Mystery: Missing Rita: (Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Suspense Thriller Mystery) (2 page)

“Sam,” he called. “Was there any sign of forceful entry?”

Sam was by Lohan almost immediately with his notepad still perched in his hand.

“No, there was not,” he answered.

“That can only mean a few things,” Lohan answered. “She must have known her slayer.”

“Either that or her slayer must be a very good lock picker.”

“We will have to dig more in her past to find out whether there was anyone in her life who wanted to kill her,” Lohan said.

He looked again at the crime scene and was more than certain there was nothing else he could do on the first day. He waved Sam over and watched as he obediently walked over.

“I think I’d better head on home,” he said with a sad look in his eye. “We’ll pick this up tomorrow.”

Sam simply nodded and completely understood that as much as they wanted to, they could not solve the mystery on the first day.

“I am sure we will have a good lab analysis on her and the house,” Lohan went on to say. “We’ll start questioning the neighbors tomorrow...”

“Alright, boss,”Sam answered and watched as he began heading out the door. Logan said “hi” to a few people who were still trying to take samples in the house. He walked over to his car and dreaded the ride home. He looked forward to nothing in particular and relaxed more in his seat. He knew Gina all too well and was expecting a phone call from her any minute now. His suspicions were confirmed when his phone started to light up and Gina’s number appeared on the screen. He debated whether or not to pick it up but knew he would be in trouble if he didn’t.

“Yes, honey,” he said.

“What time will you be home?”

“I am still working,” he answered in a very calm voice. “I don’t know what time exactly I will be home.”

“You had better get your ass home in the next half hour,” she warned before hanging up the phone.

Lohan held the phone at a closer range and felt his heart beat faster as he pondered his next move. He looked at the time on his cell phone and placed it aside before starting the car and driving on into the darkness.

His thoughts were again scattered and he could not make up his mind on what to do next. His mind raced back to the days when he thought he was in love with Gina and wondered how things got to this point.

“You cheated on her, that’s how you got here,” a voice in his head murmured and he settled in his seat even more as he drove on. He saw the neon sign glittering from a distance and started looking around for a parking spot.

He got out of his car after placing his cell phone on the dashboard and heading over to the building.

He was immediately greeted at the door by a waitress. “Lohan, back so soon?”

“Yes, yes,” he smiled. “I have unfinished business here. Is Ginger preoccupied at the moment?”

“She was busy but will be done soon,” the waitress replied. “Can I get you someone else?”

“It’s o.k. I’ll wait for her.”

The waitress was just about to walk away but was stopped dead in her tracks by Lohan.

“The usual, please.”

“Coming right up,” she replied with a warm, lovely smile on her face.

Lohan took a quick look around the room and spotted a comfortable place and walked over to it. It was a secluded corner and he knew that Ginger would spot him there once she was done with her other client.

“Honey, I am home,” he said and walked over with a slight spring in his step.

*******

Ryan woke up as usual that day and began his daily routine of preparing his kids for school. He looked at his cell phone and wondered why his ex-wife had not called him back. He had a tight schedule that day and could not spend any more time with the kids. He tried to place a call to her for the millionth time but it went straight to voicemail.

“Trevor! Stacy!”He called out to his kids who he had assumed were already up. “Breakfast!”

He was in the kitchen with a steaming cup of coffee in his hand and took a few sips from it as he threw a glance at his wristwatch. He would be late for work if he did not make his kids hurry up. He went into full charging mode and stormed up the stairs toward their bedrooms.

“Trevor!”He knocked on his 10 year old son’s door. “Please tell me you are ready.”

“I am ten,Dad. I do not have to do much,”Trevor said as he walked out of the door with his backpack on. “The ice princess in there is a whole different story.”

He pointed to his sister’s room as he took the flight of stairs to the living room. Ryan walked over to his daughter’s door and knocked gently on it and waited to be told to come in. He remembered the numerous times his daughter had complained about having her own privacy and him respecting it.

“Come in,” she said from the other side of the door and gave him a warning look when he walked through the door.

“Are you ready for school?” he asked cautiously.

“Yes, Dad,” she answered. She held a pink lip gloss in her right hand and was busy puckering her lips in front of the mirror as she listened to her father. He had a few things to say about that but found it wise not to.

“Breakfast?”

“I am on a diet,” she said and held up a water bottle that had a few funny-looking things in it. “I am trying out a new diet that I found online the other day.”

Ryan again had a few things to say about that but was distracted by the doorbell.

“Dad!” Trevor shouted from downstairs amidst mouthfuls of cereal. “There is someone here for you.”

“Be ready in five,” he said to Stacy and walked out of her room.

“Trevor,” he said as he passed by the kitchen, “Please try calling your mother again.”

“Already did, her phone is still off.”

Ryan let out a shrug and walked towards the door and swung it open. He was greeted by two gentlemen dressed in official suits who had very serious looks on their faces.

“Good morning, Mr. Sutter,” one of them began.

Ryan immediately glanced at his wristwatch and thought of how late he would be for work. He had a major deal that he had to close and thought of all the paperwork he had yet to finalize. Judging from the look on their faces they were insurance salesmen and he did not have time for that.

“Look here, gentlemen,” he began. “I am sorry but I really need to get to work.”

“Mr. Sutter,” one of them interrupted him, “My name is detective Lohan and this man is my colleague Detective Sam.”

These words obviously caught his attention as he closed the door behind him and took a few steps from the door. He looked at both men curiously and saw them flash their badges before giving them all his attention.

“I am afraid we have bad news for you,” Detective Lohan said.

Ryan took a closer look at him and began analyzing his looks in his mind. He was about 5’6” tall with a prematurely bald head. He had a small pot belly that was only starting to show and he guessed it was from a few extra beers. His colleague was the exact opposite of him; he would easily pass for a male model because he had the build for it. He looked neat, well-kept and had a mass of dirty blond hair on his head.

“Your wife was found dead last night,”the detective said in the most compassionate voice he could master.

“I’m sorry, who?”

“Your ex-wife, sir,” he clarified. “Rita Sutter was found dead last night.”

These words hit Ryan like a sledgehammer and he almost staggered, out of balance. He looked from the two men and immediately thought of his kids. He could already hear them fighting inside the house and wondered how they would take the news.

“What happened?” he asked and without knowing he had sat down on the front porch and buried his head between his knees. He could not really explain what he was feeling at that time. Different emotions flared up in him all at once.

“Unfortunately we have not yet come to the reason behind her death but we are leaning towards homicide.”

“Homicide?”

“We suspect that she was murdered, sir,” he said.

“But who would murder Rita? She was Rita,” he said out loud and looked at both men staring down at him.

“I know that this is very inappropriate right now,” Detective Lohan said and sat next to him. “But is there anyone you suspect could be behind the killing of your wife, sir? It would really help us in our investigations.”

Ryan looked at him and said nothing; his face had gone blank as he tried to string together a few words in his head that he could use to explain to his children about the death of their mother.

“Sir, I would really like to help you, but right now I am not in a stable position,” he tried to explain before pausing and taking a deep breath. “My mind is scattered but I assure you that once I remember anything I will let you know…”

“It is ok,” Lohan said.

“Where is her body now?”

“At the Lee Funeral home, sir. I think it is owned by the hospital she used to work in,” Sam replied. He took out a business card from his pocket and handed it to him. “If you need anything, please let us know.”

Ryan nodded slightly and took another deep breath before heading back into the house with his head bent low. He turned back to the two gentlemen who had not yet left and Lohan offered him an encouraging smile. He turned the doorknob and slid back into the house before looking at his two children who were fighting over nothing in particular. Stacy was the first to notice the look on her father’s face and out of sheer curiosity voiced her worry.

“Dad,” she called. “Are you o.k.?”

“Yeah, Dad, you look gloomy and rattled,” his son interjected.

Ryan could not feel the blood in his veins, he felt weak and rattled to the core as the reality of what had just been disclosed to him finally hit home. His face was suddenly paper white as he tried to make a step in his children’s direction. He felt weak and his legs suddenly could not support his body. His body slumped down to the floor and his kids were suddenly by his side.

“Dad!” they both called out, but not in unison.

Ryan held them both in his arms and he tried to look for the right words to use to relay the message.

“Your mother…,” he started with a shaky voice and noticed that they both paid attention to what he was about to say next.

“Your mother was found dead last night,” he said and held them even tighter.

They both went silent for a minute before Trevor got to his feet and walked out of the room. Stacy followed him shortly and from a distance Ryan could hear her sob. He did not know what to do next but knew he had to leave them alone for some time. He took out his cell phone from his pocket and placed a call to a number that was on speed dial.

“I need you, please come over,” was all he could say before hanging up the phone and breaking down into uncontrollable sobs.

*****

Detective Lohan and his partner got back to the car and began driving to the station. They endured an awkward silence after seeing Ryan and neither said a word until Sam broke the ice between them.

“I can only imagine how hard it will be for him to tell his kids about the death of their mother,” he said. He fixed his eyes on the road ahead as he kept on driving and would throw side glances towards his partner from time to time.

“He will be fine.”

“How do you know that?” Sam asked.

“Did you see how composed he was when we told him about his ex-wife; I could tell that he was thinking about his kids at that time.”

Sam took a left turn before looking back at Lohan and carefully choosing the words in his mind.

“I really hope that they cope,” he said.

“They will be fine,” Lohan answered. “Such is life.”

Sam could not help but notice the cold tone in his voice and how discompassionate he sounded about what he was saying.

“You don’t sound sorry,” he pointed out and immediately wished that he hadn’t.

“I’m not the person who killed her, man.”

“But you could at least show a little compassion,” he answered.

“Here we go again,” Lohan said sarcastically.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

Logan sat up straighter in his seat and tried to explain himself to Sam without sounding offensive. “You always familiarize with the victim’s family too much.”

“I don’t see anything wrong with that.”

“There is a lot wrong with that,” Lohan said and tried to find the right words. “You cannot put too many emotions in a case, Sam, – your judgment will be clouded and you can become subconsciously biased sometimes.”

“But that does not mean that I should be cold and heartless, either.”

Lohan let out a hearty laugh, a reaction that Sam did not expect as he eyed him suspiciously.

“I should sue your criminology professor, Sam,” he went on to say. “But I do not blame you, there are a lot of things you will learn in the field that you couldn’t and wouldn’t learn in class.”

Sam always hated it when Lohan mocked his inexperience in the field. He had only worked a few months with him and though he was raw and inexperienced he was still a fast learner and very intelligent.

From the look on Sam’s face, Lohan could see he was offended by his comment and tried to sugar-coat it.

“Here’s the thing, Sam,” he began apologetically. “When solving a mystery everyone is a suspect. The ex-husband might look and sound heartbroken but he might be the murderer. A sweet old lady down the block might sound welcoming and kind but could be a pedophile. A tattooed guy with piercing from here to Timbuktu might look like a drug dealer but actually run a school for the disabled.”

He took a moment to pause and look at Sam’s reaction before going on.

“Are you getting the drift here?”

“I think I am,” Sam answered sincerely as he thought back to the numerous cases he had read about in school.

“So when you tie your emotions to the case, you become blind to red flags and such facts that would have otherwise given you a good lead to a case,” Lohan went on to explain.

They were now parked at the crime scene from the previous night. A few analysts from the lab were still working and taking samples. They got out of the car and went through the yellow tape placed around the house to indicate that it was a crime scene.