There was a click. Five seconds later, a familiar and kindly voice sounded in my ear.
“Hello, Beth,” Detective Aberson said. “I had a feeling I might be hearing from you today. How are you?”
I bit my lip. “I didn’t know he was out,” I said softly. “How the hell did he manage to get out so fast?”
Detective Aberson sighed. “I don’t know, Beth,” he said. “I know this is the guy responsible for some heinous shit around the city.”
“I want to testify,” I said. “I want to testify that he threatened me to stay silent for the murder of Michael Bennett.”
“Are you sure?” Detective Aberson coughed wetly into the receiver. “That’s a lot of stress to go through, Beth. That might be very hard on you. Are you sure you’re ready for something as difficult as that?”
“Yes,” I said. My voice quavered and shook. “I don’t have a choice,” I added. “Michael would want me to do this.”
“I understand, Beth,” Detective Aberson said. “I’m proud of you. I’ll call you soon. Try not to leave the city for a few days, okay?”
“I won’t.”
“And can you come down tomorrow? Maybe in the evening?”
“I’ll be there at six-thirty.”
Beth
The next day, my manager called and told me not to come into work. I was disappointed – rent was coming up, and I had nowhere near my half of the apartment to hand over to Heather. Still, it was nice to have a day off. After I got off the phone with my manager, I went back to sleep and stayed in bed until after eleven-thirty in the morning.
By the time I finally got up, I was feeling pretty rested and calm. I took a long bath with my favorite lavender shower gel and read the first three chapters of Wuthering Heights. At first, when Michael had died, I’d never felt like reading fiction again. Whenever I read a love scene, his face popped into my mind. But now I was really feeling like a new person…almost like Michael hadn’t existed at all.
The only thing keeping me from really enjoying my day was knowing that I had to go downtown and speak to Detective Aberson. I wondered what kind of questions he’d ask. I also couldn’t help worrying about Alessio’s thugs – would they come after me again? I’d told the detective that I wasn’t afraid, but the truth was that I was pretty frightened. After all, it wasn’t like I had the Bennett security or money to fend off attackers anymore. Douglas had given me a measly check of five hundred dollars. He’d informed me that had I actually married his son, I’d have been entitled to half of Michael’s fortune in the event of his death.
Part of me almost wished that we had married before the accident, if only to stick it to Douglas’s greedy self.
Heather was out. She was still a little miffed from the night before. After I’d gotten off the phone with the detective, I hadn’t come out for dinner. I knew that I’d hurt her feelings, but I was still trying to decide how the hell I was going to tell her about everything going on. I wanted her support, obviously, but I also didn’t want her jumping to conclusions when she didn’t know very much.
To be honest, I was also afraid of Alessio finding her…and hurting her, as a way to get to me.
I decided to hop over to my favorite coffee place and get a drink before I was expected downtown. Who knows, I thought as I breezed down the street. Maybe caffeine will help me calm down.
The coffee shop was crowded – lots of students, people working from home, and tired commuters in wrinkled suits. I waited in line, then ordered a caramel and peanut butter latte. The barista was someone I’d seen before, and we made small talk. It felt good to be doing something so normal in the midst of my life’s total chaos.
“Don’t look now,” the barista said, leaning close. “But that guy over there is staring at you. Do you know him?”
I shook my head. “I don’t,” I said. I glanced over my shoulder and shivered. There was a man watching me. He had olive skin, white teeth, and dark eyes that managed to look menacing even in the dim light of the shop.
“Well, he looks kind of creepy,” the barista said. She handed me my latte and I took a sip. “I’d keep an eye out for him.”
I frowned. The only empty seat left in the shop was right next to the man, but I didn’t want to risk him trying to speak with me. Instead, I walked over to the other side of the shop and leaned against the wall. A group of college students was complaining about a professor’s ridiculously difficult assignment and I pretended to listen, nodding and bobbing my head along with the conversation.
I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching me. When I glanced up, I saw the man staring at me with the same creepy, broad smile.
What do you want, I thought as I glared right back. A tremor of fear crossed my heart as the man raised his eyebrows. He went from looking scary to truly demonic in that second, and my latte trembled in my hand.
“Hey, lady, shove off,” one of the college kids said. “We don?
??t know you, go away.”
“Sorry, sorry,” I mumbled. I tripped over my foot and fell, spilling my peanut butter latte all over my new shoes and the dirty floor. “Shit!” I yelled.
One of the college girls rolled her eyes. She handed me a wad of napkins and knelt down, blotting the coffee until the napkins were stained tan.