Page 12 of Watch Me
We’d just gotten an update from the ME that the victim had been stabbed sixty-eight times. I’d never seen such hatred in all my life, and that was saying something considering I lived in Chicago where there were, on average, around seven hundred murders ayear.
This murder screamed hate, passion, and rage, and I wanted to solve the case as soon as possible, but I also wanted to see Reagan again. There was no way I’d be able to meet her before midnight, so I’d texted her to meet for lunch at a restaurant near my place. I would have said breakfast, but I also knew that she needed sleep—and so didI.
Fuck, what I would do to have her in my bedagain.
The night before, I’d heard her quiet snores over the movie. After making sure she was in a deep sleep, I carried her to my bed. If she and I were anus, I wouldn’t have hesitated to crawl in beside her, pull her close, and sleep with my arms around her until I had to go into work. Instead, I took a quick shower and slept on my couch. I left before she woke, hoping I could put in my ten hours and then meet her at Judy’s. Instead, some asshole had brutally murdered a woman in the dead of night.
The ME told us the estimated time of death was around three the previous morning. Since it was now after midnight, we were coming up on the twenty-four-hour mark since the time of death, and we had no leads except the roommate, who we hadn’t interviewed yet because she was at the hospital. The neighbor had heard nothing unusual, either. Our cybercrime unit was looking into Amy’s computer, and Shawn and I had already sent in a subpoena for her cell phone and credit cardrecords.
“I’m going to head home. Want to talk to the roommate first thing?” I asked Shawn. We’d gotten word that the roommate would be released from the hospital after a few hours, and her boyfriend was taking her back to hisplace.
“Yeah, sounds good.”
We both left, and I went directly home. I crawled into my bed, which still smelled like Reagan, like marshmallows by a campfire, and quickly fell asleep, dreaming about her like I usuallydid.
The next morning, as planned, I met Shawn at the roommate’s boyfriend’s apartment where she’d gone after she was released from the hospital. Usually, I’d meet him at the station, and we’d drive over together, but because I had a lunch date, we had to take twocars.
We walked to the door and knocked. After a moment, it opened. Shawn and I held up our badges. “I’m Sergeant Valor, and this is Detective Jones. Is Heather Northland here?”
The guy who opened the door nodded and motioned for us to enter. A young lady was sitting on the couch. Her blue eyes were bloodshot, probably from lack of sleep or crying all night, and her blonde hair was pulled into a messyponytail.
“Mind if we ask you a few questions about last night?” I asked. We already knew some of the answers to our questions because Officer Moore had briefed us the night before, but we’d ask her the same questions again to make sure her story stayed thesame.
“Sure,” she replied.
Shawn sat next to her on the only couch, and I took a seat in the chair across from them. The man who we confirmed was the boyfriend went to the kitchen to get uswater.
“How long were you and Amy roommates?” Iasked.
Heather took a deep breath, tears starting to form in her swollen eyes. “About eight or nine months. I moved in at the start of the school year.”
“Did you know her prior to moving in with her?”
She shook her head. “No. She had an ad on Craigslist, and I’d answered it.”
The guy came back and handed me a glass. Shawn stood and walked with him out the front door, leaving me to finish and for him to get some info from theboyfriend.
“Was Amy dating anyone?” Iquestioned.
“Not that I know of.”
“Amy didn’t date?”
“She did, but I don’t think she had a serious boyfriend.”
“When was the last time you saw her alive?”
Heather sniffed. “Friday.”
“What time was that?”
She shrugged. “Around five.”
“Did you notice anything missing?” Iasked.
She shook her head. “No, but I wasn’t in there long. I walked in and saw …” She took a deep breath, tears streaming down her face. “I saw her lying on the couch covered in blood and then I ran next door. I was scared to death.”
“Did you see anyone else in the apartment?”
