Authors: Camilla Chafer
I laid down my gun and jabbed a finger at the target. "That's because I put them all in the head!"
"Deliberately?"
"Yes!" No.
"But the bet was for the ring. Bet you can't do it again, and this time, aim and hit the heart. Your turn to finish, then my turn."
"What are the stakes?"
"Stakes?"
"You just asked me to perform an amazing feat again, but in a different location..."
"Because you changed it!"
"Because I wanted to! You need to raise the stakes."
"And you need to stake something."
"Damn it!" I snapped. I knew I should have kept my mouth shut while pie was almost on the table. "What do you want?"
Garrett smiled slowly. "A whole weekend of babysitting. I want to take Traci away for the weekend. Somewhere romantic. Somewhere that kids don't exist."
I took a deep breath. I could handle that. I knew all the kids’ tricks. At least, I thought I did. Plus, I could probably get Solomon to help me since he was all about
taking the next step
. Lily and Jord would pitch in too. I could definitely ask my parents to come by and visit their grandchildren. After all, it takes a village to raise a kid and I was fully prepared to call upon my familial village if I lost the bet.
"Okay. And if I win, you have to bake two pies, a cake, and cookies."
"How many cookies?"
I tried to calculate two lots of eighteen, and failed. Math was never my strong point. My forte was passing notes to Lily about the cute guy who sat behind us in math.
"Forty."
"Terrific! And the cake?"
"Whatever you like, but I want it pretty. You'll have to frost it."
"You're going to love taking care of my kids for a weekend. Shoot."
Garrett recalled my target and handed it to me. He loaded up a new one, triumphantly hitting the button to send it back. He emptied his bullets into the heart target. "I'm going to do rose petals, champagne, massage oil, bubble bath... women like that stuff, right?" he said as the target came whizzing back to us.
"Don't ask me, ask your wife!"
"Do you like that stuff?" We looked at each other in horror. "Forget I asked," said Garrett. "I don't want to know."
"For the record, I think Traci will like all that stuff. I also think she'd like to go away on your anniversary," I said confidently. I knew that because she told me, and I figured it didn't hurt to pass it along. That way, my sister-in-law gets what she wanted and my brother gets to give it to her, which makes him happy. Making them happy seemed more important than getting pie and cake, despite how much I wanted them.
"Ready?" Garrett asked, stepping out of the way as he sent the final target to the end of the range.
"Ready." I aimed for the final time, steadying my hand, focusing on the heart. I squeezed off my first shot, hitting the target perfectly. Second, Third. Fourth. My confidence increased as one shot followed another, peppering the heart region. I knew Garrett was counting as I reached my last round. I aimed and fired. My bullet hit the line, just inside the second ring, ruining my score.
Garrett punched the air. "One weekend of babysitting!"
Missing the shot was worth it.
~
I headed directly to my office after Garrett and I said our goodbyes at the range. As I let myself into the adjacent room, I could hear Lily speaking in her office. Closing the door, shutting out the sounds of a delivery arriving at the rear entrance, I was cocooned in silence. With Mom and Dad taking the surveillance shift, I had the time to run through the report Maddox said in a text that he emailed me. Solomon also left a message saying I should meet with him to share case notes.
Maddox's email was wedged between special offers from The Gap and another email from Lily, reminding me to block off the time next week to attend pregnancy yoga with her. I wondered if I would prefer it to the spin classes we used to take regularly. I figured yoga would be a lot less sweaty.
Maddox's email was loaded up in minutes. He sent it from his personal account, and there was absolutely nothing rubber-stamped with the FBI seal. I figured he was making a point about his lack of official involvement. What truly mattered, though, was the content. As I scanned it, I knew my initial feeling about Juliet was correct. With her client sheet besides me, I could match most of the details she'd given me, from addresses to education to career moves.
Except for a parking ticket eight years prior, she'd never been involved in any kind of criminal activity; and there was no reason to assume she intended to pursue a life of crime. In fact, she seemed to be the kind of person who lived her life by dotting all of her i's and crossing her t's. Maddox made some notes about a couple of past boyfriends
—
and how he found that information, I had no idea
—
but he remarked that her college love moved to Seattle after graduation and had never visited Montgomery. The boyfriend of a few months in between that man and Rob was currently on a round-the-world trip. Neither ex-boyfriend had the potential to be a stalker, which added to my developing theory that Juliet's stalker might be a woman. A man may have been able to disguise himself and follow her around, or access her email, but could he pull it off so well as to pass for Juliet on her passport? And allow her to purchase tickets at the airport? I didn't think so.
I called Maddox, crossing my fingers he would answer. He did. "Did you get my report?" he asked.
"I did, thank you. That's why I was calling."
"It all seemed pretty innocuous to me."
"Me too, and pretty much what I was expecting. Did you do Rob's?"
"His is taking a little longer. I should get it to you within a day or two. I'd be faster, but I just got a case to review and consult on."
"No problem. I don't expect to find anything in Rob's background, so it's only a precautionary check. I wondered if anything came up regarding any women in Juliet's life?"
"Such as?"
"Like any fallings out with female friends? Jealous colleagues? Any complaints filed by her, or about her? Maybe an old neighbor dispute?" I asked, grasping at any ideas as they sprang into my head.
"Nothing came up, and I ran her name through just about every database I could think of. The most dirt I managed to find was that parking ticket. I’ve got to go to a meeting. Call me if you need anything else."
I agreed I would and hung up. My phone trilled seconds later.
Solomon
. "Are you on your way over?" he asked. "We said we'd review our case notes together."
"On my way," I told him, gathering my things together. It had been a long time since I last set foot in the agency. Perhaps today was the day. "Let's meet at your office," I suggested.
"Already there."
I locked the office door, my laptop and files tucked into my large purse, and my mind whirring with possibilities about how Juliet's stalker targeted her, when my phone rang again. I searched through my purse, answering it right before it went to phonemail.
"Lexi?" The voice was breathless.
"Yes, it's me. Who's this?"
"Juliet. Juliet Hart. I need you to come to the house right away."
"I'm heading over to see a colleague to review your case notes. I can come after that."
"No, I need you here now!"
I paused at the urgency in Juliet's voice. "What happened?"
Juliet hovered anxiously nearby as I knelt squinting, at the front door. While I searched for the telltale marks of a lock pick, or a bump tool, she alternated between pacing and wringing her hands. She seemed unable to stay still as she darted glances out the door onto the quiet street. Turning away from her, I ran my fingers around the lock plate. There were no scratches to indicate someone used a lock pick, and no little marks on the frame to suggest someone used a screwdriver to "bump" the locks open. When I examined the back door, I found exactly the same: nothing. There wasn't anything to suggest someone had broken in via those doors.
"Nothing here," I told her, getting to my feet and stepping inside. I felt a little dejected when the crucial signs of a break-in were missing. Juliet quickly darted around me and pushed the door shut, locking it.
"Do you lock the door every night?" I asked.
"Yes, without fail, and I check every window too. Nothing is ever left unlocked."
"What about your security system?"
"We arm it every night. It didn't go off. I know you don't believe me, but I know someone was in here," Juliet heaved a sigh as tears filled her eyes.
I didn't want to argue with an obviously distressed pregnant woman. Without any sign to support her claim, I couldn't be sure she wasn't telling the truth. I had to look at it another way. What if someone were in the house? What if they didn't need to break in? If Juliet's stalker were someone close to her, I realized, and had a way to access her things, they could have gotten her home keys, and maybe even guessed the alarm code. It was a troubling thought. Juliet's stalker could be a lot closer to her than we originally thought. They might even know no one would believe her. "Walk me around. Tell me what you see that's different. Is anything missing?"
"I don't think so."
"When did you first realize someone came inside?"
"When I came downstairs. Rob had been up for an hour already."
"And he wasn't worried?"
"No, but when I pointed things out to him, he said he assumed I moved things around so he wasn't at all worried. Then I asked him, why would I? I mean, they’re such little, insignificant things. This book, for example. I was reading it last night and I left it open, pages down, spine up, on the coffee table because I couldn't find a bookmark. This morning, I find it closed on the side table. Rob didn't move it. And see these photos? They're moved from their previous order. Then there's that lamp. It usually sits at the other end of the table." Juliet pointed each thing out. I walked over to the lamp, and picked it up, curious as to how a lamp could have moved by itself. "Lamps don't move by themselves!" Juliet continued, just as I arrived at the same conclusion.
Feeling the cord pulling taut, I glanced around the little side table and frowned. The flex of the cord was badly frayed, and the wires were exposed. It could easily have caused a nasty shock in that condition. "Has your lamp always been in good condition?" I asked.
"Yes, I only bought it last month."
I took another look at the frayed cord before I dropped it and pulled the plug from the socket. "I'm going to take it with me and get it looked at," I told her.
"So now you believe me?"
I nodded, trying to remain casual and hoping Juliet wouldn't ask about my interest in the lamp. I didn't want to tell her someone might have tried to electrocute her. She was already afraid enough. "Okay, show me what else was moved?"
"Just some more little things. Things on the bookcase," Juliet said, pointing to a collection of crystal animals dotted across the shelves. "Not many people know that I display these animals chronologically, according to the dates I bought them, or when they were bought for me. The little frog was the first one I got from my grandmother when I was six, so it shouldn't be third from the left. Then there're the candle holders. They've been turned around; and my iPod was in its docking station last night, and now it's lying next to it." Juliet moved on, pointing out lots of little changes, things that only a diligent homeowner would notice.
"Do you have a housecleaner?" I asked.
"Yes, but we told her not to come for a while, so she couldn't have done it. I just don't want anyone I don't know really well in my home. Not now," Juliet explained as we walked to the doorway of the dining room. Juliet pointed to the little, snug seating area by the window. "Rob probably thinks I'm being silly, but even he couldn't work out how those two armchairs swapped places."
"I don't think you're silly at all," said Rob, walking through the doorway. "What do you think, Lexi? This stuff is weird."
"Very weird," I agreed, turning back to the living room. Everything seemed so inconsequential, except when they were combined with all the other things in the case.
"Do you think we're being haunted?" asked Juliet. "I know, I know. It's a crazy question, but all the doors were locked and the alarm was still set. How could anyone but a ghost have done this?"
"I don't think you're house is haunted," I told them. I thought she was right; someone corporeal had been inside their home. I could almost follow their invisible tracks as they made their way through the house, picking up something here, moving something there. It made me wonder what kind of person moved things, but didn't steal anything? It was pointless to call the police for a moved candle, or a rearranged crystal menagerie, and I suspected the stalker knew Juliet wouldn't do that. What could a police officer do, but scratch his head and say, “if nothing was missing, no crime had taken place”? No, this was all done for a very specific, and very nasty reason: playing psychological games with Juliet and forcing her to question her every move.
"I don't see what the point of this is," said Rob. He wrapped an arm around Juliet's shoulders and pulled her closer, acting the protective man while his face belied serious worry.
"I think someone is trying to mess with your heads, but you have the advantage here," I told them.
"What's that? They can walk into our home while we're asleep!" said Rob, his voice rising.
"No, the advantage is: they can't mess with your head if you know they're doing it... or trying to do it. You're already fighting back by hiring me."
"I feel like I'm losing though. Look at me. I'm a mess." Juliet shook her ankle. She didn't need to remind me of the obvious ankle bracelet that peeked below her maxi skirt. "I can't leave my house. I've probably lost my job. Someone is screwing with us while we sleep! I’m scared to even have Robbie over in case whoever is doing this hurts him."
Rob hugged her tighter. "No one is going to hurt Robbie, honey."
"We don't know that. They could have killed us in our sleep! What if they kidnapped him? We would never forgive ourselves for letting something happen to him."
"I don't think you need to worry about your stepson. You're the focus of the stalker's obsession, Juliet," I told them. It sounded better in my head. Seeing that neither Juliet or Rob looked assured, I probably didn't help at all. I thought about the frayed lamp cord, trying not to grimace as I said, "I agree it might be better to keep him out of the house until we've caught the stalker."
"How do we do that? How do we catch them?" asked Juliet.
"Your house is still under surveillance," I replied, wondering exactly how effective my surveillance was. My motley crew of a best friend, parents, and another friend, hadn't spotted anything unusual so far and it was doubtful they ever would, especially since we only watched over Juliet during daylight hours so far. Clearly, my surveillance needed beefing up and had to be around the clock. "I think it's time we tightened security."
"Tell us what we need to do," said Rob.
"First off, call a locksmith and get all your door locks replaced. Change your alarm code too, and make sure it's not easy to guess; so no using birthdates or anniversaries. I'm going to check on my surveillance team," I told them, hoping I sounded authoritative enough that they wouldn't ask exactly whom that consisted of. "Then we're going to look at getting the best security system in the house that we can. Next time..."
"Next time?" Juliet whimpered, her voice starting to break.
"Next time, we'll be ready for them," said Rob, looking squarely at me. I nodded.
It didn't take me long to find the car containing my surveillance "crew." It helped that my mom was in the driver's seat and waving frantically all the way from when I stepped outside of the house with the bagged lamp in my hand, until I pulled open the passenger door.
"You didn't have to wave so long," I told her, leaning over to kiss her cheek.
"I didn't know if you saw me."
"I was walking towards you!"
"Why were you checking their door? You ran in there like the house was on fire!"
"I would never run into a house on fire." At least, I hoped I wouldn't. It seemed dumb, but I suppose it depended on who was inside. "Someone was in the house last night," I told Mom before she asked anymore questions. Unfortunately, I opened with something that couldn’t fail to inspire even more questions.
"Were they burglarized?"
"No, someone just went in and moved a bunch of stuff. Nothing was missing."
"That's weird."
"Agreed. What time did you get here?"
"Eight. And your father stayed until ten last night."
"Did you see anyone?"
"I saw a couple walking their dog."
"Did they go into the house?"
"No."
"Did you see anyone approach the house? Or knock on the door? Or go around back?"
Mom shook her head. "No, sorry."
"That's okay. I figure the break-in happened during the night. I have to go. I need to get my clients a new security system."
"You should ask Antonio. The system he installed for Serena is very good. She even has one of those little cameras over the door so she can see who's out there."
I brightened. My ex-colleague, Tony Delgado, was extremely efficient when it came to electronic systems. I asked him to install my sister's alarm system back when she was getting a divorce, and her now ex-husband was defining exactly what it meant to be an asshat. Delgado installed a comprehensive system and started dating my sister, which no one ever gave me any credit for. Later, after my nighttime attack at home, he was part of the crew Solomon assembled to install my alarm system.
What I needed for Juliet, though, was the ultimate security system, something that would record all the rooms in the house, as well as alerting law enforcement if the stalker tried again. I thought it was highly likely they would; after all, Juliet was a sitting duck thanks to her bail conditions and the ankle bracelet keeping her under arrest. It was highly likely that the stalker now knew exactly where to find Juliet at all times and that thought was very worrying.
"Can you watch over them a while longer?" I asked.
"Sure. I'm enjoying it."
"Nothing happened."
"That's not the point. I'm putting my skills into practice. This is invaluable experience."
"For what?"
Mom beamed and tapped her little digital camera. "For the next time you ask me."
"There might not be a next time," I told her as gently as possible.
"There will," Mom countered. "You're always getting into some kind of trouble. This way, I can help get you out of it."
I was too tired to argue. I could only hope the hours of inactivity would numb my mom toward offering further help. Not that I was ungrateful. I was very grateful that she stepped in to help when I was not just short-staffed, but empty-staffed. As I sat with my mother looking at the house, I wondered if the surveillance would pay off in another way. Perhaps the stalker would spot my volunteers and be deterred from anymore activity.
I tried calling Delgado but his cell phone was switched off. That meant he was off-duty and probably at my sister's. "I'm heading over to Serena's. Do you know if she's home?"
"Yes, she is, and so is Antonio. She told me she had a lot of paperwork today and would be home all day, except for when she took Victoria to daycare. I think she has a date with Antonio tonight. I'm babysitting."
"That's nice of you."
"I look forward to babysitting for you one day."
"I'll remember to call on you often," I said, rather than arguing about my mom's favorite topic, namely, the unoccupied territory that I called my uterus.
"You need to get on with..."
"See you later!" I climbed out of her car and walked over to mine, depositing the lamp in the trunk before sliding into the peaceful, quiet driver's seat with a deep sigh. I drove to Lily's bar on my way to Serena's, figuring I could use a coffee and someone to bounce ideas off. I found Lily at the bar, arranging the bottles in some order that only she knew.
"What's happenin'?" she asked as I slid onto a barstool.
"Juliet's house was broken into."
"Ohmygosh! Is she okay?"
"Yes, she and Rob were asleep in bed when it happened, but Juliet is pretty shaken up."