The same was true of the bed and the area around the window. Other than the fact the window was open, there seemed to be nothing strange or out of place. From what she could tell, nothing had been stolen, though this would of course have to be confirmed by the husband. But based on the initial state of the bedroom, Rachel felt certain the sole purpose of the killer coming here was to killnot to rob the family.

She thought of a man standing in this bedroom, knife in hand, waiting. If the cops had not seen him arrive, chances were good hed been here a while. And if hed escaped through the window, chances were also good that he already knew the layout of the back yard and the screened-in porch. The entire scenario screamed of a killer than knew the house, meaning the killer either knew the family very well or had scouted out the location a few times before acting. She looked over to the large closet and wondered if the killer had perched in there, waiting for the right moment. But if that were the case, he would have been in there for a very long time based on the series of events the husband had laid out.

When did the police come into the house? Rachel asked, again looking to Christinas body.

Well, the husband knew they were out there, Stanhope said. The way all three of them tell itthe cops and Ryan Ragland himselfRagland went running out of the house, screaming for them to come inside. They say he made it about halfway down the sidewalk before he apparently changed his mind and ran back inside. They say when they got into the house, he was running back up the stairs to be with her.

Both of them came in?

Yes.

I went down that same path of thought, Brown said. Its regrettable, as the ideal situation would have been for one of them to stay out there in the event the killer was trying to escape. But like I said…theyve had a stern talking-to.

Rachel nodded, looking back to the window. What if the killer remained inside until he knew the cops were coming into the house? What if he escaped through the window mere seconds before the cops came in?

I just want to know how long hed been waiting, Stanhope said. He doesnt show on the doorbell camera and according to Mr. Ragland, that window was never opened throughout the day.

I assume hell say it was closed when he discovered his wifes body?

One of the men parked outside the house asked him that, Brown said. Mr. Ragland says he feels certain it was closed, but he was so distraught over what hed found that he cant be sure.