Island of Deceit by Candice Poarch Page A

smile. “Yes, I know. Did you and your husband enjoy your vacation?”
    â€œOh, yes. There was so much food. And the Bahamas was so warm and nice. One of my grandsons arranged a guided tour for us. He goes to college with a friend from there. The boy’s father works for a tour company.”
    â€œI bet that was nice.” Harper considered that maybe he should take Barbara on a cruise if things ever calmed down. For a small town, they were having a record crime spree. This year alone, they’d had more homicides than in the last twenty years.
    After John finished talking to the Stones, Harper started in while John interviewed the neighbors.
    â€œHas anything unusual occurred recently?” he asked.
    â€œNo,” Elliot Stone said. “We told your detective that.”
    â€œI bet it was Barbara getting revenge,” Andrew said. “She did it.”
    â€œHer whereabouts are accounted for,” Harper assured them. She was with him.
    â€œShe’s got money. She could’ve paid someone to do this,” Andrew insisted.
    â€œShut up, Andrew. It wasn’t Barbara. Why would she break in here? Can you see her trying to climb in that window?” Elliot plucked Andrew’s head. “Think, boy.”
    â€œWe’ll look into that. In the meantime, do you have any enemies?”
    They glanced at each other.
    â€œNone,” Elliot said. “We must have come back in the nick of time. They didn’t get a chance to steal anything.”
    â€œSo you’re saying they broke in and stole nothing at all?” Harper reiterated.
    â€œIt’s the damnest thing,” Elliot murmured. “I can’t figure it out.” But Harper didn’t believe him. Elliot was very upset even though he tried to conceal it.
    â€œWe’re going to lift prints.”
    â€œThey didn’t get inside, Sheriff. And any thief with a lick of sense wouldn’t leave prints behind. All you’ll find is ours. They got as far as the kitchen window. That’s it.”
    Why don’t they want their prints taken? Harper wondered.
    â€œIt’s procedure. And an insurance matter. I’m sure the owner would want prints taken, at least at the point of entry.”
    â€œSuit yourself,” Elliot said.
    Harper approached John. “I’m going to let you all tie this up.” He left him with instructions to get some of the prints from inside the house, too.
    John glanced up from his pad. “With everything going on, are you still having the teen meeting this afternoon or do you want to reschedule?”
    â€œIt’s the one thing we have to do.”
    John nodded and Harper started to his car. What disturbed him most was the number of second- and third-generation families tangled up in the criminal justice system. He used any excuse to get their teens in his program, not to harass them, but to try to steer them in a different direction. All the teens, boys and girls, were in after-school activities. He had monthly talks with each of them individually to discuss school, grades, home, any problems they needed to discuss. His door was always open, not that they actually brought their problems to him, but hopefully it would make a difference.
    It was one of the reasons he preferred a smaller town versus a large city. Here, he felt he could make a difference. He couldn’t give individual attention in a larger area.
    He didn’t reach everyone, but his record was good, and he felt a sense of accomplishment. He was very proud when he took one student shopping in August for his college wardrobe and saw him off to Hampton.
    As he backed out of the driveway, he focused on the Stones. What was it about these people that made him uneasy? They were here when Sarah went missing. But there was no connection between them. It was a stretch to think the two could be connected, especially since Sarah was ten years younger than Andrew and the Stones’ name was never