– 19 –
As Cory started out the front door for a neighborhood walk, she noticed an untidy pile of newspapers in front of Rita’s front door. Rita was an ideal neighbor—quiet, neat and tidy. It was not her custom to leave her newspapers out for two days.
Her Lexus van wasn’t parked in the driveway. Whenever she planned to be away from home overnight, she would ask Cory to check the house and feed her cat, Kitty.
That she had not done any of those things signaled trouble. Rita could be ill, unconscious, or worse. She rang Rita’s bell and heard it chime deep inside the house. She waited a few seconds and then pounded on the door to no avail.
Cory dashed home, grabbed Rita’s spare key, and hurried back to Rita’s house. She unlocked the door, turned off the security alarm, and dropped the new
