Page 93 of Her Last Whisper
“Uh, of course,” Katie said, realizing that she hadn’t returned Chad’s calls again after the uncomfortable dinner with Nick.
“I’ll text the address to you. Be safe,” she said and hung up.
Katie slowly hung up the phone.
“What did she find?” McGaven asked with some excitement to his voice.
“An address for me,” she slowly said. “It’s for a friend, some personal business.” She got up from her chair, searching for her keys. “I’m going to have to run out for about an hour and half. You okay?”
“Of course. I don’t need a babysitter.”
“McGaven, you’re a funny guy. Call or text me if anything comes in from forensics or you find something that hits from your background checks… I meananything. Got it?”
He made a silly salute gesture. “You got it, Detective.”
“I’m going to have to teach you how to salute properly, the army way,” she said as she dashed from the office and hurried out of the sheriff’s department building.
After Katie gotinto the car, she punched in the address coordinates on the GPS for James Haines. She drove as fast as she dared to try to catch him at home. She thought about calling first but decided that might work against her if he didn’t want anything to do with his brother.
As she drove, she reflected on the fact that she didn’t know what it was like to have a sibling, a brother or sister, someone as close as that where you share DNA. She often felt lonely, especially with her parents gone. Her Uncle Wayne was her rock and just as close as her parents had been to her, but she couldn’t help but experience a twinge of jealousy from people who had a sibling to confide in through the tough as well as the wonderful times.
Ever since she had come home from her two-tour in the army, Katie thought that she would be odd person out and that everyone would think she was different. Basically, she thought that she was destined to be alone. To her surprise, she had managed to engage with a work team of wonderful, supportive, and intelligent people. It was more than she thought she would ever be involved in—police patrol work can be extremely solitary even though you are part of an overall team—it was the nature of a subculture. But now with investigations, it was a whole new world to her.
Katie knew her personal life could really use some help, but she also knew that she was the only one responsible for keeping Chad at arm’s length. He was someone she had known her entire life—she couldn’t think of a time growing up that he wasn’t in it. The problem was that she was holding too tight to the reins of her army time, the belief that she somehow was different and didn’t deserve a happy, healthy and intimate civilian life. That was the crack in her mindset where her anxiety and depression seeped in.
She gritted her teeth, avoiding the truth about her psyche and how she needed to deal with these past issues head on. It was true that she needed someone objective to talk to—a therapist maybe. She didn’t know if she had the guts to pursue that avenue yet.
Her GPS alerted her that the street designated as the location for her destination was near. She snapped back to the present, unsure of the correct approach to take with Nick’s brother.
Katie saw the apartments consisting of six units, which were run-down and in desperate need of maintenance and repair. The tan paint peeled from around the windows and doors, highlighting the filthy glass. No front door mats or welcome signs inviting you to show up at the front door—just a few pieces of garbage that blew out of a nearby trash can across the weeds.
She slowly drove by and saw #4 that belonged to Nadine McMillian. It was difficult to ascertain if anyone was home or they were inside not wanting to be disturbed. There were frilly white curtains covering the front windows, which appeared to be the living room and kitchen areas. Katie deduced that the bedroom was most likely in the back away from the road.
Two vehicles were parked in two of the six parking places—one older model pickup truck and a small SUV. Katie drove ahead about a block before she decided to park. Even though it was a personal visit as a favor to Nick, she wasn’t going into a situation without being prepared. Not wanting to draw attention, she made sure her weapon and badge were out of sight underneath her jacket. She took another quick look at the photograph Nick had supplied of his brother, making sure that she was meeting up with the correct person. She also had a photocopied picture of Nadine who had long dark hair, and a serious expression, with dark brown eyes, and was age twenty-nine but she looked older.
With the images ingrained in her memory, Katie got out of her car and walked to the apartment complex. No cars had passed by and no voices filtered throughout the area. It was a ghost town.
She walked assertively toward apartment #4 and couldn’t shake the sense that there were eyes watching her. It was obvious that she wasn’t just an average person. She knew that she acted and looked like a cop—so she didn’t try to hide it.
Standing at the door, she knocked three times then took a step back so that she wasn’t right up in someone’s personal space. There was no doorbell, so after waiting a while she rapped on the door once again. This time she heard movement and what sounded like hurried whispers.
Finally, a woman’s voice announced, “Who is it?”
“Katie Scott,” she said and hoped that would be enough for the woman to open the door.
“I don’t know you,” was the woman’s reply.
“Nadine?” Katie wanted to see if she indeed had the right location.
There was a pause and she heard a couple of locks disengage. Another brief moment before the door opened about two inches. Katie saw a pretty woman without makeup and resembling the photograph peer out. “What do you want?” She eyed Katie suspiciously, looking her up and down.
“Nadine?” she said again.
“Yes,” the woman replied hesitantly.
“My name is Katie Scott and I’m a close friend of Nick Haines. I’m looking for James Haines—his brother. This was the last known address for him.” She tried to sound casual and not come across like a cop or in some other official capacity.
“I… I don’t know any James Haines…” She was about to close the door.
