That was what a young girl told her mother's co-workers Wednesday afternoon when they called to inquire why the woman hadn't shown up for work, police said.
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After speaking with the girl, the co-workers immediately called Las Vegas police, who around 2 p.m. went to the woman's residence at the Pine Hills Lodge apartment complex at 1500 Karen Ave., off of Maryland Parkway.
Police found two people dead in the apartment from apparent gunshot wounds. The little girl, who was unharmed, was there too, said Lt. Lew Roberts with the homicide unit.
The girl, who is between 4 and 6 years old, might have been inside the apartment with the bodies for a day and a half, Roberts said.
"She wasn't disheveled, but it was clear that she hadn't eaten anything in a while," Roberts said.
Police fed the girl and then took her to Child Haven, the county's emergency shelter care center. The girl is in good physical condition, police said.
Roberts said the girl's parents were killed in a murder-suicide. The girl's father shot and killed the mother and then turned the gun on himself either Tuesday morning or in the early afternoon, Roberts said.
Police were investigating to see if there were any disturbances at the apartment in recent days. But Roberts said Las Vegas police were called to the apartment for domestic violence complaints at least twice before, once in 2001 and again in 2002.
The identities of the deceased were not available.
News of the murder-suicide upset many residents of the apartment complex.
Colleen Wilson, 19, who lives in an apartment below where the murder-suicide took place, said she had heard the couple arguing about 2:30 a.m. Sunday, followed by gunshots. Wilson said she heard three gunshots, a pause, and then a fourth shot.
"We were pretty scared and we stayed inside with the door closed," said Wilson, who saw the couple occasionally but didn't know their names.
Wilson said she didn't call police because she feared retribution from the shooter.
James McGhee, who has a friend living at Pine Hills Lodge and often visits the complex, said he knew the couple who lived in the apartment, and had seen them in passing but never spoken with them. The complex is generally quiet, he said.
A neighbor who declined to be identified watched as police and officials with the Clark County coroner's office walked in and out of the apartment.
"I've been here for 15 years and never heard of anything like this happening," he said. He said he was home watching TV at the time of the shooting but didn't hear any gunshots.
