Free Enemy Way by Aimée & David Thurlo

you’ll understand. But, in all fairness, it’s possible that my ties to that family have affected my judgementof her.”
    Justine nodded once. She had just started to say something more when she saw Carolyn gesturing from the back door. “I think you’re wanted inside.”
    Ella excused herself and went to meet the ME. “Are you through here?”
    “Yeah. I figured you’d want a preliminary, though.” Seeing Ella nod, she continued. “My guess is that she was struck by the metal box, and then the bronze horse. The edgeof the metal box caught her in the forehead, and might have stunned her. Maybe it was even thrown. But the horse was what did all the damage. Her skull is caved in, and there’s blood and hair from the victim on its heavy base. The indentions in her skull seem to fit the base, too. But I can’t verify all this until I’m back at the morgue.”
    “Did she die as a result of the beating?”
    “I can’t sayfor sure yet, but it sure looks that way. And there are no burns or burn marks on her hands, body, or clothes. I checked specifically, and can’t find the source of those burned fibers. The fabric that ignited must have come from her assailant’s clothing.” She glanced back at the house. “Wilson’s in bad shape.”
    “I know, and when the shock wears off, it’ll be even worse for him. That’s when he’llreally have to deal with what’s happened. I’ll see him as often as I can, but unfortunately most of the time it will be on business. My mother must have priority on my time off too. I’m sure his family will see to it that he’s okay,” Ella added.
    “If he allows anyone to help him,” Carolyn added thoughtfully. “He’s never struck me as the type who’d accept help easily.”
    “He’s not,” Ella admitted.“He’s as independent as I am.”
    When Justine came up, Carolyn excused herself. “I’m going to transport the body now. I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.”
    “Thanks.” Ella’s gaze shifted to Justine. “How’s it going?”
    “I spoke to one of the uniforms who came by to help us secure the crime scene. He’s been working on the outbreak of burglaries around here, and he asked me what I thought of thegraffiti sprayed on the interior walls.”
    “What graffiti?” Ella asked, wondering how she could have missed that.
    “Exactly. There isn’t any. This incident breaks the recent burglary MO on two counts, the murder and the absence of spray-paint-defaced walls.”
    “The style of shoes, if I’m right, seem to indicate kids though. My guess so far is that Lisa came home unexpectedly, caught them in theact, and they panicked or she put up a fight, and they killed her. They wouldn’t sign their names in paint after killing someone, I don’t think. Murder gets a lot more attention than burglary.”
    “Then our first lead will probably come with finding out who’s been robbing the houses. I’ll try to learn more about the gangs in this area. I have a cousin on the Goodluck side, Thomas Bileen, whom I’mafraid is turning toward the gang influence. He’s hanging around with some bad company and is giving his parents a hard time, but at least he still says ‘hi’ to me. Maybe I can get something from him if I don’t approach him as a cop. Not being in uniform anymore will help, too.”
    “The Many Devils ‘own’ this neighborhood. When we first drove up, I saw a few of the older ones who’ve probably droppedout of school, and they were wearing the right style shoes, maybe even the same brand. By now, they’re long gone. Too many cops are here, and the last thing the gang kids would do is stick around for questioning. Check with your cousin, and also go through the Juvenile Crime reports and see if any members of the gang have been IDed. Get a few addresses for us. I’ll bet the kids know somethingthat will lead us to the killers—if we can squeeze it out of them.”
    Ute came out and joined them. “I checked everywhere, but there’s no