Black Dog

Fifty

A couple of hours later, Joan came into Stone’s office. “Will you go over to the house with me? I know that Mike’s people are there, but I’m still afraid to go inside, unless you’re there and armed.”

“I can arrange both of those things,” Stone said.

Fred drove up to the garage door at Joan’s house and stopped. “We need a new code to get in,” he said to Stone.

“Hang on,” Joan said. “I’ve got it.” She dug into her purse, came up with the remote control, and pressed the button.

The garage door silently opened, and Fred drove them in. They were greeted by Mike Freeman and his crew leader.

“I’m glad you came,” he said. “I’ve got something to show you.”

They followed him up to the kitchen and into the laundry. “In there,” Mike said, pointing at an appliance. He handed Stone a pronged piece of plastic, like big tweezers. “So you won’t leave DNA on anything.”

Stone opened the door and probed the interior, then came up with something black.

“What’s that?” Joan asked.

“A sock,” Mike said.

“Well, Dino called it. He said that if someone is living in the house he would need socks and underwear.”

“There are boxer shorts, too, and they’re Eddie Jr.’s size.”

“So he is living here!” Joan said with some satisfaction.

“Not necessarily,” Mike said. “Come with me.” He led them into what seemed like a small apartment, with a sofa, a TV set, and a bed. Beyond that was a large dressing room, with many suits, jackets, shirts, and shoes on display.

“Wow,” Joan said.

Mike opened a dresser drawer and fished out a pair of socks and a pair of boxer shorts. “These are the same size and by the same maker as the socks and underwear in the dryer.”

“Were the ones from the dryer damp or hot?”

“They were at the temperature of everything else in this room,” Mike said.

“So the things in the dryer could be Eddie Sr.’s, not Junior’s?”

“Exactly,” Mike said.

Joan spoke up. “Eddie Sr. and Eddie Jr. were the same size and wore the same size of everything.”

Mike nodded and continued, “They could have been put in the dryer before or just after Eddie Sr. died, then forgotten by the maid. But there’s still another possibility.”

“Not another possibility.” Joan sighed.

“Although the things in the dryer are Eddie Sr.’s, Eddie Jr. could have been wearing them, and as recently as today.”

“Oh, swell,” Joan said.

“Is there any indication that Eddie Jr. might be using this place, either for sleeping or for laundering?”

“Possibly,” Mike said. He shone his flashlight at the top of a cabinet holding suits. “There’s a trapdoor up there, leading to an unfinished attic.”

“Any sign that Eddie Jr. has been there?”

“Absolutely none, but it’s the kind of place that a small boy might use when playing.”

“Eddie Jr. is not a small boy,” Joan said.

“Ah, but he used to be,” Mike said. “And so he would certainly remember it.”

“Why would there be a bed in this dressing room?” Stone asked.

“Oh, that’s right, you’re not married,” Mike said. “Sometimes married men annoy their wives and get banished from their shared bed. My guess is that, when they renovated this house, Annetta insisted on that bed being available.”

“That would have been just like her,” Joan said.

“Can the washer or dryer be heard from the master bedroom?” Stone asked.

“No. We turned everything on in the laundry and not a peep got to the bedroom.”

“Has the bed in the dressing-room suite been slept in?”

“It doesn’t appear to have been used, and it was neatly made up, with fresh linens.”

“So, what do we do now?” Joan asked Mike.

“May I make a suggestion?” Stone asked.

“Please do,” Mike replied.

“Let’s put the socks and underwear back in the dryer, and tomorrow, let’s see if they’re still there and not back in a drawer.”

“We can set a few invisible traps, too,” Mike said.

“I don’t want Eddie Jr. caught in some kind a of trap,” Joan said.

“Not a bear trap kind of trap. This is an old private eye trick: you moisten a hair or a piece of thread and stick it to the door’s edge. If somebody goes in or out, the hair falls away, unnoticed, except by our man. Then we’ll know if somebody has been in the room.”

“I like it,” Joan said.

“It has the advantage of not shooting somebody in the head,” Stone said. “Can you stand another night in the house, Joan?”

“We can have people on duty all night,” Mike said.

“Okay, but not in my bedroom.”

“You’ll have your alarm locket to use, if the room is breached,” Mike said.

“Okay, let’s do it,” Joan said. “What do I have to do?”

“Nothing,” Mike said. “Come home after work, get in bed, watch a movie, or read a book until you’re sleepy. If you feel or hear something, don’t move, just press the locket.”

“Stone, will you sleep in Eddie Sr.’s dressing room?”

“No, we’ll want to leave that for Eddie Jr. But there’s a lock on the dressing-room door, so you can block the access to the bedroom.”

“Good,” Joan said. “Let’s do it.”