Page 3 of Midnight Secrets

“I’ll get it taken care of.” Tamara took the folder with a smile.

“Thanks, Tam. Could you also call Will Davis and see if he has room on his schedule for a closing this Friday?” One of my properties was moving through the sale process faster than expected, so we needed to move the closing date up a week. “And put this in my office?” I set my coffee and my muffin on the desk. It would only take me fifteen minutes to open up the Autumn Creek house. Then I could come back and start my day at a slower pace.

“You got it.”

“Great, thank you. Okay.” I spun on my heel. “I’m off.” Throwing a hand in the air, I waggled my fingers and left again.

Back in my car, I maneuvered out of my small parking lot and pointed my vehicle toward the middle-class neighborhood of Willow Den and my new listing on Autumn Creek Road. My homeowners had signed the contract Friday and were eager tosell, so I’d sent pictures to the head of my staging crew, Lynne Young, and asked her to meet me at the house with whatever she thought she’d need to make the house more attractive to buyers. I had the key to let her and her crew inside.

Pulling up behind Lynne’s box truck, I hopped out, keys in hand. The driver’s door of the truck opened and Lynne got out.

“Morning.”

“Hey. Sorry I’m late. Pebbles was a pain.”

Lynne waved a hand. “I’ve only been here a couple minutes.”

“Good. I’m glad I didn’t keep you waiting.” My heels clicked on the concrete driveway as I headed for the front door. “I’ll get this unlocked so you can get started.”

“So, what did Pebbles do today?”

I huffed. “Ran out the front door after a stray cat when I opened it to pick up the newspaper. I had to chase her down the sidewalk in my robe and slippers.”

Lynne laughed. “You need to take that dog to obedience school. Maybe then she’ll listen.”

“She does. When she wants to.” I chuckled. Pebbles most definitely had selective hearing.

I slipped the key into the lock. “Anyway, I’m just thankful some guy running came around the corner when he did. He corralled her against the Winslow’s fence.” I frowned as the memory of his attitude toward my dog came back. “He wasn’t too enamored with her charms, though.” I stepped over the threshold.

Lynne smiled. “Maybe he hadn’t had his morning coffee yet.” The older woman followed me inside.

“Maybe.” I shrugged. “So, do you need help bringing things in?” I hoped not. That coffee and muffin called my name, but I hadn’t seen any of Lynne’s crew outside and didn’t want to leave her alone to unload everything by herself.

“No. Sammie should be here soon. You weren’t the only one with animal trouble this morning. Something got into her trash last night and left a mess on her patio.”

My nose wrinkled. “I’ll take chasing my dog down any day over that.”

“Me too.”

“Okay, well, do you want to walk me through what your plan is, then?”

“Sure.” Lynne pointed behind me. “I brought an entryway table to put in here and some trinkets to display. In here”—she pointed to the living room to the right—“I brought some décor to spruce things up. A mantle display and some blankets. And this really cool—” She stopped. “Claire. Did you leave the door open the last time you were here?”

“What?” I turned to look at the French doors leading to the backyard. One was open a crack. “No. Why is that open?” I walked toward it, looking at the lock. Maybe it was broken. Reaching for the handle, I stopped, remembering the spate of burglaries we’d had lately. “Crap.” I looked at Lynne. “We should probably check the house. Make sure nothing’s been stolen.”

Lynne wrinkled her nose. “Yeah. You go up, and I’ll look around down here?”

I nodded. “Don’t touch anything.”

“Don’t worry.” Lynne pulled her sleeves down and tucked her hands inside. “I won’t.”

With a nod, I left the room and went upstairs. Hopefully, I didn’t find anything missing. Maybe someone forgot to lock the door—whether it was me or the homeowner—and it blew open. Filing a police report and calling my homeowners to explain a break-in was not on my agenda for today.

Reaching the landing, I paused, frowning as I realized I would have to touch the doorknobs to check the rooms. They were all closed. Well, except for the master bedroom. That doorstood open. Which was weird, because I know I closed all the doors the last time I was here. It was an odd quirk I had when I showed houses. It was how I made sure no one was still in the home after an open house. When everyone was supposed to be gone, I would walk through and check every room, then close the doors as I went. It had become such a habit that I did it when I showed homes privately and when I took listing photos as well. And I know I closed that door after doing my walk-through to take pictures for Lynne.

The plush cream carpet quieted my footfalls as I traversed the hall to the master suite. With a knuckle, I nudged the partially open door inward.

Rumpled bed clothes hung half off the black metal-frame bed. A lamp laid on the floor, having fallen from the nightstand. Clothes hung out of the dresser and littered the floor.

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