LITMIR.BIZ

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Jeremiah’s house. I think someone is inside.”

       THREE

      In the driving snow, David rounded the hood of his Jeep and stopped next to Bree. “He probably just left a light on.”

      Her teeth digging into her lower lip, Bree didn’t have a good feeling about this. “No, Jeremiah never does. He doesn’t like to waste electricity. There’s a switch right by the door, so it’s easy for him to come in and flip it on.” She pointed toward the back of the house. “I think there’s one on in the kitchen. I want to check to see. What if someone heard he was dead and came to rob him?”

      “I know the news can spread fast when one of the bush pilots dies in a wreck, but someone would have to be crazy to do something like that, especially in a storm. There’s no vehicle around, and I can’t see the intruder escaping far on foot.” He waved his hand toward the front. “And there are no footprints leading to the porch.”

      “How about around back?”

      “What’s behind your houses?”

      “Woods.”

      “Which would make it hard to remove his valuable possessions that way and carry them through the trees to where they parked their car.”

      Maybe she was overreacting, but ever since those guys showed up at the wreck site, she’d been unsettled. “Okay, chalk it up to a curious, tired woman, but I’m still going to check. What if they came earlier and the new snow covered their tire tracks and footprints? It won’t take much in this storm. Besides, he has a cat I need to bring over to my house. I know Ringo is used to being alone, but I still don’t want to leave him by himself any longer.”

      “If you think there’s someone in the house, then we should call the police.”

      “Who won’t be able to come anytime soon. They have their hands full right now dealing with this storm. Maybe an intruder came the day before yesterday. Jeremiah flew to Daring then and stayed overnight before bringing me back. Like you pointed out, there isn’t a vehicle around, so the person is probably gone, but what if they let Ringo out?”

      “Then I’ll go with you. Do you have a key?”

      “Yes, in my house.” Cold shivered down her length, and she clasped her arms across her chest.

      “In case something is going on at Jeremiah’s, I’ll stay out here and wait for you to get it. And if I see a cat, I’ll grab it.”

      “You might not see Ringo. He’s totally white and deaf so calling his name isn’t useful. I’ll be right back.” Bree trudged toward her house, digging her key out of the front zipped pocket in her parka. Inside her place, she quickly went to the drawer in her desk and grabbed Jeremiah’s key.

      The warmth tempted her to stay, but she wouldn’t. She needed to make sure Ringo was all right and bring him over. If she couldn’t take care of Ringo because of her crazy schedule as an itinerant doctor, she’d make sure he had a home with a friend.

      She joined David outside, and they plowed through the newly fallen snow to Jeremiah’s porch, where the overhang and alcove protected them from the wind and storm. When David withdrew the handgun he’d had with him at the wreck site, the action hammered home the seriousness of what they were doing. She was glad he was there. After she unlocked the front door, he took the lead and entered Jeremiah’s house.

      She trailed behind him, hoping to see Ringo, who would greet her if he saw her. A few steps inside, she glimpsed the chaos in the living area off the entrance. Cushions from the couch and two chairs, as well as items from the drawers, littered the floor. She started to enter the room, but David put an arm up to stop her.

      He mouthed the words, “Let me go first.”

      She nodded.

      He went into the living room and searched any places a person could hide while Bree swung her attention between him and the hallway that led to the back of the house.

      David returned to her side and whispered close to her ear, “It’s clear and I can’t tell if anything is taken, but definitely a person was looking for something. Which way is the kitchen?”

      Looking for something? What? She waved her hand toward the dining room on the other side of the entry hall. “It leads to the kitchen, but so does this hallway.”

      “Stay here while I check the rest of the house. How many bedrooms?”

      “Two and one bathroom. Look for Ringo.” Worry nibbled at the edges of her mind. What was going on here? Jeremiah didn’t have a lot. Most of his money had gone into his plane and the occasional vacation to Hawaii.

      As David moved down the hallway and disappeared into the kitchen, Bree sidled into the living room and took in all the mess. It appeared as though the intruder had left nothing untouched. She didn’t know everything that Jeremiah had, and it would take a while to go through the mess to see if she could tell if anything was missing. But what concerned her the most at the moment was Ringo. Jeremiah loved that cat.

      She checked a couple of the feline’s favorite spots in the living room. They were empty. What if he’d followed the intruder outside and was hunkered down somewhere trying to stay warm in the storm? What if the intruder took the cat or did something to Ringo?

      Lord, please help me find Ringo. I don’t—

      A loud cry wafted to her from the hallway. Ringo. He was in the house. She knew that sound like a baby’s whine. Hurrying into the small foyer, she hoped he would let out another belt. As David walked from the dining room, the cat protested and his paw appeared from beneath the coat closet door. She rushed to it and thrust it open. Ringo flew out of his prison, stopped halfway to the kitchen and noticed David, a stranger. The tomcat made a beeline to sniff him.

      As Ringo rubbed himself against David’s leg, putting his scent on him, he said, “It’s all clear, but the rest of the house is like the living room—trashed. I called the police and reported the break-in. Since no one is in danger, they’ll get to it tomorrow hopefully. Right now all officers are dealing with emergencies and the effects of the storm. I have a buddy who is a detective. I’ll let him know what’s going on, see if this is happening with other houses, especially in this area. I told them they would need to contact you. That you’ll have a key to the place.”

      “Good. When I’m not so tired, I want to go through Jeremiah’s house and see if I can tell if anything is missing. His big-screen TV is still here.”

      David’s forehead scrunched as he frowned. “Too large to steal while a storm is dumping tons of snow on Anchorage?”

      Bree shrugged. “You’d think a burglar would want it. It’s only a couple of months old. Did you see how they got in?”

      “Back door was jimmied.”

      “Is the lock broken?”

      “Yes. I stepped out on the deck and noticed footprints leading away from the house, but the snow will fill them soon, even the ones on the covered stoop. Didn’t see any coming to the house. They looked about the size of my boots. Twelve. I took a picture of them on my cell phone, although I don’t know if that will help much.”

      “Only one set of footprints?”

      “Yes, but like us earlier at the wreck site, one person could be using the other’s footsteps. They weren’t neat impressions. I’d usually say no one would be crazy enough to be out in this snowstorm, robbing people, but after what’s happened here, anything is possible. There are some loose two-by-fours and a toolbox in the utility room. I could put them up across the door.”

      “I’d appreciate it if you would. I don’t know when I can get a locksmith out here to change the lock.”

      David headed toward the kitchen with Ringo following. “I can do that for you. One of my hobbies is carpentry. When I’m not running

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