Part 27 (1/2)
”You know what I mean,” she added quickly. ”Northrop's obviously a jacka.s.s.”
Up ahead, they could see the creek widening and spilling into a small lake, surrounded by reeds, ma.s.sive rocks, and a few trees.
”Hey, look at that.” Dirk pointed to a rusty black Jeep parked at the end of the road, near the water's edge. ”And check out the plate number.”
”That's the one,” Savannah said, still not quite believing it.
Certainly, over the years, she had been fooled by suspects. Many times, in fact. But this one shocked her all the way to her core. She would have bet any amount of money that Dr. June Glenn was exactly what she had appeared-a woman dedicating her life to worthy causes.
The idea that Dr. Glenn was involved in anything so sordid and violent as these attacks was unthinkable. But there was the evidence, parked right in front of her.
She parked the Jaguar beside the Jeep and turned off the engine. Glancing around, she didn't see Glenn or anyone else, for that matter.
Except for a few seagulls circling overhead, a half-dozen snowy egrets roosting in trees, and a pair of ducks paddling around in the water, the lake was remarkably, deliciously peaceful.
”Well, let's get out and find her,” he said. ”She can't be far away.”
Once they were out of the car, it didn't take them long to spot the doctor. She was standing in the shallows at the water's edge. She had on a pair of rubber boots, which reached up to her knees, and she was bending over, pulling something from among the reeds.
”Is that her?” Dirk asked.
Savannah nodded. ”She looks a little different in dungarees, but yes.”
She headed in Glenn's direction, with Dirk following close behind.
”Dr. Glenn!” Savannah called.
When the woman turned, Savannah motioned to her. ”It's me, Savannah Reid. Can we talk again?”
June Glenn nodded and began to wade through the reeds toward them and the bank. She was holding several soda cans and a plastic grocery bag in her hands.
Savannah was amused and a little surprised to see that she was wearing a bright red sweats.h.i.+rt with an enormous Mickey Mouse face on the front. The word ”Disneyland” was emblazoned over his head.
Dr. Glenn seemed to notice her staring at the s.h.i.+rt, because she chuckled as she stepped up onto the bank and said, ”I can't help myself. I'm a big fan. Worked there as a kid and never got over it.”
”Hey, don't apologize,” Savannah replied. ”My granny's in her eighties and still madly in love with Sir Mickey. She'll never get over it either. I'm sure she'd work there now, if they'd hire her.”
Glenn walked over to a bag, which was stashed on the bank, and dropped the garbage into it. ”Those darned kids,” she said. ”Teenagers mostly. They come up here to drink, smoke pot, and do G.o.d only knows what else. Then they leave their litter behind. We had to rescue a heron last week that was tangled up in some of their trash.”
She walked up to them and took off her rubber gloves. ”I'm June Glenn,” she said, offering Dirk her hand.
”This is my husband, Detective Sergeant Dirk Coulter,” Savannah said. ”He's investigating that case with me, the one we spoke about the other day.”
Savannah watched Dirk as he shook the doctor's hand. His quick eyes swept over her, evaluating her with the same scrutiny he would any street person or recently released ex-con.
Dirk was no great respecter of t.i.tles, wealth, degree, or position. All that interested him was whether or not a person was capable of committing the crime he was investigating on that given day.
”Nice to meet cha, Doc,” he said in an unconvincing tone.
”Please, just call me June,” she said. She turned back to Savannah. ”Obviously, you went to a lot of trouble to track me down today. May I ask why?”
”Something's come up in the course of this investigation, and I need to talk to you.”
”Certainly. About what?”
”Your vehicle.”
”My Mercedes? Why? What about it?”
”No, not your personal car. That Jeep parked over there. Do you drive it often?”
”Once in a while. When I come to places like this, where I wouldn't drive, well . . .”
”Your fancy car,” Dirk supplied.
”Yes.”
”Were you driving it this past Sunday morning?” he asked.
”No, but it's funny you should ask.”
”Why is that?” Savannah wanted to know.
The doctor reached down and picked up her bag of trash and started to walk toward the Jeep.
”Here, let me get that for you,” Dirk said, taking the bag from her hand.
They followed her as she continued toward the old vehicle.
”Because,” she said, ”even though everyone in the league drives it from time to time, no one in our group used it that morning. Yet, strangely enough, it was missing.”
”Missing?” Savannah didn't know whether to be relieved or discouraged. Maybe a bit of both. Relieved that, if she was telling the truth, this could clear Dr. Glenn of suspicion. Discouraged that they would be sitting back on square one, with no suspect.
”Yes. It's usually parked overnight behind our office, where you visited me before,” Dr. Glenn said. ”But when one of our volunteers went to get it Sunday morning to take a drive on the beach, it was gone. Weirdly enough, the next night, it was back again, sitting in its usual spot.”
”Who has keys to it?” Dirk asked.
”Keys? We usually leave the key above the driver's sun visor and the door unlocked.” When he looked surprised, she added, ”This is Santa Tesla Island, Sergeant Coulter. Thankfully, we live a bit differently here than you do on the mainland.”
”Obviously.”
”Even stranger still,” Dr. Glenn continued, ”that wasn't the only time it happened. It was taken a couple of weeks ago. The same way. Also for an overnighter.”
”Do you remember the exact date that occurred?” Savannah asked.
”No. I'm sorry. I can't. We just figured one of our volunteers took it without permission and was afraid to own up to it later. But then when it happened again, we were a bit more curious.”
”If you were all that curious,” Dirk said, ”did you consider reporting it to the police? That's what most people do the first time their cars go missing, let alone if it happens twice.”
A solemn, unpleasant look crossed Dr. Glenn's pretty face. Her eyes didn't meet theirs when she said, ”No. I didn't consider calling the so-called authorities. I'm not a fan of the current police department. We haven't found them to be fair in their dealings with the league, so we have as little to do with them as possible.”