Officer Gerald crouched near one of the dirt piles. He picked up something small with a gloved hand.
It was a torn strip of blue plastic.
"Did you own a tarp?" he asked.
"No."
"Did Mark?"
"I have no idea."
He placed the plastic inside an evidence bag.
I stared at the hole.
"What was he looking for?"
Neither officer answered.
Officer Beckett walked toward the back fence.
He shone his flashlight over the broken flower bed, then stopped near the corner where my roses had once grown.
"There are tire marks here," he said.
Officer Gerald joined him.
"Small excavator, maybe."
I wrapped my arms around myself.
"Can you please tell me why you're here? Someone reported him digging. Fine. But why did you say I knew why you came?"
Officer Gerald looked embarrassed for the first time.
"That was poor wording."
"Very poor wording."
"You're right."
He paused before continuing.
