Rex shook his head. “I didn’t see any cameras in that room or the one across from it. Did you keep them in a special storage place?”
Kimo shook her head. “No. I mostly leave them on a shelf in the closet. Did you look there?”
Rex nodded. “I looked there, under the bed and in the chest of drawers.”
“They took my cameras,” she said, her eyes welling. “They’re the tools of my trade. Without them, I can’t do my job.”
“Did you have them insured?”
She nodded. “But it takes time to replace them. Many were special orders.” Kimo sighed. “Again. Not as important as finding Alana.”
“Things can be replaced.”
“People can’t,” she concluded. “There’s no broken glass in here. You can set me on my feet.”
He glanced around before lowering her feet to the ground. His arm remained around her back.
She’d never admit to him that she found his touch reassuring. Though she appreciated his presence at the moment, he wouldn’t be around forever. She might as well regain her balance and stand on her own two feet.
Kimo stepped away from him, clutching the back of her hospital gown to keep from mooning the man.
His hand fell to his side.
The loss of his gentle support almost made her lose her balance again.
She squared her shoulders and bent to retrieve a pair of running shoes from her closet. She had to dig for them as all her hanging clothing had been stripped from the rod, ripped and dropped amongst the shoes.
Her beautifully organized and clean home had been reduced to a nightmare of disruption so overwhelming that tears welled in her eyes. She angrily tossed aside a blouse that had been torn down the middle of the back.
“Are you okay?” Rex asked.
“Of course, I’m not okay,” she cried. “I can’t find my stupid running shoes.”
“What color?”
Her thoughts were so disjointed that she had to think hard to remember. “Sea-foam green.”
Rex dropped to his haunches beside her and dug into the clothing. He found one of her shoes and handed it to her. A few seconds later, he located the other.
Then he held up one unscathed shirt after another until Kimo agreed on a cream-colored short-sleeved pullover. She pointed at a pair of faded blue jeans that had also escaped destruction.
He helped her back to her feet. “Need help dressing?”
Her cheeks heated. “No. I think I can do that on my own.”
“I’ll wait in the hallway. Call out if you feel dizzy or light-headed.”
“I’ll be okay,” she said. “Go.”
Rex stepped out into the hallway.
Once he was out of sight, Kimo dug through the pile of panties and bras and selected those that had survived the intruders.
She dragged on panties and the jeans, then pulled the gown over her head and tossed it into the dirty clothes basket in the corner of her room. She could have just left it on the floor and collected it with the other items whenever she felt like cleaning again.
That wouldn’t be anytime soon.
As she hooked the bra in place, she called out, “Did you notice if my desktop computer survived?”
