It didn’t take long to get to Yvonne’s house. The windows were dark. No movement, no lights.
Eric’s light hair shone too brightly in the dim streetlight, and Casey gestured for him to put his hat on. He made a face. “It’s itchy.”
Casey didn’t respond, and he slid the cap over his hair.
The front of the house was hidden from where Casey stood. “Does Yvonne’s husband park his car in the garage or on the street?”
“I don’t know. I think they only have a single-car garage, so his might be in the driveway.”
Casey eased closer to the back yard of Yvonne’s house. She picked up a stick and tossed it into the fenced-off area, ducking behind a tree. When there was no response, she found another stick, a bigger one this time, and threw it closer to the house. No dogs. No movement. No lights.
“Well?” Eric said. “What now?”
Casey didn’t answer. The garage was attached to the near side of the house. Sticking to the shadows, she walked along the side of the garage, stopping before she got to the front. She listened, hearing nothing but Eric following too closely, gravel crunching under his feet. Lowering herself into a squat, she peered around the front of the garage, her eyes at knee level.
The driveway was empty, as was the curb in front of the house.
Gesturing to Eric to stay, she eased around the corner, glad to see a small window in the garage door. She peeked in. It was too dark to see anything except what looked like a sedan-sized vehicle.
She went back to the corner. “You know what kind of car Yvonne’s husband drives?”
“Not a car. A truck. Don’t know the kind.”
She nodded. “He’s not home.”
“So let’s go.”
She held up a hand. “This is all you, Eric. She knows I’m here, we might as well call the cops ourselves.”
He nodded, his face tightening. “And what am I asking her, exactly?”
“What she can tell you about the person who died because of the dryer.”
He took a deep breath and let it out.
“You don’t have to do this,” Casey said.
“Yes. I do.” He wasn’t looking at her now, but at the door of the house. Without another word he walked across the driveway and rang the doorbell, peering in the window beside the door. He jumped back, the sound of barking filling the night.
A face appeared briefly at the door, and the door opened. “You stay!” Yvonne said, pointing back toward the house. She scooted out the door, closing it behind her. The dogs barked and whined, their claws making high-pitched squeals on the door.
Casey stayed in the shadow of the garage, trying to see without being seen. Even in the dim light she could read the anxiety on Yvonne’s face. Eric was gesturing, talking. Casey couldn’t make out his words, except for Ellen’s name, repeated several times.
“No!” Yvonne finally said, her voice shrill. “No. No, no, no.”
Eric stumbled backward, Yvonne’s hands out as if she’d pushed him.
“I can’t tell you. I won’t.” She looked around, as if expecting someone to be in the driveway.
Casey pulled her head back, behind the garage.
“Leave it alone, Eric,” Yvonne said. “Please. Ellen wouldn’t… You have to. It’s not… Just go away!“ She broke off with a sob, and the door opened, then slammed.
Eric pounded on the door. “Yvonne! Yvonne, please! I need your help!”
There was no response, except for the high-pitched barking of the dogs. Eric took one more look at the two heads appearing at the door’s window, and lurched back behind the garage. “It’s no use, Casey. I’m sorry.”
Casey led him back through the neighbor’s yard, and into the alley. “Nothing to be sorry about.”
“But I didn’t find out anything.”
“Sure you did.”
He stumbled over a rock and righted himself, Casey reaching for his arm.
“What was it?” he asked. “What did I find out?”
Casey glanced back toward Yvonne’s dark house, where she was sure Yvonne huddled in the darkness with her dogs, shivering.
“You found out that she’s scared. And that changes everything.”
Chapter Forty-Two
They walked without speaking down back roads and quiet yards, avoiding the homes Eric recognized as ones with dogs. In twenty minutes they were making their way toward the diner, The Burger Palace, and The Sleep Inn. Once they arrived, it was trickier to find places to walk where they wouldn’t be spotted. It took them twice as long as it should have to maneuver around HomeMaker’s parking lot, and Casey was beginning to worry they’d be too late.
But when the back entrance of the factory came into view they could see many employees still hanging around outside.
“Will they recognize you?” Casey asked.
Eric smiled grimly. “They might. Karl made a big deal of getting me in some corporate pictures. I guess I had the look he wanted.”
Casey considered that. “I guess we’ll have to take the chance, if we’re going to do this. Looks like we can keep our caps on, at least.” A lot of the workers she could see were wearing hats. “Where are the video cameras?”
He shrugged. “Never bothered to check.”
Casey scanned the face of the building, and saw two cameras. One was high on the wall, to get an overall view of the entryway, and one seemed to be trained on the door. She couldn’t spot any in the parking lot. There would be at least one inside the building, she was sure.
“We’ll have to leave our dark sweaters here,” she said. “I’m glad we can wear these caps, though. Be sure to keep your face down.”
They got as close as they could within the shadows before strolling together into the break area, acting like they were in conversation. No one bothered them, or seemed to even notice they were there. They neared the door, and Casey felt like she could breathe again.
“Hey.”
Casey froze and turned toward the voice, pivoting on her feet to place her weight on the right one, ready to fend off an attack.
The man held an unlit cigarette between his thumb and forefinger. “Either of you got a light?”
Casey shook her head. “Sorry.”
The man grunted his displeasure, but turned to another co-worker to repeat his question. Casey and Eric continued on into the building. Casey didn’t look up to search for videos, but she was certain they were there. She hoped Security wasn’t looking at the monitors too closely.
Eric didn’t hesitate, but headed casually toward the door at the end of the hallway marked Administrative Offices. He put the key in the door and turned it, and before anyone could say anything, they were in the silent, dark hallway, with the door closing behind them. Eric punched the code into the alarm and the access light turned green.
“They’ll be able to tell that I was here, when they look,” he said.
Casey shrugged. It couldn’t be helped. “Let’s go.”
They walked the length of the hallway, and Casey stopped Eric before he opened the door. “Video cameras? Any idea where they’re placed?”
“I know there’s one in the lobby, watching Gloria and the front door. I don’t think there’s one in the administrative offices. My…Karl’s big on privacy in the workplace. His own workplace, anyway.” He opened the door.
The hallway led directly into the lobby of the building, where Gloria the receptionist sat during the day. They kept their heads averted from the desk, hoping the inmates weren’t being seen on the monitors. Eric went directly to the other door, and within moments they were in the main office.
Yvonne’s computer was off, as were all of the lights, except for a security lamp on the wall. Casey took a moment to look around, and saw that Eric had been correct. No video cameras. At least none that she could see. She went to Yvonne’s desk, sat down in the chair, and booted up the PC.
Eric flipped on one of the overhead lights. “No one can see us in here.”
Casey looked around the room. He was right. No windows. How depressing.