to the kitchen. A tea pot sat on the counter. Clair lifted the lid and pulled out a strainer. “Look at this. I thought everyone used tea bags. They could have at least cleaned it out.” She moved to the sink and opened the doors underneath. “For goodness sakes, Lauren. You don’t have to cling to me. I told you we’re in the right place.”
“Sorry. Still feel like I’m trespassing.” I struck out on my own and opened cupboards. There were dishes and glassware, all clean and neatly in place. When I reached the refrigerator and pulled it open I found a different story. “Uh oh.”
Clair peaked around my shoulder and pushed the door shut. “Yuk. I’ll get someone to clean that out. You would think they’d have emptied the fridge before leaving.”
Clair opened the dishwasher. “A few dirty dishes. At least it looks like they were rinsed first. I don’t see any mold. If I run detergent through a couple of times, this will probably be fine.”
She straightened and planted her hands on her hips. “It looks like they just packed up their clothes and left. Must not have been able to take the household goods.”
“If I couldn’t pay the mortgage I would have sold the furniture and had a garage sale. I wonder what their story was.” Ideas began to flow for the plot of a short story. Were the owners spies? Drug-lords?
Clair shrugged. “People are strange. I’m going to take a look at the rest of the house.”
“I’ll go with you.” I fell into stride behind her. In my imagination the owner stormed in and demanded to know what we were doing there. He carried an AK-47.
We crossed the living room and entered a hallway where I had to force myself to stay off Clair’s heels. The first room we passed was a small bathroom. “There’s a hair brush beside the sink.”
Clair shook her head and muttered. “Told you every house is a new adventure. Sure haven’t seen anything like this. I can’t wait to tell Howard.”
I followed Clair into a bedroom on the left. She glanced over her shoulder at me. I stepped back to allow space between us. “Sorry.”
“This must be the master. Isn’t that a pretty comforter? It even has pillows to match. Whoever defaulted on this mortgage was very accommodating in leaving all their nice things.”
I patted the comforter. “Soft. It must be down.”
The sound of a closet door opening and a gasp caused me to spin around. Clair, eyes round and mouth open, pointed at the open closet. Hangers filled with blouses and dresses, lined the pole. A shelf held a stack of slacks. On the floor, an array of shoes ranging from flats to dressy high-heels sat lined up against the wall.
“This is too weird.” Clair rushed to the dresser and pulled open a drawer. Under garments. Another drawer. Socks and assorted hosiery.
“I’m astounded. This is the strangest listing I’ve ever been offered. Sure I’ve seen homes stuffed with belongings. But that’s when the owners still lived there. I had to tell them how much to take out of the house so it would sell.”
I clutched my handbag to my chest. “What happened to whoever owned this house?”
“It must be a sad story. The owner went somewhere and wasn’t able to return. Still, if they were in the hospital or something Howard would have had that information.”
“Why wouldn’t family have come and packed it up?”
“This is beyond me. All I know is it was repossessed and my job is to sell it, so that’s what I’ll do.”
She plopped down on the edge of the bed, took out a notebook and started scribbling notes. “I’ll hire someone to clean out the personal stuff from the drawers and closets. Probably can sell a lot of it. Have to contact the mortgage company to see if they claim anything.
I started to sit beside Clair but thought better of it, not wanting to appear so comfortable in a stranger’s bedroom. I couldn’t shake the feeling we would soon be discovered. Instead, I crossed the hallway. There was a typical guest room with a double bed neatly made up. The closets were bare except for a few folded blankets.
When I returned to the master, Clair looked up with a smile. “I was thinking. This place is in great condition and in a prime location. I wonder if I could buy it.”
My legs were tired so I leaned against the wall. “Are you kidding? It’s spooky.”
Clair patted the bed beside her. “For goodness sakes sit down. Nobody’s coming in to chase us away. Whatever the situation with the previous owner, the house belongs to the mortgage company and they want to sell it.”
I blew out a breath and sat down next to Clair. “You’re right it’s a nice place but I thought you wanted something in the country.”
“I did. Still do but this would be a great stepping stone. I have a feeling the price will be right. I could live here until I find the right country home. Then I’ll sell at a nice profit. It’s an investment.”
Clair stood up. “I need to take a second look around.”
We walked back into the living room and Clair bounced down on the sofa slinging her arm over the side. “I like it. Can’t you see me living here? Maybe have the walls painted and new carpet. It’s a nice neighborhood.”
I sat in a matching chair and sneezed, grabbing a tissue from my bag. “Kind of dusty. Nobody’s cleaned for a while.”
Clair reached out with her finger and made a swirl on the coffee table. “I’ll hire a professional house cleaner as soon as we get rid of the unnecessary items.”
“Hate to keep repeating myself, but I can’t imagine someone walking out and leaving everything. What’re they doing for a hairbrush or toothbrush for goodness sake? I didn’t see any personal photos, so maybe they took those. But I’d think they would take clothes and,” I picked up a bird figurine, “some of the knick-knacks. Don’t you have a strange feeling about this? The owner must have had some kind of family emergency, dropped everything and left.”
Clair sighed. “Former owner. It’s no use wondering what happened. The mortgage company took a loss. They have an investment in the property and need to recoup it. Just remember that. Don’t make up stories you don’t know are true.”
She kicked off her shoes and put her feet on the coffee table. “I can see my sectional in this room. It would fit perfectly. I like the coffee table. The entertainment center is dated and has to go. Most of my furniture will work fine.”
I scanned the room, picturing Clair’s stuff in it. “You’re right. I think it would look great.”
Clair put her feet down and slipped on her heels. “Haven’t seen the garage yet. What kind of surprises do you suppose are stored in there?”
Chapter Three
C lair jumped to her feet and skipped through the kitchen. “I’m going to love this house.”
I sneezed and followed, searching my bag for another tissue. “You’re right. If you get it at a good price, this will be perfect for yo
u. Aren’t you the lucky one?”
I caught up with my friend at the doorway leading into the garage. “To me, this would be worth half the cost of the house. No more scraping ice off car windows.” Clair stretched her arm into the dark room. She slapped the wall a few times in search of the light switch before she chirped, “Found it.” Nothing happened.
“Clair. Isn’t the electricity turned off? There’s no power.”
“Shoot. I knew that. It’s just a habit. So, no electric light. And there aren’t any windows in the garage.”
“Hold on. I saw a flashlight in one of the cupboards.” I retreated to the kitchen and pulled open doors. “Got it. And it works.”
Clair reached out from the dark room and grabbed the flashlight. “Can’t wait to get the electric garage door working. It’s stuffy in here.”
I watched the circle of light travel across the concrete floor.
Clair’s voice now echoed from the depths of the garage. “Oh my, look at this. There’s a car in here.”
The light moved over a large shape that was definitely an automobile, parked in the center of the room. ”What do you think it is? Looks like some sort of SUV doesn’t it?”
The sphere of light dropped to the floor and I heard Clair’s giggle. “Wait until I tell Howard about this listing. He’s never going to believe it.”
The beam of light lifted to my face. “Hey. You need to replace that old Chrysler. This looks like a late model. Maybe you could buy it cheap. What do you think?”
“It has to be better than my thirty-six-year-old station wagon. But it’s sort of hard to tell with that flashlight shining in my eyes.”
“Oops.” The light swung away. More of the automobile came into view as Clair approached it. “Come on. Let’s take a look.” The interior light popped on when she pulled open the driver side door. “The battery’s still good. It’s sort of smelly, but looks nice. Go ahead and sit in it.”
The illuminated car interior gave me the courage to venture into unknown territory, and I shuffled closer to the vehicle.
“Try it out. It’s not bad.” With a firm grip on my arm Clair pulled me to the open car-door.
I peeked inside. “It is a nice car. Are you sure the mortgage company will sell it?”
“I promise you they aren’t interested in used cars. Go ahead. Climb in.”
“Okay. There’s no denying I need better transportation. “I climbed in and tried it on for size. “Yuk, it really smells. It’s going to need a good cleaning.”
Clair had continued her inspection of the outside of the car. “I don’t see any dings. Don’t worry about the smell. It’s been closed up and just needs airing out. You’ll probably find a sack of old hamburgers in there.”
“Umm, I think it’s worse than that. You should be where I am. You aren’t getting the full effect.”
Clair sidestepped from window to window while I checked out the buttons on the radio. “I wonder where the owner left the keys. We could start it and see how it runs.”
“I would love to have a radio without static.”
Clair had reached the back of the automobile when her scream bounced off the garage walls. “What is that? Oh gosh. Lauren, get out of the car.” Her high-heels scraped the concrete floor. “Get out right now!”
“No problem. I’m getting out. The smell’s getting bad anyway. Even through my stuffy nose. What’s the matter?” I slid out and pushed the car door shut.
Clair’s voice, elevated to a higher pitch, echoed in the room. “Oh crap. Where’s my phone? Lauren, do you have my phone?”
“No. What’s wrong with you?” With the car interior light off, I was again watching the beam from the flashlight. It swung wildly around the room.
“My phone. Where’s my phone?”
“Your cell is in your handbag isn’t it? That’s where you put it after you talked to Howard.”
“Left it on the counter.” Clair snagged my arm as she ran past, and pulled me into the house. Her grip didn’t loosen until I’d been propelled to the far side of the sunny kitchen.”
I rubbed red hand-prints from my arm. “What on earth? Did you see a rat or something in there? I’ve never seen you so white. Not since that incident in the ravine.”
She twisted toward me. “Dead body. In the car.”
“No way. You’re playing a joke on me.”
She grabbed my shoulders and pulled me to within a few inches of her face. There was no hint of a smile. “It’s not a joke. There’s a body in there.”
“I knew it. That’s what I smelled. What was it? Raccoon? Not a dog, I hope.”
She released my shoulders and stalked to the living room. “No Lauren. Not an animal—a person. I’m pretty sure there was a dead woman in the cargo area. All shriveled up with its mouth wide open.” Clair demonstrated with her own mouth.
“Listen, I know as soon as I believe you, you’ll have a good laugh and call Anita to tell her all about how you scared me.”
Clair spun to face me. “I’m not joking. Rotting corpse.” She put her fingers to her eyes. “Sunken eye-sockets. Stringy hair. Dried up face.”
She stopped and examined me from head to toe. “What’s that smell?” She took two steps back. “Oh, man. It’s you.”
“You’re serious? A body in the car?” I took a deep breath. “I think I smell it too.”
Crap.
“It’s clinging to my clothes isn’t it? Crap!” I bolted for the sliding glass door and fumbled with the lock until it released. Stumbling into the yard, I stripped off my sweater. “If I fluff my shirt, maybe it’ll air out.”
Clair followed me outside with the cell phone clasped to her ear. “Hello 911? Hi. We have a problem.”
Once she’d finished summoning the authorities, Clair turned her attention to me and wrinkled her nose. “Ugh.”
I shuddered. “What am I going to do?”
Her long manicured index-finger pointed at the house. “There’s a closet-full of clothes in there. Go shed yours and find something else to wear.”
I gazed at the house, considering Clair’s logic. It almost seemed like a good idea. “No! Those clothes belong to someone else. Probably to that dead person. Not a chance.” I sniffed the sleeve of my shirt. Even my swollen sinuses couldn’t block the sickening odor. “I’ll move around a bit. Give the smell a chance to dissipate.” I trotted to the side of the yard and back.
On my return, Clair put up a hand like a crossing guard. “Keep going.”
While we waited for the whine of the sirens I entertained any neighbors, who may have been standing at their windows, by flapping my arms and running in circles.
Chapter Four
C lair returned from her third trip to scan the street. “Where are the police? They’re taking forever.”
“And I’m getting tired of circling the lawn. Let’s go in and sit down. My clothes must be aired out by now.” I left my sweater in the middle of the yard and led the way inside. Clair walked straight to the kitchen to open windows. I took the hint, and opened all the living room windows. Once a breeze was flowing, we sat on the sofa.
Clair didn’t last long before she got up and moved to a side-chair. She leaned an elbow on the arm-rest with her hand covering her nose. “Gosh. Do you suppose that thing in the garage is the owner of this house?”
I shrugged, not thinking of much more than how good a shower would feel.
We stared silently into space for a few more minutes before Clair twisted to face me. “You’d think we’d be better at this since it’s the second body this year.”
“I thought we were going to forget about the other one. Besides, this is worse, at least for me. I want to get home and scrub myself with sanitizer. And deodorizer. Maybe I’ll run through the carwash—without the car.”
Sirens sounded in the distance and grew steadily louder. “Finally.” Clair got up and went to the door at the sound of screeching tires from the drive-way.
She returned followed by two polic
emen, one of whom I was much too familiar with. I’d run into Officer Jimmy Farlow many times in the eighteen months since my return home. The encounters were never pleasant. Each time I’d ventured into the wrong place and had had terrible timing. In my opinion, the officer was overly suspicious, and always too eager to pin the blame on me. More than once he’d threatened to put me in jail.
“You know Officer Farlow, Lauren. And this is Officer Amos Smith.”
Farlow stopped short at the sight of me. He closed his eyes for a moment and then focused on Clair.
I guess I wasn’t high on his list of favorite people either. If ignoring me was his way of dealing, that was good enough for me. I turned my back and wandered to the sliding glass door, thankful that Clair would handle him.
“Show me this alleged body, Ms. Lane.”
I glanced at them as Clair led the way into the kitchen.
Officer Smith acknowledged me with a nod and followed Farlow.
Clair showed the men to the door of the garage and stepped out of the way. “I’m staying here. You go on, but brace yourself officers. It’s gruesome. And I’d advise that you don’t open the car doors. You should probably just look through the windows. At least until you can get the automatic garage door open. You’ll need the ventilation.”
The men grinned and exchanged a look.
Farlow smirked. “Don’t worry about us, ma’am. We’re seasoned law enforcement and have seen our share of crime scenes. Haven’t we Amos?”
I went as far as the doorway between living room and kitchen, to watch. When the men marched bravely into the garage, Clair joined me. We listened to the sound of a car door opening.
It only took about three minutes for Officer Smith’s voice to be heard from the depths of the garage. “What on earth?” Clair turned eyes to me. “I warned them.”
A minute later Farlow stumbled into the kitchen holding a handkerchief over his nose. “Oh mother of pearl, that’s awful.” We watched as his eyes lost focus.
Murderous Heart Page 2