"What did you think I was going to suggest?"
"I have no idea. It's hard to tell with you. Hey, do you want to come to my pregnancy yoga class? We could go to next week's?"
"I'm not pregnant."
"It's not until next week!"
"I'm pretty sure I won't be pregnant next week either."
Lily snorted. "No one will actually ask."
"I guess so," I conceded. "But only if I can find someone who isn't either of us to assist me with surveillance. We need more people than just you and me."
"I know just the person."
"Are we related to them?" I had to check. Since I hadn't been the source of any dinner table gossip for a while, I assumed my family members were all looking for some kind of juicy fodder to sustain them. My asking for surveillance help would probably suffice until something really succulent turned up.
"No. It's Ruby. We were just talking about surveillance, and she said she loves it. I'll call her soon. Where are you now?"
"Outside Juliet's house. Want to come?" I gave her the address.
"I'm not far. On my way!"
Lily's Mini pulled up beside my VW. Given how rapidly she got there, I could only guess how many traffic laws she must have violated in her eagerness to join me on the stakeout. "So, what happened?" she asked, dropping into my passenger seat and reaching for my unused binoculars, an old birthday gift from my dad.
"You mean all the exciting stuff that could have happened in the time between me calling you and you getting here?"
Lily nodded eagerly. "Yep, all that stuff."
"Absolutely nothing."
"You're really not selling this gig." She held the binoculars over her eyes and pointed them at Juliet's neighbors until I gave the binoculars a little nudge to the left.
"Sorry. I wish I had more to tell you." I longed for anything to tell her, but was stumped at Juliet's suspicions, and puzzled by the rapid escalation of crimes in her life. My client was convinced someone was messing with her, but her fiancé wasn't absolutely sure; and her best friend, despite trying to be supportive, clearly thought Juliet was losing her mind. If Juliet hadn't just been released from jail on a charge she claimed to be innocent of, even I would have been questioning the merits of the case despite my feelings. One thing I couldn't shake, despite Rob and Penelope's concerns, was Juliet's determination that something was happening, and it was completely out of her control. Juliet appeared to be a smart and capable woman. If I trusted my own gut, shouldn't I trust hers? The only thing I could do was stay put and observe what occurred next. If the stalker tried anything, and I had to hope Juliet's release might spark some kind of suspicious behavior, if the cases were connected, I would be there to see it. I wiggled my butt into the driver's seat and wondered if I could handle the surveillance for that long. After an hour in, I was already semi-numb. "Did I tell you Solomon is working this case too?"
"The team are back together?" Lily asked, hope sparking in her eyes as she dropped the binoculars.
"Uh-uh. The exact opposite. Solomon is working for the other team," I told her, quickly explaining how Solomon's client asked him to investigate Juliet to find out if she were indeed the culprit that all the evidence suggested she was.
"Guess the arrest was a clue," Lily said when I finished. "Case closed for Solomon."
"That's just the thing," I said, frowning as the pieces, again, didn’t fit together in my mind. "Solomon had barely started his investigation, never mind concluded it. Juliet shouldn't have been arrested, as her employer wasn't prepared to go there yet. We think someone else must have tipped off the police."
Solomon and I already discussed that and agreed that neither of us had a clue as to who it might have been. I wondered if he was now a step ahead. I also wondered how I could find out.
"Who?"
"Good question." There was a big question mark over the stalker and the snitch. Since I was working the theory that the mystery person had access to her home and car, it didn't seem crazy that the perp could have gotten into her workplace too. I just wished I knew why the stalker was so committed to screwing up Juliet's life. And why he or she would go to such amazing lengths. This could have easily resulted in Juliet gaining a lengthy prison term. Jealousy was one thing, but this degree of envy required a huge dose of hate. Did Juliet warrant that in some unwitting way? She seemed so nice, it was hard to believe; although I'd met fraudsters and serial killers who seemed nice too. Instead of focusing on her manners, I wondered if Juliet had a very big, scary skeleton in her closet that she preferred not to share with me.
"You know who answers questions like that?"
I did, but it seemed pretty annoying to have to ask for the answers.
"Solomon!" Lily yelled when I didn't say anything. She clapped her hands gleefully. "Let's call him and interrogate him."
"Solomon cannot be interrogated."
"Have you tried?"
"Yes. Several times."
"Then you are clearly not doing it right."
"Also, he didn't know when I asked him yesterday."
"Today's a new day."
I glanced across to Lily and then down to the bump covered by a soft sweater. She was absently rubbing it with one hand. I wanted to rub it too, but it seemed weird. Since I wouldn't rub her belly when she wasn't pregnant, I figured she might not appreciate it now. "Do you want to try?"
"Do you want to rub my belly?"
I flinched. "Are you psychic?"
"Trade. You say hi to the baby, and I'll grill Solomon."
"Deal," I agreed, gently placing my hand on her belly. It felt very hard under the sweater, and every so often, I perceived a gentle ripple, which I hoped was the baby. "I think I feel it moving!"
Lily speed-dialed Solomon and put her phone to her ear. "Hi, Solomon, it's me! Yes, Lily! How did you...? Oh, yeah... I always forget about how smart cell phones are. Yes, Lexi is fine. No, we're not hiding... No, we're not stuck somewhere either. No, we didn't do anything illegal!" She looked across at me, giving me an open-jawed, incredulous expression as she frowned and jabbed a finger at the phone in mock outrage. I wasn't sure why his questions appeared to surprise her so much. They seemed legitimate to me, given our history, and also since the first dead body practically landed in my lap. "Actually, I'm helping Lexi with her investigation. We're running surveillance. No, I'm not wearing a hat! What kind of question is that? Anyway, we need to know..."
I flapped my hands at her. I didn't want Solomon to sense I desperately needed his information to kickstart my own. We already discussed a mutual collaboration, but he didn't need to know how much mine lagged behind his, at least, not just yet. It wasn't only because my case was fresh and I'd barely begun, but also owing to my utter lack of resources, which I still lamented. I had none; Solomon had everything he needed. It was yet another reminder of what I missed by going solo. Once again, doubt crept into my mind at pursuing such a network-necessary career alone.
Lily was frowning at me so I dropped my hands and leaned against the headrest, letting her continue, "How did the police know to arrest Juliet? Uh-huh. Huh. Uh-huh. Really? That's interesting. No, Lexi didn't ask me to ask you! She's not even listening. Can you hear? Silence. Lexi, Solomon is asking if you want to go to the movies later?"