But Not For Lust by BJ Bourg (comprehension books .txt) 📕

the scene within the small enclosed space, Susan and I gathered up my equipment and moved to the house. It appeared completely undisturbed, so we focused our efforts on the area near the front door. Although it had been open, it didn’t appear anyone had taken advantage of that fact.

Next, we processed the camper. Aside from a dozen more smudges and illegible prints, I did locate one decent thumb print on the outer doorknob of Ty’s camper. Could it be Ty’s print or the print of someone else? His drug supplier, perhaps? There was no way Ty was cooking his own meth, so he had to have purchased it from someone.

Once Susan and I were done processing the camper, I grabbed up my crime scene boxes and loaded them into my Tahoe. I then called the coroner’s office and told them we were ready for them to transport the body. The assistant who answered said Dr. Louise Wong had scheduled the autopsy for seven o’clock sharp the next morning.

I figured I would be up late tonight working this case, and seven sounded early, but I didn’t complain. I had a lot to do, so an early start would serve me well. I shook my head as I ended the call. I had always been astutely aware of how valuable Amy was to our two-person investigative unit, but I never realized just how bad I would miss her if she ever left. Now that she was temporarily unavailable, I’d have to do everything myself, and it would take twice as long.

I grabbed up some evidence bags and said a silent prayer for her quick recovery as I headed to Ty’s bathroom, where I recovered the glass bowl pipe, the plastic baggie, and the torch lighter. Someone was supplying Ty with crystal meth. If I was lucky, the crime lab would find some DNA or a fingerprint on the baggie and I’d be able to identify the drug dealer. I’d never known of Ty to be a violent person, so the drugs must’ve certainly played a part in what had happened out here last night.

Susan was standing just outside the doorway to the camper near the scraps of pizza on the ground when I returned outside.

“So, what do you think happened out here?” she asked. “This is perfectly good pizza. It’s a shame to see it scattered around the ground covered by the ants.”

I studied her as I went over everything I knew so far in my mind. Before answering, I cocked my head to the side. For the first time since she’d arrived, I realized she had changed out of her shorts and was now wearing jeans. I longed for some jeans myself. I didn’t feel like a professional running around in cargo shorts and a T-shirt.

“Well, based on the information you gathered from his uncle, it seems Ty was having some sort of episode, and I’m guessing his mom came out to the camper to check on him,” I said slowly, trying to visualize the events that had unfolded, making sure everything fit.

“He probably freaked out when she banged on the door. According to the neighbor across the street, he was paranoid and he thought soldiers were coming for him. Maybe he thought his mom was a soldier when she came to the door to check on him. Or maybe she was bringing him pizza. In any event, it’s possible he brushed by her, knocking the pizza out of her hands, and then headed for the shed. She followed him to the shed and was trying to calm him down when he knocked her over. She hit her head and died.”

“So, do you think this is an accident?”

“I don’t even know if this is what actually happened,” I admitted with a sigh. “Something doesn’t seem right about the scene.”

Susan scrunched up her face and it caused the cute dimple on her chin to deepen. “Like what?”

“Well, the shed door was locked.”

She was thoughtful. “And?”

“If Ty was having a psychotic episode, he wouldn’t think to stop and lock the shed after his mom hit the ground,” I said. “I mean, he didn’t even lock the door to his camper, so why would he lock the shed? Also, he wouldn’t have realized he’d done something wrong, so there would’ve been no reason to run away.”

“What are you saying?”

I shrugged. “I guess I’m saying there seems to be more to the story than what meets the eye.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning—I’ve got my work cut out for me.”

  CHAPTER 10

There were a little over thirty houses up and down Orange Way, and I knocked on every last one of them. Not everyone was home, but nearly everyone I spoke with was familiar with Ty Richardson. None of them remembered seeing him last night or at any time today. I left my business card with the folks who were home and asked that they call if they heard something—anything at all.

The coroner’s investigator had recovered Carol Richardson’s body at around three o’clock, and—after calling her brother and providing what information I had—I’d gone directly to canvassing the neighborhood. It was now almost six o’clock and I was making my way back toward Ty’s house. I was hoping to catch Logan when he returned home from work. If something had happened with Ty on Friday night, Logan’s information might help shed some light on what had occurred out here last night. It might at least offer a clue.

When Ty’s camper came into view, I saw my Tahoe under the carport. Although it was getting dark, I could see from the streetlight that it was still the only vehicle in the driveway. Baylor had resumed his normal patrol after the coroner’s investigator had left with the body much earlier, and Susan had left to pay a visit to Pizza Bayou for me. She’d called immediately after leaving the