AUD WRAPPED
up a small painting for an elegant older woman. “Here you go, ma’am. Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“No, that will be all today. You have a lovely shop here. I’ll have to stop back by the next time I’m in town.” She took the package.
“Where are you from?”
“Albuquerque. My granddaughter just had a baby, so I had to come and meet my great-grandson.”
“Congratulations.” He walked from behind the counter to open the door for the woman. “I hope you have a pleasant rest of your trip.”
“I’m sure I will.” She gave him a wide smile as he held the door for her. “You have a good day.”
Standing in the cool breeze that rolled in off the street, Aud watched her go to her car. There weren’t many cars on the street, but it was the middle of the day on a Friday. It would be a lot busier the next day as locals and tourists alike flocked to the area.
“Mr. Sorenson?” a man in a well-tailored suit asked, stopping just shy of coming into the gallery.
“That’s me.” Aud turned his attention from the older woman to the man. He was tall, with just a bit of a middle-aged paunch starting. There was something about the way he carried himself and the briefcase that said “official.”
“I’m Detective Benet.” He handed Aud a business card with his name, contact information, and the logo of the Colorado Springs Police Department on it. “I’ve been assigned to your stalking case. Is there somewhere we can talk?”
“We’re slow today. Come on in. We can talk in the back room.”
“Thank you.” Benet followed him into the gallery.
“Heather,” Aud called, hoping she would hear him from where she was doing a bit of cleaning in the room to the east of the main floor. “Could you watch the front for a few?”
She appeared with a rag in one hand and a bottle of duster spray in the other. “Sure. What’s up?”
“This is Detective Benet. He’s following up on the stalking case.”
“Good. Someone needs to shut that man down.” She stashed the cleaning supplies behind the counter. “I’ve got it covered here. Take all the time you need.”
“Thanks.” Aud gestured to Benet. “This way.”
Once in the back room, Benet set his briefcase on the table. “Thanks for forwarding the video to us. Now that we have actual evidence that you have a stalker, we can begin an investigation.”
His tone irritated Aud. “So, Leo saying he’d seen a face in the window the last time wasn’t enough?”
“Since there were no fingerprints or other physical evidence until now, no, it wasn’t.” He pulled out a tablet and a pen. “Now, if I could get you to recount both of the incidents that led you to call in.”
Repressing his irritation at having to go over things
again
, Aud explained what had happened. He made sure to include seeing Randal going into the T-shirt store across the street and his disruption at the opening.
“You’re sure his name is Randal Hudspeth?” Benet asked.
“Yes. He’s been hanging around the gym I used to go to for a couple of years.” Aud sighed and let out a little irritation. “We had an encounter in the steam room over a year ago. He’s recently started hitting on me again.”
“Was there anything more than this
encounter
?” The detective’s stress on the word told Aud volumes about how he felt about the idea of doing another man in the steam room.
“No.” Then Aud paused. “Okay, every so often Randal would spot me on the weight bench and I’d spot him in return.”
“Anything sexual happen during those times?”
“A few comments now and again, but nothing physical happened.”
“What kind of comments?”
“Things like telling me how big his ax was getting while we worked out together.”
“His ax?” Benet raised a brown eyebrow.
Aud sighed again.
He can’t be this dense.
“That’s what he called his cock: his ax.”
“That’s a new one. Before the past couple of weeks, had he been aggressive in any way?”
“No more so than normal. But I’ve recently started seeing Leo. The guy in the video with me. I think that sent him over the edge.”
“It’s not uncommon for stalkers to be pushed by a change in relationship status.” Benet made more notes. “So you never did anything that would tell him you were interested in being more than just gym buddies.”
“We weren’t even that. I’d never seen him outside the gym until the other day when I spotted him across the street, then at the opening.” Some of the detective’s questions were trying his patience and making him feel like he’d done something wrong.
“So you don’t happen to have Mr. Hudspeth’s phone number or address?”
“No,” Aud snapped. “I never had the urge to have them either.”
“Okay. Well, I have the name of your gym.” Benet put his tablet back in his briefcase. “I can go by there and see if they will release the information without a search warrant. Or see if the DMV has anything on him.” He closed the briefcase. “I’ll be in touch.”
Aud stood to escort him out of the gallery. “Thanks for coming by.”
“If there are any more incidents, or you get some firm evidence on the stalker, please don’t hesitate to call me. These cases can be very difficult to solve without hard evidence, so anything you can provide will be helpful.”
“Trust me. Anything else happens, you’ll be the first to know.”
Heather raised an eyebrow at them as Aud led Benet to the door. After he was gone, Aud turned and walked back to the counter.
“Well?” Heather asked with a note of excitement. “We’re still empty, so tell me.”
“There’s not a whole lot to tell. He says we’ll need more evidence before they can go after anyone, including Randal.” Aud leaned against the counter, suddenly feeling worn out.
“So they’re not going to do anything?” Heather sounded appalled.
“No, they’re looking into Randal to see what they can find. Since I don’t know his address or anything, they’re starting at the gym and DMV. But until something else happens, it’s a waiting game.”
She frowned at him. “I hate waiting games.”
“I know. But this isn’t the Old West. We can’t just go off and convict him on a bit of hearsay and guessing. Until we get more information, it’ll be his word against mine.”
“So let’s just hope he doesn’t do anything more drastic than look through your window and take videos.”
Aud shook his head and headed toward the fridge in the back room, desperately in need of some water to dampen his throat and wash out the bad taste the discussion with the detective had left in his mouth. “Let’s hope so.”
LEO STARED
at his computer monitor and stifled a yawn. The day was going slow, but that was a good thing. Sitting around, quietly watching movies, seemed to be helping Felix relax.
“Hey, do you think we could drive over to my apartment and pick up a few things?” Felix stretched on the couch. “It’ll be easier if we do that before you take off with Aud for the weekend.” A sad, beaten-puppy look crossed his face. “I’ll feel safer with you there.”
“We can go whenever you want. I’m not going to the mountains with Aud this weekend. I called him last night and told him we’d have to put it off.” Leo still felt pangs of regret in delaying things with Aud, but Felix was his best friend.
Felix looked sadder than before. “Not on my account, I hope.”
Leo shrugged. “I don’t want you to be alone right now. You need me.”
“But you can’t put your life on hold because of what happened to me.”
“I’m not. Changing plans for one weekend is not putting my life on hold.” Like he’d been doing all day, Leo had to stop himself from getting up and trying to hug Felix. “Julie and I talked about it, and we don’t want to leave you by yourself right now. You know Julie doesn’t have room for guests in her little efficiency. We’re not about to take you home to stay by yourself. Don’t worry about it.”
Felix started to object further, but Leo raised a hand and silenced him. The way Felix drew back from the simple gesture made Leo cringe inside, and he quickly lowered his hand. “Sorry. If it’s going to worry you, maybe you can buy Aud and me dinner sometime to pay us back. Would that make you feel better?”
He gave a slight nod. “I just don’t want you to fuss over me. These things happen every day to lots of people.”
Leo rose and started to go to Felix, then leaned against his desk. “But you aren’t lots of people, Felix. You’re my best friend. Julie’s too. We care about what happens to you. We’re going to be there. Don’t worry about it.”
Felix looked like he wanted to argue the point, then appeared to collapse in on himself. “Okay,” he muttered. Then he shifted uncomfortably before dashing for the bathroom like he’d been doing all day.
Leo’s phone rang. He glanced at the display before quickly answering it. “Hey, Aud. How are you doing?”
“Decently.” He sounded glum. “It feels weird calling you during the day. You’re normally at work.”
“Yeah. I hear you.” He settled into his recliner. “So how has your day gone?”
“Slow. But I had a detective stop by to talk to me about the stalker. It doesn’t sound too hopeful unless we can find physical evidence.” There was a pause, and Leo got the impression there was more Aud wanted to say. “So, anyway, I was wondering if you might want to go grab a bite to eat after I get out of here. I know we’re not going away this weekend, but it would still be great to see you.”
Leo started to beg off, then recalled Felix’s feelings about him putting his life on hold and sighed. “Let me see if Julie can stay with Felix for me. I don’t want him alone for too long.”
“If you think he’s up for it, he could come along. He’s your best friend. It would be nice to get to know him better.”
“That’s a good idea.” Leo looked up as the bathroom door opened and Felix sagged out, muttering about the laxatives the doctor had given him to help avoid any additional rectal damage. “Hold on a second and I’ll ask.” He moved the phone away from his face. “Felix, Aud called and wants to have dinner tonight. Would you like to go?”
Conflicting emotions crossed Felix’s pinched features, then he shook his head. “I don’t think so. Not with needing to stay fairly close to the bathroom. Running over to my place is about all I can do. But you go. I just said don’t interrupt your life too much for me.”
“Okay.” Leo moved the phone back into place. “I’m back. It’ll just be you and me. Let me check with Julie and see if she can make it over while I’m gone.”
“Do you want to let me know for sure after you talk to her?” Aud asked.
“Probably a good idea, but just in case, what time would you be picking me up, or would you rather meet at your place or the restaurant?”
“If we’re a go, I can pick you up about six thirty, maybe seven.”
A warm, contented smile spread across Leo’s face. “That sounds perfect.”
“Good. Hey, I just had a customer come in and Heather’s stepped out. I need to get.”
“Okay. Go sell them something expensive.”
“See you tonight.”
“Yep.” Leo ended the call and slipped his phone into his pants pocket.
Felix watched him from the couch. “He makes you smile.”
Leo blinked at his friend. “What?”
“Aud. He makes you smile. That’s wonderful. I can’t think of the last time I saw you smiling when you got off the phone with a guy. I want you to go to dinner with him tonight. Even if Julie can’t make it over to babysit me, you need to go out and have fun.” Felix straightened out of the slump he’d taken when he sat on the couch. “Look, I’m serious about you not putting your life on hold for me. I feel a lot safer here than I do at my place. I know Axe can’t find me here. I might even be okay if you wanted to spend the night with Aud.”
“Nope.” Leo shook his head emphatically. “I’m not staying over at Aud’s until the police catch his stalker. That’s just creepy. And we’re not going to come over here and bang on the couch with you sleeping in the bed, so don’t even mention that. Don’t worry about me and Aud. We’ll be fine. I want you to get to the point you feel safe everywhere.”
“That might take a while.”
“Yeah, it might. You can stay here as long as you need to.”
“Thank you, Leo.” Felix gave him a very weak smile. “You’re the best friend a guy could ask for.”
“I’m only giving back what I’ve been given by you.”
Felix shifted on the couch. “Can we try and head to my apartment fairly soon? If we can do it before most people get out of work, that would be great.”
The comment confused Leo for a moment; then he realized what Felix was getting at. “Oh, you’re hoping that if Axe is at work, there’s less chance of running into him or him seeing us.”
“Exactly.”
Leo got out of the chair. “If you’re ready, we can go now. I’m not in the middle of anything, and we’ve both seen
A New Hope
so many times we can recite it line by line.”
“Thanks.” Felix looked shaky as he rose and followed Leo out the front door.
THE RIDE
to Felix’s apartment was short and quiet. Every time Leo glanced over at him, his eyes were wide and dancing around. He visibly jerked when Leo parked in his regular place just outside the steps to the apartment complex.
Leo turned off the car and sat there for a second. “Do you want me to go up and get things?”
Felix shook his head quickly. “No. Just give me a second. It’ll be faster if we both go up. I know where everything is.”
“Okay.” Leo slid his car keys into his jeans pocket. “Take your time. Have you been back here since it happened?”
“Just once, to grab a few things before heading to the hotel.” Felix turned in his seat and looked around the mostly empty parking lot. “Let’s get this done. Before folks start coming home.” He shoved the door open and hurried out of the car.
Leo scrambled to keep up.
By the time they reached the top of the flight of stairs that led to the landing Felix’s apartment shared with his next-door neighbor, his steps slowed. He ignored the small folded slip of paper in the clip on the doorframe. His hands shook enough to jingle his keys as he unlocked the door. “Okay,” he muttered. “I’ll go retrieve some stuff out of the bathroom, if you could get my two duffel bags from the closet in the bedroom. I’ll just throw some more clothes in them.”