On July 19, the day Lori was reported missing, there was a message from Lori on Alston's work voice mail saying that Mark told her that he wasn't showing up on their records because of a "computer malfunction and that he straightened everything out," according to court documents.

Alston told police she had never spoken to Mark Hacking.

Tuesday, the Deseret Morning News contacted Alston, whose married name is Randee Reid. She works in administration for the UNC School of Medicine.

After a reporter identified himself as being with the News, a distraught-sounding Reid said, "Please don't ask me any questions."

After a minute of silence Reid said barely above a whisper, "I can't. I can't."

Monday's news that Mark Hacking allegedly shot his wife with a .22-caliber firearm raises at least one question: Is it possible to fire a .22-caliber rifle in an occupied apartment complex in the middle of the night without anyone hearing it?

Absolutely, said several gun experts who spoke with the Deseret Morning News on Tuesday.

"They're not very loud at all," said Steve Palano, general manager of Totally Awesome Guns. "Put it against a pillow, it wouldn't be very loud at all."

Even without a pillow, Palano said the noise from firing a .22-caliber rifle registers about 101 decibels. A regular conversation between two individuals usually measures 74 decibels.

"At 1 o'clock in the morning, you fire a rifle, not many people are going to hear it," Palano said.

If the rifle is fired only once, Palano said, there's not enough time for people to wake up and register in their minds that they just heard a gunshot.

"Even without a muffle it's not going to make that much noise, even in a modern-day apartment complex," he said.

As for the final resting spot of the bullet, Palano said a .22 caliber is a "very light bullet" that "generally tends to break up."

It's most likely the bullet is still inside Lori and could be recovered as evidence if her body is found.

Palano called .22-caliber rifles very unpredictable, noting that John Hinckley Jr. shot former President Ronald Reagan with .22-caliber pistol. The shooting also injured a police officer and a Secret Service agent, and permanently disabled press secretary James Brady.

Mark Hacking's next court appearance is a scheduling conference set for 8:30 a.m. Aug. 16 before 3rd District Court Judge William Barrett.

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E-mail: jdobner@desnews.com; preavy@desnews.com