Savannah Watson had been her friend for a long time. They’d gone through the FBI academy together, but before they’d graduated Savannah had been severely injured in an attempted abduction. Those injuries had left her unable to walk without the use of a cane, and thus ruined her dreams of becoming an agent. Instead, Savannah had transferred to the FBI’s Evidence Response Team. They had remained friends, and Chloe loved it when they worked the same case because sometimes their busy lives interfered with them having time to hang out.
“Hi, Chlo, Tom.” She gave them each a smile.
“Can we come in?” Tom asked.
Savannah nodded and handed them both booties to slip on over their shoes.
“Did you find anything?” Chloe asked.
“So far, nothing that’s going to help you,” Savannah replied.“Like the other scenes, all the windows and vases and mirrors were broken. I did find one vase that looked like it might have been broken by Avery herself.”
They followed Savannah through the small house to the bathroom. She surveyed the place as they went. It looked like a typical teenage girl lived here. There were magazines piled up on the coffee table in the living room, an assortment of gadgets lay scattered about on various countertops. In the bathroom there was a curling wand, straightening iron, and so many items of makeup she could open a store.
The bath was filled with water, perhaps a little lower than Chloe would have expected, so she assumed that the killer had drugged Avery while she’d been in it and then dragged her out once she passed out.
“In the dustbin, I found broken pieces of a vase, and in the bedroom, there were a few drops of blood. I'm guessing she broke it, cleaned it up, then got in the bath where he took her,” Savannah said.
Chloe shook her head. “The killer broke the vase.”
“Before he drugged her?” Savannah asked.
“We think it’s what he did with Taylor Sallow,” Tom explained. “She said there was a broken vase that day. She thought someone might have broken in, but she didn't see anything missing or out of place.”
“If that’s true, and he did the same thing here, then it obviously didn't worry Avery enough to go up to her parents’ house,” Savannah said.
“Have you found anything else?” she asked. She wanted to end this case. Now. For several reasons, some of them selfish. Chloe honestly wanted to find this guy before Avery got hurt, before he could come back for Taylor, and before he went after anyone else. But she couldn’t deny that part of her also wanted to find this guy because she didn't like Fin hanging around Taylor.She was jealous. And scared. She was afraid the more time he spent with Taylor, the more attached he might get. He might even start to develop feelings for her. The idea of Fin falling in love with someone else made her feel sick to her stomach. She didn't want things to be permanently over between them.
“I’m guessing he wore gloves like he did at the other abduction scenes. I'm sorry I can't be more helpful.” Savannah’s blue eyes looked guilty like she was personally to blame for the lack of physical evidence the killer left behind.
“Not your fault,” Chloe reminded her.
“If there’s anything here, I’ll find it,” Savannah assured them.
“I'm sure you will,” Tom agreed, smiling at her.
“We should go interview the boyfriend and the parents,” Chloe said to her partner. While she knew her friend would find anything that was here, they all knew there was nothing to find. Taylor had mentioned the possibility that someone might have been following her in the days leading up to her abduction; maybe Avery’s family had also noticed something. That at least might give them a direction to move in.
“Good luck with that,” Savannah said. When they both arched questioning brows at her, she elaborated, “They were arguing outside when I got here. I don’t think the parents like the boyfriend very much.”
Hopefully, that wasn't going to be a hindrance to the interviews. “I’ll call you later, Sav,” Chloe said as she and Tom turned to leave. She needed to talk to her friend about Fin and get Savannah’s opinion on things. She wanted to know if the sudden resurgence of feelings meant anything and if she should get back together with him or if she was just lonely.
As they approached the front door of the main house, they could hear raised voices. Savannah was right. Avery’s parents and her boyfriend clearly didn't get along.
Tom rolled his eyes and knocked on the door. Neither ofthem wanted to waste time refereeing bickering relatives. They needed information that would help them find Avery.
“Yes?” A thin woman in her forties, with dark hair pulled up into a tight bun, accentuating her angular face, threw open the door and practically glared at them.
“Mrs. Ormont?” Tom asked.
“Yes.”
“I'm Special Agent Drake, and this is my partner, Special Agent Luckman,” Tom introduced them.
Her face softened. “You're the FBI agents.”
“Yes, we are, ma’am. May we come in?” Tom asked.
“Of course.” Avery’s mother opened the door wider, then ushered them into a lounge room off the entrance foyer. “You can leave now, Leon,” she growled at a young man in his twenties who was standing with his hands on his hips in the middle of the room.