12
The chair in the police station was short and uncomfortable. Evelyn had no doubt the design was intentional—the entire room looked like it was designed for interrogating criminals.
“And you know for sure that Harold is in town?” Paulette asked.
Evelyn nodded. “He’s staying with Maureen. She said so last night.”
“Alright. We’ll chat with him later, and if his story doesn’t check out, he’ll be right back in the pen.”
Evelyn hesitated. She wished her father would rot in prison for the rest of his life, but she didn’t want to mislead Paulette. “I just thought you should know he’s in town because of his history. But I don’t think he wrote the message on my door.”
Paulette leaned back. She studied Evelyn for a moment and said, “I don’t either, but we have to run down every possible lead. Is there anyone else that might have a reason to stalk you? An ex-boyfriend, maybe?”
“Um…yes. A few. Most of my relationships haven’t ended on good terms.”
“Does anyone stand out as particularly odd or isolated? Was anyone angry or violent after a breakup?”
Evelyn fidgeted in the hard chair. “I’ve dated some odd guys. But none of them seemed dangerous.”
“You can never tell with people.” Paulette pushed a pen and paper across the table. “Some people are very good at hiding their true selves. Write down any name you can think of, and I’ll start making phone calls.”
Evelyn scratched in two names then added a third. She held out the paper. “Thanks, Paulette.”
The officer shook her head. “No need to thank me. You never asked for this, and you don’t deserve it.” She stood and held the door open. “Stalking is a serious crime. If you find any more disturbing or threatening messages, let me know. I’m handling the case, so you can call my cell, if you’d like.”
Evelyn nodded and walked into the main room.
“Do you have somewhere else to stay? Or someone who can stay at your place?”
“My friend Candace. Or I could spend a few more nights at Kensington.”
“Either option is fine, just make sure you’re not home alone at night.” At the front door, she wrapped her arms around Evelyn and hugged tight. “It’s a small town. It won’t take long to figure out who’s harassing you. And in the meantime, try to stay positive.”
Evelyn left the station and crossed the street, making her way toward Candace’s apartment. Candace wouldn’t be home—she had the morning shift at work—but Evelyn had a spare key. She still needed to shower and change her clothes, but she wasn’t ready to go home, where the ominous words waited for her. It took her less than ten minutes to make the trip across town, and when she reached Candace’s apartment building, she hesitated at the bottom of the steps. For a moment, she worried she would find another message on Candace’s front door—something like, “You can’t hide from me,” or “Your friends can’t save you.” She scolded herself for being superstitious and climbed the stairs. The door was clean, so Evelyn let herself in.
The apartment smelled like takeout Chinese food, and the TV was still on. This didn’t surprise her—Candace’s television was always on, driving her electric bill through the roof. Evelyn found the remote, switched it off, and strode into the bathroom. She took a quick shower, fixed her hair, and dressed herself in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt from Candace’s closet. Feeling guilty about how long she’d left Sonya in charge of managing Kensington, she snatched her phone off the counter and hurried outside, locking the door behind her. She shuffled down the steps and did a double-take when she reached the street.
Donny’s ancient and rusted Ford pickup truck was parked at the edge of the road, and he was in the driver’s seat, rolling the window down and waving her over.
She tried to hide the caution in her gait as she approached the truck. Lately, Donny made her feel like a dog-owner that had been bitten by her furry companion.
“Hey there, beautiful. Need a lift?”
“Donny, what are you doing here?” she asked, stopping ten feet from the truck.
He gave her a goofy grin. “Giving you a ride to work, I hope.”
She shook her head. “No, I mean, how did you know I was here?”
“Paulette told me.” He leaned across the bench seat and opened the passenger door. “C’mon, hop in.”
She glanced to her left, spying the towering pines that surrounded Kensington Estate in the distance then circled the truck and climbed in.
Donny popped the truck into gear, and it chugged as he let out the clutch. “I was worried about you, after what happened last night. I just wanted to make sure you were okay—because my calls won’t go through.”
The fact that Donny knew about the prowler didn’t surprise Evelyn. Word spread quickly in a town populated by less than a thousand people. “If you behave yourself, I’ll consider taking you off probation.” She watched a tractor roll by on the adjacent street. “Who told you, by the way?”
“Hmm?”
“Who told you about what happened last night?”
“Oh, Old Man Price, at the gas station.”
She wrinkled her nose. Price was a notorious gossip. If he knew about the prowler, then everyone in town would by the end of the day.
The sound of the truck’s perforated exhaust rattled off the surrounding homes, and the brakes squealed as if in pain at every stop. “You don’t have to do this, you know. I don’t mind walking. And shouldn’t you be at home, working?”
“It’s an honor to serve you, Madame, no matter the cost.”
Evelyn’s shoulders tightened a little. Usually, Donny wouldn’t shut up about the next video game console to be released, or the latest virus rampaging the internet. Now, he only wanted to talk about her. She tried to change the subject. “How’s your project coming along—the robot phone?”
Donny sighed. “It’s a digital personal assistant, not a robot. Phones can never be robots, because they can’t interact with the physical environment autonomously. Anyway, I haven’t worked on it in a few weeks. So, the same as before, I guess. Hey, what do you want for dinner?”
She frowned. “Dinner?”
“Yeah, it’s hump day.” He rolled his eyes. “Game night, remember?”
The week had been so chaotic, she’d lost track of which day it was. For years, Evelyn, Donny, Candace, and occasionally Vanessa had gotten together on Wednesdays to play board games or retro video games. “Sorry, I have some things to take care of tonight.”
Donny’s hands twisted on the steering wheel. “Let me guess, you’re hanging out with Alek.”
“No,” she said through her teeth, “I’m not. There’s some things I need to take care of at home, that’s all.”
“What kind of things? Maybe I can help.”
She wasn’t about to tell the new, ultra-clingy Donny that she was moving out of her apartment to stay with Candace, so she told a half-truth. “I need to do some laundry and organize some of my things.”
He nodded. “Have to clean up before Alek comes over, right? Want to make a good impression, set the mood?”
Evelyn’s jaw dropped. Her face reddened, and she unbuckled her seatbelt. “Let me out.”
Donny let off the accelerator but didn’t touch the brake pedal. “Come on, I was only kidding.”
“It isn’t funny. Pull over.”
He hesitated, then shook his head. “We’re almost there. Just chill out.”
“Donny, pull over.” Her eyes were wide, filled with contempt.
His lips tightened into a thin line, and he pressed the accelerator. “You’re acting like a child.”