“They didn’t,” he said. “Whoever it was, they left through this door in a hurry.”
He walked outside onto the back porch and then jogged down the steps and carefully searched the perimeter of the lawn. His attitude was casual, but I could tell he was checking every inch of grass, looking for a clue that might lead to the identity of the culprit. It was helpful to have the full moon shining down on things.
“I’ll talk to Eric tomorrow,” he said. “He’s going to want to check out this whole area. The soil at the edge of the lawn may be damp enough to provide some footprints.”
He took one last glance around, and then we locked up Jesse’s house and returned to my place. Robbie yipped from behind the closed bedroom door, so I let him out and shushed him so he wouldn’t wake up Jane. Back downstairs, with his tail end wiggling madly, he greeted Mac. Tiger followed lazily, yawning when she finally settled at Mac’s feet.
“Your animals are so unfriendly,” he said, making me laugh. We discussed the fact that we were both too wired to sleep right away, so I invited him to stay for a cup of hot chocolate.
We chatted about nothing in particular while I heated the cocoa and he sprawled in a chair at the kitchen table. Tiger was now curled up on his lap while Robbie was in thrall at his feet. Lucky pets, I thought to myself, feeling a little ridiculous for being jealous of my animals.
Once I’d divided the cocoa into two cups, I placed a small bowl of miniature marshmallows on the table and joined him. “I’m sorry I screamed out there.”
“I’m sorry I scared you,” he said.
“You did, but it’s not your fault. I just know the intruder heard me and got away.”
“He’ll be back,” he said easily.
“I didn’t realize you had a gun.”
“Is that a problem?”
I thought about it. “It was a surprise—that’s for sure. I guess it made sense to have one with us, but I’m not a big fan.”
“I’m not, either, but it seems foolish to walk into a dark house in search of an unwanted visitor without carrying some protection.”
“You’re right. I didn’t think about protecting myself. I just went running over there. By the time I realized I might be confronting a killer, I was already in front of Jesse’s house.”
“You were very brave.”
I heard what he wasn’t saying. “But stupid, I know. Thank you for not adding that.”
His lips twisted into a wry smile. “You’re welcome.”
I laughed. “Okay, it was idiotic, but the thought of catching the guy who might be responsible for Jesse’s death was too compelling. Like I said, I didn’t think. Next time I’ll bring a baseball bat.” On that satisfying thought, I savored a sip of cocoa.
“If there is a next time,” Mac said, “promise me you won’t go by yourself. Call me or call the police. Or both.”
“I promise. And I’m pretty sure there will be a next time. There’s something inside that house that somebody wants really badly. At first I thought it was Jesse doing the searching, but now I know there’s someone else.”
“And that’s why you think he was killed.”
“Yes, don’t you? I mean, it’s obvious to me. Now I just have to convince the police.”
Mac didn’t respond. He sat back in his chair and stirred the chocolate with his spoon. He added a few more marshmallows and stirred some more.
“Did you spend much time with Jesse?” I asked.
He glanced up at me. “Yeah, I got to know him pretty well in the last few months. We were both in the navy, both had SEAL training. We bonded pretty quickly.”
“He must’ve loved having you around to talk to.”
“Yeah, it was great for me, too. The military’s a strange world and not everyone can relate.”
“I get that.”
Mac frowned. “Something was bothering him lately. I don’t know what it was, but I had a feeling he would’ve told me eventually. Now I’ll never know.”
Little shivers of alarm streaked down my spine. Had Jesse known he was in danger?
Mac said, “One thing he really wanted to do was go diving out in the bay again. You’ve got a shipwreck out there that he wanted to see one more time.”
“The Glorious Maiden,” I said.
“We made plans, and I would have loved to take him, but it didn’t work out.”
“He went out there a few years ago with a couple of his navy friends.”
“Yeah, he told me. Bob and Ned. I’ve met them.”
“They’re sweet old guys.” I sipped my cocoa. “Did Jesse say why he wanted to go scuba diving again?”
He gazed at me. “Have you ever done it?”
“No?”
He chuckled softly. “I didn’t think so. Otherwise you wouldn’t ask. There’s nothing like being down there. It’s a whole different world.”
“I guess that’s another thing you two bonded over.”
“You could say that. He liked going on adventures. He told me about the last time he got together with his buddies. They went exploring around that old naval shipyard. Just sneaking around, really.”