Nelly paled. “I don’t like thinking about that.”
“I know. Can you try?”
“Definitely, if it will help find the man who murdered Justin and my father.”
“Thanks. Now, I remember hearing the alarm bell and going onto the landing. Then I dropped onto the top of the elevator, opened the escape hatch, and lowered myself into the car. Do you remember what you and Sheila did after you heard the alarm?”
“We ran up from the first floor.”
“Right. I could see you through the bars. You started to go into the car, but I stopped you.”
Nelly nodded. “You said the elevator was a crime scene, and you didn’t want anyone to contaminate it.”
“After that, everyone except you, me, and Victor Zelko went down to the library. Am I right?”
“Yes.”
“That’s when you reminded me that the road to Black Oaks was blocked by mudslides, and we couldn’t know when the police would be able to get here. Then you said we had to take your father’s body out of the elevator.”
“That’s what I remember.”
“And you said someone should take pictures of the elevator before we moved your father, so there would be a record for the police. That’s when I went to my room to get my cell phone, so I could show photos to the police of the elevator as we’d found it.”
Nelly nodded.
“You and Zelko were standing near the elevator when I came back, a minute or so later, right?”
“Yes,” Nelly said.
“Did Zelko enter the cage while I was getting my phone?”
“No. He stayed where he was.”
“But you did go into the elevator,” Robin said.
“What do you mean?” Nelly said.
“When I dropped into the elevator, your father had Sheila’s shawl draped over his shoulders. I pushed it onto the floor of the car, so I could see his chest. When I returned with my cell phone, you were holding the shawl, so you must have gone into the elevator.”
“You’re right. I forgot. The shawl was on the floor, and I wanted to give it back to Sheila.”
Robin got out her cell phone and showed Nelly the pictures she’d taken.
“I read the police reports. When the people from the crime lab examined the elevator, they didn’t find anything in it. My pictures also show that the cage was empty after your dad was wheeled out.”
Nelly and Sheila studied the pictures on the cell phone screen.
“It’s empty,” Sheila agreed.
“That’s the problem,” Robin said. “When I dropped into the cage, my foot hit a small piece of pipe. I saw it roll across the cage. But there’s no sign of the pipe in my pictures or any mention in the police reports.”
Robin looked at Nelly. “Since you were the only person who went into the car, you must have taken it.”
Nelly looked confused. “I didn’t take anything other than the shawl. And why would I take a piece of pipe?”
“Maybe it rolled onto the landing when you moved the wheelchair,” Sheila said.
Robin showed them pictures of the landing.