Chapter Ten

Really?” Kate wasn’t certain she’d heard right.

“I didn’t notice anything missing when I came in this morning.” He wrote something on a clipboard. “Whoever did it was neat at least.”

“Did you lose much? Were they after narcotics?”

He shook his head and frowned. “That’s the strange part. The culprit got away with very little. Far as I can see, it was just a few prescription items: sleeping pills, blood-pressure meds, pain pills, insulin and syringes, and some antibiotics. There was one pretty expensive drug, but nothing monumental.”

Kate frowned. “That is odd.”

He brushed his knuckle across his bushy mustache. “Maybe not so much when you consider the number of folks losing their jobs and not having insurance these days.”

“I suppose. Still, it seems strange. If someone went to the trouble of breaking in, wouldn’t they help themselves to more things?”

Fred shrugged. “You’d think so, but I’m glad they didn’t.”

Kate glanced toward the rear door and window. “How did they get in?”

“I have no idea. I looked around back there but couldn’t see where anyone broke in. Window’s always locked, and so is the door—just like it was last night when I left.”

Kate considered this. “No signs of forced entry might mean someone was already inside.”

“You can have a look around if you want. You’re pretty good at solving mysteries. Maybe you can solve this one.”

“I can certainly try,” Kate said with a smile. “But first things first, let me give you this prescription. Take your time filling it out, of course.”

Fred waved his hand. “It’s no problem. I’ll fill this prescription for you now. Then I suppose I should call the sheriff.”

Kate smiled. “I think that would be a good idea.”

Fred excused himself and headed toward his maze of shelves in the unauthorized area behind the counter.

Kate went to the back door and window and had to agree with Fred. There were no pry marks or broken glass.

“Could the thief have somehow gotten a key?” Kate raised her voice so Fred could hear.

“Don’t see how that’s possible,” he responded from somewhere in the maze. “I keep one set with me all the time and the other in a locked safe at my house.”

“How hard would it be for someone to borrow the keys and have copies made?”

He rubbed his forehead. “S’pose that’s possible, but I don’t see when or how.”

“What about your assistant? Could she have borrowed the keys to make another set?”

Fred shook his head. “No. Well, she could have, but she wouldn’t.”

“There may be another answer.” Kate knelt down to examine a piece of wood that was lying near the wall just beneath the window. “It looks like a piece of old shingle or something. There’s still a little moss on it.”

Fred came back to see what she’d found. “I’ll be. Didn’t see that earlier.”

Kate looked up at the window and then down at the floor. “I could be wrong, but I’d say it doesn’t belong here.”

“You’d be right about that. The place gets a good cleaning at least once a week.”

Kate’s brain raced to make a conclusion. “Do you specifically check the window every night?”

“Well, no. I don’t usually open it.” Fred cleared his throat.

Kate nodded. “I’m thinking maybe someone was in here during the day yesterday, unlocked the window, and slipped the piece of wood between the sill and the casing. It would have kept the window from closing all the way, and then—”

“They came back at night and opened it. And probably just walked right out through the back door.” A wide smile split the pharmacist’s face. “Good thinking, Kate Hanlon. Now all we have to do is figure out who did it.”

Kate agreed with his conclusion. “And that would explain why the window was locked this morning. The thief came in through the window, shut and locked it, and locked the door behind him when he left. I suggest you call the sheriff and let him take it from here. We need to leave everything like it was so they can process the scene.”

He sighed. “Never had a problem with theft before. S’pose I should think about getting an alarm system put in like they do in the big cities. At least put bars on the windows.”

“Probably not a bad idea.” Fred seemed saddened by the prospect. She didn’t blame him.

Kate stayed until Skip arrived. The sheriff, he told her, was still involved at the accident scene.

Remembering their hasty departure earlier, Kate asked, “Was anyone hurt?”

“Nothing serious. Just a guy talking on his cell phone who rear-ended an elderly woman he thought was going too slow. Truth be told, I think he was going too fast.”

After Fred filled Skip in on the missing drugs, Kate led him back to show him the evidence she’d discovered.

“Good find, Mrs. Hanlon.” He took several photos of the door and window and the piece of wood lying on the floor; then, wearing latex gloves, Skip placed the evidence in a bag.

Several minutes later, when Skip left with his evidence, Kate went back to the counter, where Fred was ringing up Kate’s purchases. “Did you need anything else?” he asked.

“Just answers.” Kate set her handbag on the counter and pulled out her wallet.

The bell on the front door jangled, and a teenage boy who looked about fourteen came in. He wore army fatigues and had his dark hair shaved in a military buzz cut. His gaze met hers for a moment. She remembered seeing him at a sports function at the high school but couldn’t recall his name.

“Morning, Corey,” Fred greeted. “What can I do for you?”

“I need some of that stuff my dad uses for pain.”

Fred came out from behind the counter and took Corey to the pain-reliever section. “How’s his back doing?”

Corey frowned. “Not too bad. Just pains him at night.”

“Sorry to hear that. Like I told him the other day, he needs to see a doctor.”

“Yeah, well, he can be pretty stubborn.” The boy glanced at Kate and looked away.

“Will that do it for you, Corey?” Fred asked before coming back behind the counter.

“Nah...I need to find a card for my mom’s birthday.”

“In that case, I’ll finish up with Mrs. Hanlon.” Fred placed Kate’s items in a bag to hand her.

He motioned toward the boy. “Corey, have you met Mrs. Hanlon? Her husband is the minister at Faith Briar. Kate, this is Corey Brainerd—Joe and Cat Brainerd’s son.”

“I haven’t. Hi, Corey. Nice to meet you.”

“Um...hi.” Corey gave Kate a nod, then looked away as if he’d sized her up and wanted nothing more to do with her.

She shrugged. His response reminded her of rebuffs she’d gotten in the past when a person discovered she was a pastor’s wife. Or maybe he just wasn’t into meeting older ladies.

When Fred had run her credit card, Kate shifted her attention back to the break-in. “Fred, do you have any idea who might have taken those medications?”

“Not really. I never told the deputy this, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it wasn’t one of those homeless people who have set up camp out at Ash Grove Campground. One lady and her kids came in late yesterday afternoon. She needed some allergy medicine and didn’t have enough money to pay for it. I went ahead and gave it to her. Hate to think she’d come back and steal from me after that.”

Kate nodded. “Skip said something about a homeless camp on Monday when we were at the diner. How many people are we talking about?”

He shrugged. “Couldn’t say, since I haven’t been out there. I heard that with so many layoffs and foreclosures, folks are losing their homes right and left. A lot of towns have what they’re calling tent cities.”

“I’ve heard that too, but I didn’t realize we had anything like that so close to Copper Mill.”

“I hear you, Kate. Much as we’d like it to be otherwise, we aren’t immune to the world’s problems.”

Kate agreed. “If there really is a homeless problem, we as a community need to step up and help.”

Fred smiled. “Sounds like something you’d say.”

Kate settled her purse straps over her shoulder. “I’ll make it a point to find out what’s going on. Maybe we can do something to help these people. A person shouldn’t feel they need to steal medication.”

“You do that, Kate, and let me know if I can do anything to help.”

“Also, you should tell Skip about your suspicions. Or I can. If you’d like, I can stop by the deputy’s office now.”

“Probably a good idea. I may not be able to get away for a while.” He waved to her and turned back to the papers he’d been looking at earlier.

After saying good-bye, Kate drove back to Town Hall to talk with Skip. Unfortunately, neither Skip nor Sheriff Roberts was in the office. There was, however, another deputy there standing in front of an open file cabinet.

“Hi,” Kate greeted. “Have you seen Skip?”

“Sorry, I think he went back out to the accident scene. I just came in to pick up a file. Can I help you?”

“No, that’s okay.” Kate took a pad and pen out of her bag. “I need to leave Skip a note.”

“Be my guest.” He smiled and returned to the file.

She stepped in, intent on leaving a note on Skip’s desk, asking him to call her or Fred. When she’d finished, Kate returned the pen to her handbag and spotted a familiar face on a wanted poster sitting in a basket on the deputy’s desk.

“Oh no. This can’t be.”