“How long is long?”

“A couple of days at least.”

Someone outside called Eve’s name. She turned and went back through the kitchen and out into the yard, where Deputy Ross was waiting for her on the grass.

“A guy just showed up in a truck, says he lives here,” Ross said. “His name is Jared Rawlins.”

Duncan joined Eve. “What’s up?”

“The boyfriend is here,” Eve said, not sure how to handle this new development. He was an obvious suspect, given what they’d learned about him from Alexis, but if he was responsible for whatever violence had happened here, it was pretty ballsy of him to show up at the scene as it was being processed. She decided to let Jared’s demeanor and Duncan’s body language guide her tactics.

Eve and Duncan peeled off their gloves and followed Deputy Ross back out to the cul-de-sac, where Deputy Clayton was standing in front of a dirt-caked Ford F-150 pickup, preventing it from going to the house. The man in the driver’s seat had a deep tan, a day’s growth of beard, and a military buzz cut to compensate for a receding hairline.

Duncan approached the driver’s side window, which was rolled down. “Mr. Rawlins? I’m Detective Pavone and this is Detective Ronin.”

“What the hell is going on? What are you doing in my house?”

“Step out of the truck and we can discuss it,” Duncan said.

Jared sighed, shut off his truck, and got out. Eve looked him over. He was a muscled man and spent a lot of time outdoors. His tank top and cargo shorts were faded and his chest and arms were as tan as his face and neck. There was dirt caked on his work boots.

“Now are you going to tell me what the fuck is going on here?” Jared said. “Why can’t I go in my own house?”

His anger didn’t make sense to Eve. “Have you got a reason to be ticked off, Mr. Rawlins?”

“Wouldn’t you be if you came home to a bunch of cops who wouldn’t let you in your house?”

“No,” Eve said. “The first thing I’d want to know is if Tanya and the kids are okay.”

“Why? She’s at work and the kids are at school. The problem here is that something is happening in my house and I’m not being told what it is or let inside.”

His anger was making a little more sense to Eve. The house had become a battleground for him, first with Tanya and now with the police. He wanted to assert his authority over what was his. The question Eve had now was how far he’d gone to assert it.

“Tanya is not at work and the kids aren’t in school,” Duncan said. “They’re all missing.”

“That’s what this big production is about?” Jared laughed. “Jesus. It’s nothing.”

“What makes you so sure?” Eve said.

“Because she’s a flake. She could’ve woken up this morning, looked at the big blue sky, and decided, ‘Hey, it’s a beach day. I’ll just blow off everything and hit the sand with the kids.’ That’s her. Whoever called you freaked out over nothing.”