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“That will do it”
Deke e of the river and studied the yellow
cone that marked the spot where the other hand lay Even in the cold it had already degraded and could easily have been overlooked as not human “Was he in the water?”
“I’d say so My guess is the parts were first tossed into a bag and then into the river Everyone thinks the river will keep their secrets, but it doesn’t taketo tear and its contents to float to the top Head is likely out there somewhere”
“If these parts connect to my body, why leave it exposed in one location and dump the hands and feet in the river?”
She shrugged “Maybe our killer likes a puzzle”
The torso The bag with Deidre’s card Now the hands and a foot Felt more like a trail of bread crumbs
“How long has he been out here?”
“That’s hard to say Cold distorts everything Maybe the prints willpersons report”
He grinned “Thanks for the tip”
“Always here to help, bro”
He rose, his joints creaking as he straightened “Don’t knohat I’d do without you”
She raised a gloved hand and gave him a thumbs-up “Keep me posted on what the medical examiner says This one is a curiosity”
“Will do”
Leah didn’t sleep well the night before Alex had followed her home from the mall, and as he pulled away, a police cruiser had parked in front of her town house Two hours later, when she saw another set of headlights flash through her , she’d risen and peeked through the curtain Another cop car arrived, the officers spoke, and then the first car drove away, leaving the new guy to babysit
Fatigue itched her eyes as she arrived at the clinic early to walk the dogs She and Dr Nelson traded shifts, and today was her day on They had three patients in the kennel: a cat that had been injured in a fight, the dog that had been hit by the car, and the black dog, the spay from yesterday
The black dog, the healthiest of the three, barked and wagged her tail when Leah entered the kennel The catlooked up at her, then went back to sleep Dr Nelson had told her the dog remained on heavy painkillers and would be slow for a fewhome today
She ot closer The dog, Charlie, barked, clearly excited to see her She grabbed a leash fro’s crate The young dog bounded out of the cage and into Leah’s ar, she quickly slipped a collar and leash around its neck and led her out back Despite the cold, the dog barked and jurateful to be free She quickly took care of her business Leah, pleased with the dog’s quick recovery, took her around the parking lot, letting her sniff and dig in the dirt before the cold forced her back inside
While Charlie watched, she cleaned out the dog’s crate and set fresh food and water in there for her The dog eagerly went back into the crate and ate
Leah closed the crate door and checked the dog’s chart No complications No issues So why hadn’t the owner returned for her?
By the ties and fed the other animals, Gail arrived
“So what’s with the Lab?” Leah couldn’t hide her interest “Where’s the owner?”
“I don’t know I called three tiot an answer I don’t know if there’s a problem, or maybe he decided the bill was too much for him”
Leah frowned This dog wouldn’t be the first abandoned at the vet when a bill couldn’t be paid “That’s too bad”
“Frouy was a little odd On the way in and out, he kept looking around the clinic, as if he were searching for so”
“Like what?” Vet clinics had to be careful of drug thefts; many of the meds they used were stored on-site
“I don’t know But I double-checked the medicine supply room and made sure it was locked before I left each day”
“Give me his number and I’ll call him”
Gailthe number from a file in the active clients bin
Leah took the phone and dialed The phone rang once, twice, and then, on the third ring, she got a ht now, but leave a number I’ll call back”
Leah listened to the deep voice, half-searching for traces of Philip’s voice, but found none “Brian, this is Dr Carson at the Nelson Anio home Would you co so we’ll knohen to expect you” She rattled off the nuets results”