Chapter Twenty-Nine Her

Chapter Twenty-Nine Her

Present Day

Two days had passed since Elias promised to look into August’s whereabouts. I’d appealed to his sense of curiosity. From a

subtle hint here and a stray comment there, it was clear Elias didn’t worship Richmond like so many others did. But believing

Richmond would kill his own brother might be a stretch. I couldn’t blame Elias for the skepticism. The entire country suffered

from a collective brainwashing about the tragedy. But I had Elias’s attention and right now that’s all I needed.

I checked my quiet cellphone. No answers yet. I’d give Elias a few more hours before I started a nonstop texting spree. We

were in a race against whatever the detective might find or make up. There was little chance my panicked cleanup job wiped

the bat clean of all DNA evidence. I missed something. I could feel it.

No news and a lingering sense of dread kept me at the house. I didn’t have anywhere to go anyway, but a drive or a sandwich

at the diner would have been nice. I liked that place, and the detective was right. I’d been there several times. I just hadn’t

been totally truthful about why.

Right now, I had to clear my head. A walk to the mailbox at the end of the long driveway might be enough to burn off some nervous energy. Probably not, but it was worth a try.

A sunny fall day greeted me when I stepped outside. The wind blew through the trees, sending yellow and red leaves swirling

to the ground. With each step, I got lost in a round-robin of overthinking, worrying, and second-guessing. Richmond’s killer.

Richmond’s lies. Richmond’s antics. They pinged off each other in my mind.

The guy was as much of a pain in the ass dead as he’d been alive.

I arrived at the front gate and tested the lock to make sure it worked. There’d been too many unwanted visitors lately. I

no longer trusted the gate, fancy alarms, or a wall of tall trees to keep me hidden and safe.

For once the neighbors across the street weren’t loitering in their driveway, waiting to catch a glimpse of something juicy

at my gate. I didn’t know their names. Didn’t care. Most of the time I couldn’t even see their house from mine. I only knew

they were FOKs, Friends of Kathryn, and she visited often.

I opened the mailbox door on my side of the fence. The other side had a lock on it that, in theory, prevented nosy people

from being extra nosy and sorting through my mail. Three days of mail had collected. It consisted of Richmond’s alumni magazine,

which he clearly wouldn’t be reading from now on. A few cards addressed to Mrs. Dougherty, likely obligatory condolence nonsense.

A new bill in my name from the alarm company and a few random flyers.

The last thing was a brown envelope. There was no scenario where a plain brown envelope with my name scribbled across the front signaled good news. I debated leaving it in the box but grabbed it instead. The temptation to rip it open tugged at me. I made it the whole way to the front door before I gave in. The contents spilled out. Another terse note with the same message as the one written on my wall in super-secret paint.

YOU WILL PAY

Photos of me. All recent. All at the house. Me in the driveway with Elias. Me on the back deck, looking out over the yard.

Me walking to the greenhouse, wearing what I now thought of as my disinfectant outfit. The detective had taken it with him

in the search.

My gaze zipped from the front gate to the trees outlining the property. Even with the dropping leaves they provided cover.

Houses sat on either side of my property but not close enough to peer into their living rooms.

The photos were a bit blurry, as if the person who took them did so from a distance and then zoomed in. I had no idea how

the stalking photographer managed to get the shots and print them out. Worse, I couldn’t figure out where the person stood

to get the pictures.

I studied each one. They all came from one side of the house. From a higher angle off to my left. I held my middle finger

up in the air just in case the amateur photographer was there and looking for a show.

Inside. I needed to get inside and spend some time with the pictures and the security footage to see if the cameras had caught

anyone or any movement. The motion sensors should have gone off, but if the person stayed outside the fence, maybe not.

The only thing I knew for sure was that someone was watching. And they wanted me to know it.