Free Safe at Home (Warm Springs Trilogy Book 1) by Christina Kirby

in hers. “This is just for fun.”
    As the elevator rose, Lieutenant Stephens’ stomach dropped. He hadn’t been warned prior to his arrival of what the body looked like, only that one had been found. He tried not to picture it as he rode in silence next to Detective Martin.
    The Detective had been around a long time and Stephens didn’t want him thinking he was an idiot who couldn’t handle his job.
    “Kid, I’ve seen my fair share of homicides and burglaries, but this is the kind of case that’ll stay with a man.” He adjusted his belt which was digging into his protruding stomach.
    Lieutenant Stephens swallowed, impressed he’d known exactly what he’d been thinking. Detective Martin was already living up to his reputation as the best. Clearing his throat, Stephens started briefing Martin on the situation.
    “So, a neighbor called it in to the front desk, but didn’t see anything?” Detective Stephens rubbed a hand over his thick chin.
    “Yes, sir. The call came from a Mrs. Jones. She lives down the hall from the deceased. She said she smelled something foul when she was opening her door. That was about two hours ago.” The officer paused and scanned his notes. “She phoned the front desk to complain when the smell started wafting into her apartment through the vents.”
    The two men stepped off the elevator.
    “That’s when the front desk sent someone up and that individual traced the smell to this apartment?”
    They paused outside the door.
    “Yes, sir, and when you see the body, you’ll know what caused the smell.”
    The scene was crowded. As the photographer moved, Lieutenant Stephens saw the dead body that had been mutilated. He fought the urge to retch, and instead, shook his head and grimaced. It didn’t get any easier the second time.
    The woman that was tied to the chair in the middle of the living room was barely recognizable. Both of her ears had been removed and her hair had been burned off. She sat slumped in the chair with her shirt ripped open, and where her nipples had once been there were only bloody circles. So, not only had she had been humiliated, she’d also been tortured. This job was personal.
    “Stephens,” Martin said from beside him, “let’s try to keep this quiet for as long as possible. I want to see what we can dig up before the media swoops in like the vultures they are.”
    Stephens nodded and the two remained where they were, transfixed by the horrific scene.
    “This took planning. We need to figure out if this was someone’s end game or the beginning of a spree.”

 
    Chapter 11
    Dinner. She still wasn’t sure what she’d been thinking. Thanks to her less than brilliant move, she spent half the morning on the computer trying to figure out what to cook, with no luck. Everything was too complicated. She knew she could boil water to make corn on the cob. Even she could manage that, and there was always salad. But, what on earth did Spencer like to eat?
    She paced by the phone while she debated on whether or not to call Betsy, but she didn’t want her to get the wrong idea about what was happening. This was not a date. It was two friends having dinner and one of the aforementioned friends was going to be cooking. She scowled when she realized she was right back where she started.
    Drastic times called for drastic measures. She grabbed her keys and locked the door as she left. She would just go to the store and see what popped out at her. It wasn’t a strong plan, but it was the only one she had.
    Returning home hours later, and with a ridiculous amount of food, Sam heaved the last bag into the house. Her mom always said it’s a bad idea to go to the store hungry. But, going when you have no idea what you want to make is equally bad. She surveyed her countertops. There wasn’t an inch of empty space.
    Later that afternoon, with eyes crossed, she settled on a recipe she found on her second attempt on the internet. Teriyaki chicken was the winner. Everyone