Read Scrapbook of the Dead for Free Online

drown. But other than that, I have no way of knowing at this point.”
    Annie nodded.
    Ruth walked off, carrying her medical bag with her.
    Annie zipped up her coat and pulled her scarf in closer around her neck. It was getting cold. The sky was so blue it was almost painful to look at and the fall leaves looked like colorful, fluffy blankets spread over the mountains. She turned to look at a police officer as he was filling out some papers. “Who found her?”
    He pointed. “The guy over there. Sitting on the bench. He was out for an early morning walk and there she was, lying on the ground near the water. Great way to start the day, huh?”
    â€œCan I talk to him?” Annie asked.
    â€œHe’s in shock. I’d wait awhile,” the officer said. “He’s not making much sense. We’ve been trying to take him to the hospital, but he won’t go.”
    â€œNo insurance?”
    â€œLook at him. What do you think?”
    Annie took a good look at him. Maybe he was Mexican, as well. He was dark, and he had hooded, almost black eyes. But maybe not. Only one way to find out.
    A female officer was sitting next to him, writing in her tablet.
    â€œExcuse me,” Annie said as she wandered up to the bench. “I’m Annie Chamovitz, a reporter for the Washington Herald .”
    The man looked up at her, but his eyes were vacant.
    Annie looked at the cop, who shook her head. “I’d leave him alone for now,” she said.
    â€œCan I have his name?” Annie asked.
    â€œJuan Mendez,” the officer said. “Let me write down his contact information for you.”
    â€œThanks.”
    A medic brought the man a blanket and wrapped it around his shoulders.
    â€œHe seemed fine at first,” the officer said. “But then . . .”
    â€œWe all react differently,” Annie said, thinking of Randy, so pale and shivering head to toe, just yesterday. “It’s perfectly normal to be spooked.”
    The officer nodded and handed Annie a slip of paper with the man’s phone number and address on it.
    â€œThanks so much.”
    The scene was grim. Amidst the beauty and splendor of the mountains surrounding them, sat a man who had happened upon a body. A man who would never really be the same. Oh, he’d be okay, eventually. But something like this might haunt him for years. He could tuck it away and function, but it would visit him at odd times.
    Annie knew that.
    For her, haunting came in dreams. Not when she was working a case, usually, but after. Sometimes she’d dream about murder victims from years ago. She’d never forget any of them. The odd thing was, she thought she’d left it all behind when she moved from DC. Cumberland Creek had turned out to not be the safe haven she and her husband Mike had predicted.
    She walked up the path next to the river, which snaked alongside the town. She decided to stop by Paige and Earl’s to check up on Randy. If she knew him at all, that’s where he’d be.
    She turned the corner onto Paige’s street and saw Detective Bryant’s car. Her immediate reaction was, This can wait. I ’ d rather not see him . But her hackles were raised. If he was there, that meant he was questioning Randy. She’d be damned if she would allow his presence to stop her from going inside and doing her job—even though a big part of her wanted to turn around. She walked up to the front door and rang the doorbell.
    â€œWhy, hello Annie,” DeeAnn said when she opened the door. “C’mon in. I brought Randy some coffee cake this morning,” she explained as they walked into the kitchen. “And then look who showed up.”
    â€œAnnie,” Detective Bryant said.
    â€œAdam,” she responded. “What’s going on here?”
    â€œJust asking Randy a few questions,” he said a little too nonchalantly.
    â€œAnd what’s that?” Annie pointed to a sheet