She was aware.
It tended to be a constant when someone from that community turned up dead.
While they wanted to curb it, there was only so much their police force could do.
It was daunting.
Summer was still here, so the homeless got spicy when it was warm. They’d fight over food, supplies, and space.
Who knew why this man died?
It could be a million reasons—including drugs.
They might never solve it either.
As they walked up a set of stairs that had been blocked off by some debris and plywood, Tora and Mac checked out the upper floor.
The building wasn’t huge, but it was big enough that shenanigans could happen up there too.
The old building had once been grand, and now…
It was just a mess.
At the top of the stairs, they found two doors. One of them was closed, and one wasn’t. The one that was locked had shit in front of it, like a barrier.
Someone was trying to make it difficult to get into this room.
But why?
Was someone living in here, copping a squat? If so, she had to get them out of there. Unless they owned this eyesore, they couldn’t trespass here.
Would they stay away?
No.
But she still had to do her job, and now, this was an active crime scene.
This building wasn’t a place where you just moved in. It had once been a manufacturing plant, and was private property. These upper offices had to be for management.
After moving the debris, they saw a thick padlock. It was pricey and big.
“Uh, a lock?” Mac asked.
She nodded.
“Yeah, but why would you lock a room like this?” she asked. “Unless you were living here and had your shit stored inside. Maybe the owners locked it?”
He shrugged.
“I doubt it. No one’s cared about this place for a long-ass time. Why would an owner store things here and then not have the place boarded up?
Yeah, that was a damn good point. The lock would be useless.
“Do you think one of the homeless found a nice place to call home?” he added.
She nodded.
That would be what she put her money on if they were betting on this.
