Some of the things she’d lost couldn’t be replaced. She mumbled that Tug and Roni and David’s parents had some of her wedding pictures, but there were many they wouldn’t have, that no one would have, and that had to hurt.

He watched her dash a hand across her cheeks when she spotted several photographs floating in the tub. That someone had wanted to hurt her to this degree, for no apparent reason, created such rage he could hardly stay inside, looking at it all.

Other than wiping away silent tears, she didn’t react. She seemed stunned as she went from one wrecked item to the next.

Leanne watched the proceedings from her wheelchair in the living room. She couldn’t follow. Too much broken glass, electronic components, picture frames and other decorations littered the floor.

“Who would do something like this?” Claire asked as they left her bedroom and went back to the living room.

Isaac didn’t have an answer. As far as he knew, no one disliked her or had any reason to be angry with her, except maybe Rusty. Rusty wasn’t happy she’d spurned him. But would he go this far? Would he take that kind of risk?

In the background, Isaac could hear Myles’s clipped voice as he spoke with some forensic techs. He wanted them to come over and help out with fingerprinting. He sounded almost as upset as Isaac was.

Leanne had murmured a few words of sympathy when they first walked in. “I’m so sorry, Claire…?. I can’t believe this…?. I’m just glad you weren’t here and that you’re okay.” But she’d been silent ever since. When Isaac glanced over at her, their eyes met and for the briefest second, he saw a strange look on her face.

It was gone as quickly as it had appeared—so fast he wasn’t sure he’d seen it at all. But he got the uncomfortable impression she was taking some sort of pleasure in her sister’s pain, and that made him even angrier.

He’d known from when he and Claire were together years before that Leanne had problems. Claire always made excuses for her, tried to keep the peace and help her be happy, but Leanne wasn’t easy to get along with. In Isaac’s mind there was no question that jealousy played a part in their relationship. He wondered just how big a part.

Was Leanne jealous enough to do this?

He hoped not. He didn’t want that nasty surprise waiting for Claire when they reached the truth—because they would reach the truth. Whoever did this would be exposed and punished if Isaac had to spend every dime he owned to see it happen.

“I mean…this is so…destructive.” Claire’s voice cracked as she spoke but, for the most part, she retained a tight hold on her emotions. “Whoever did this has to hate me.”

Not necessarily. Was something else at play? Something that had been at play for fifteen years but only cropped up whenever a certain person felt threatened? “Where’d you put the files?” he asked.

She’d been so shocked by this seemingly random attack, she hadn’t connected it to her mother’s case files. When she did, her eyes widened. “You don’t think—”

“The timing is certainly suspect,” he said.

“Of course. Oh, God…” She hurried to the kitchen and gestured at the kitchen table, which was lying on its side. “They were here.”

And now they were gone. Every last interview, every last sheet of paper. “Someone doesn’t like the fact that you’re looking into your mother’s disappearance.”

“But I’ve already read everything. What could this person—or persons—hope to gain by taking the files now?”

“Maybe they didn’t know where they were before or they would’ve taken them sooner. They’re not worth as much anymore, but at least they know what you know, whether or not you’re a threat.”

“What are you saying?” Leanne had managed to roll over various objects in order to reach the kitchen. “You think this has something to do with our mother?”

Isaac turned to face her. “Don’t you?”

That strange look entered her eyes again. “Not really. Why does everything have to relate to that? She went missing fifteen years ago, for crying out loud. For all we know, this could’ve been done by one of your many lovers. Or some other woman who’s had her eye on you for a long time and is envious that you’re sleeping with my sister.”

“You mean someone who calls me night and day even though I don’t respond?” he retorted.

Claire whirled around to see what was going on between them, but his words had already had the intended effect. Leanne seemed to think better of whatever attack she’d been planning to launch. Clamping her mouth shut, she rolled out of the house.

A moment later, they could see her through the kitchen window crossing the road.

“What happened?” Claire asked, her normally smooth forehead furrowed.

Since Leanne had seen him bringing Claire home on Wednesday morning, she’d called him probably ten times. Over the years, she’d made other overtures. But Isaac didn’t want to tell Claire, not after she’d asked him earlier whether or not he’d ever been with her sister.

“She’s conflicted when it comes to you. You’re aware of that, aren’t you?”

He could tell Claire didn’t want to think about it. “She’s her own worst enemy, but…she’s not as bad as she seems.”

Could they be sure about that? No. Especially now. “Just know that you can’t trust her,” he said, and left it at that because Myles had come into the house.

“Do you have any idea who might’ve done this?” he asked.

Claire shook her head. “None.”

“Is anything missing?”

“Doesn’t look like it.” She rubbed her eyes as if she was merely tired, but Isaac knew she was fighting back tears. “Just my mother’s case files.”

Myles turned to him. “The ones you mentioned in my office. I’ve been checking into those.”

“And?”

“Leland Faust told me what happened. He and David showed up at the station to visit Rusty late one night when we had only a skeleton crew. While Leland distracted Rusty, David got what he wanted.”

But visitors had to be buzzed in. With the jail on the other side of the building, there were video cameras in the lobby, and the dispatch operator sat right inside the front door behind bulletproof glass. “How?”

“Easy. No one had opened those files since Claire called off the investigation last time. They’d been gathering dust in Jared’s cubicle. David simply stuck them under his winter coat and walked out.”

“How’d he get the originals back in?” Claire wanted to know.

“Same way. Except Leland did it for him.”

That explained why Leland had acted so funny on the phone with Isaac. He knew David had been investigating Alana’s murder and probably wondered if there was any connection between that and his death.

“Claire, if I didn’t tell you some detail about your mother’s case, it was because I had no proof and no answers,” Myles was explaining. “Investigations are works in progress. We can’t reveal every question, every inconsistency, or it’s that much easier for whoever we’re chasing to stay one step ahead of us. You understand that, don’t you?”

“I do. But you have to see the situation from my side, too, Myles. I want to know. It’s been fifteen years. I’m tired of waiting for answers.”

He nodded. “I understand. And there’s some good news in all of this.”

“There is?” she said wryly.

“Maybe whoever did this left something of himself behind, a latent print or other forensic evidence we can use to track him down. Although this is painful, maybe it’ll end up being what cracks the case. You have home-owner’s insurance, right?”

“I do, but…it won’t replace the stuff that really mattered.”

“I know. And I don’t think you’re going to find any prints,” Isaac said. “This guy spent some time here, which tells me he was experienced enough to wear gloves.”

Myles didn’t like that comment, and his expression showed it, but Isaac saw no point in giving Claire false hope. False hope would only serve up more disappointment later.