CHAPTER 11
Back at the office Matt told CJ about Mr. Hawthorne and she began telling him about the further information that she had managed to find on Osterhouse.
"Matt, this guy is looking more likely in my opinion." They were sitting out on the patio sipping coffee. "He spent a little bit of time in a mental health facility after his troubles at the funeral home. It was court-ordered. Naturally, because of privacy laws, I don't have access to his records there. But I can tell you that he was there for 90 days."
"Okay. Your hunches are usually good. I think we need to spend a little more time on Osterhouse. And something else just occurred to me: his mortuary training may have given him the skills needed to remove someone's eyes without making much of a mess. Surveillance sounds like the best idea." He took a sip of coffee and considered the case. "There haven't been any more murders since Sunday night. Today is Tuesday. Maybe our killer only strikes on the weekends?"
"It's starting to look that way. But I'm still wondering about the roses: why didn't the CSI's spot them at the crime scenes?" She put down her coffee cup and looked up at Matt.
"I don't know. That's bugging me, too." Matt got up and walked to the wall at the edge of the patio and looked around at the skyline. "Looks like Uncle Roy and I will be taking turns keeping an eye on Osterhouse. Guess I better call Hoyt and let him know what's going on." He turned and started inside but stopped to give CJ a kiss on the cheek before going in to make the phone call.
CJ picked up the coffee cups and followed him inside. As she went to the bar to wash the cups, Matt sat down on the couch and dialed Hoyt's office. He filled him in on his observations of Hawthorne and then told him about CJ's work on Osterhouse and their plans for surveillance.
"You know the police department can't be involved in the surveillance, Houston. We have to have probable cause and a warrant. So you're going to be on your own." He tapped the roll of antacids on his desk. "All I can say is be careful."
"We always are, Hoyt." He hung up the phone, then picked it back up and dialed Uncle Roy's cell phone. They needed to do some planning.