TT, my question to you is if these were druggies there for cash, why would they not go through the women's purses? I tend to believe that being on drugs lends itself to a bit of disorganization when it comes to committing crime, if only from a sense of desperation to obtain drugs. Natch, someone could have made off with some prescription medications with a good street value here, but I'm not so sure cash is THE motive. I get that the older woman was seen as more vulnerable if the intruder was aware of the husband's passing.
Why leave without obtaining what it is you seek, and instead subject yourself to homicide charges if caught? It could be attributable to someone not thinking clearly, but it seems we would then also find the place ransacked to some degree or the content of purses dumped at the very least. Also obvious is that the two women could identify their attacker or attackers.
I notice the house is up for sale or at least it is still listed for sale on Trulia. Not sure how vigilant those kinds of services are on keeping up-to-date. I would want to know when the house went up for sale, and how long the owner's lived there. I'd also like to know if the house sold below value after the murders took place, who bought it. Is that same person the one now selling the property? Did the ABC interviews and story raise the level of heat?
OTOH, this could have been the act of a disgruntled, and fed up neighbor. Maybe that person's beef was originally with the grandfather, but perhaps the grandmother was a big part of it too. A disgruntled neighbor certainly isn't going to announce it, and have LE breathing down their necks.
Another thing, one person could have done this. Someone can bring a gun to a crime, but elect to not use it due to the noise so one or both women could have been threatened with a gun first. Much could depend on the personalities of the victims. I wonder exactly when Maxa's mother arrived at her mother's house. Maybe the intruder was unaware of the grandfather's passing. Perhaps lived on Matthews Rd., behind the house, and was unaware the daughter was also present in the house.
Aberdeen is a military proving ground. Maybe this was done by some whacko in the military who decided to substite military infiltration tactics in a controlled setting for those in real life. May have thought he was doing the elder lady a favor so she wouldn't be left alone without her husband or perhaps thought women her age had outlived their useless, and so thought she would not be missed all that much. Far-fetched, I know, but then psychopaths don't think like we do.
Right now I feel like we've all been dropped into one of those old serial shows. Maxa has headed to Japan, and we're left here in suspense until she gets back with more answers to our questions.