Eyes Like the Night

by Emma Accola

  “You think Harry Spice did.”

  “Well,” I said uncertainly, dragging out the word.

  “Why do you say that? And don’t mince words. It’s one of my twenty questions.”

  “Caleb had reason to be scared for you. He wasn’t the type who would commit an act that random without some compelling reason.”

  “What would compel him to impersonate me?”

  “I think he was afraid of what Harry Spice would do to you. I think he knew something about that psychopath that he never shared with you.”

  Micah’s eyes flashed. “I was his investigator. We never kept secrets from each other. If there was something, I would have known about it.”

  A tiny little flicker of fury rose up inside me as it always did when I thought of Tamra’s assault. “This is Harry Spice we’re talking about. Could it be that Caleb saw his vindictiveness and was trying to protect you from him?”

  Micah’s words developed an angry edge. “You’re insinuating that Caleb saw me as some helpless child. He wouldn’t have kept me in the dark that way.”

  “He could read people really well, even better than you.”

  “I know. He told me that you knew as you left the witness stand that the jury would find Harry Spice guilty.”

  That surprised me, even though it was true. Recklessly, I went on. “You talk about how Caleb was the one who liked the long arc of justice, but it was you more than he, wasn’t it? You’re the one who didn’t think Harry Spice assaulted Tamra. You believed Harry Spice, and you doubted my story and the credibility of the forensic dentist.”

  Micah’s shoulders became rigid. “I’ve never denied it.”

  My hands grew hot and moist because I was about to take this conversation in a direction that I had been afraid to go before. “Without me and that forensic dentist there wouldn’t have been a case and Harry Spice wouldn’t have exacted his revenge on Caleb.” My words came quickly, tumbling over each other as if they were fleeing my mouth. I calmed myself for fear of sounding pathetic. “If not for me, your brother would still be alive. You must resent me.”

  “You wanted justice for your dear friend. I don’t blame you for that. How could I?”

  My voice became a whisper. “Because it’s true.”

  Micah eyes flitted back and forth across my face, as if he were trying to gather his thoughts. “Harry Spice didn’t care about being found not guilty. He only cared about winning. You cared about justice for Tamra. For what it’s worth, I never blamed you for what happened afterward. We’re in this together. And without the case, I wouldn’t have met you.”

  I looked away so he wouldn’t see how much his words had moved me. And then my next thought was to wonder whether he would stay only as long as it was easy. When I stepped toward Micah, he pulled me into his arms. The tension melted from my bones. As if he felt a weakness, Micah picked me up and carried me into the living room. He sat down on the couch, cradling me in his arms amid all the animal prints and glass eyes of the lifeless zoo. The sensation of safety and comfort, so foreign, almost scared me. I wondered how I could trust it when everything else had become ephemeral.

  “What are you thinking?” he asked softly as he pulled a fuzzy afghan around me.

  “I’m wondering how long you will stay.”

  “As long as you want me.”

  “You left for two days.”

  “I thought that I could think more clearly by myself, but it turned out that the best thinking I’ve ever done in my life was with you at my side.” Micah’s voice came as gentle as a whisper. The flames, reaching and trembling in the fireplace, caused shadows to caper across his face. He smiled. “I still remember the exact moment you bewitched me. Do you know?”

  “It had to be that night on campus when you tried so hard to fool me with an alias.” Now it was my turn to smile. “You tried to intimidate me so that I would crumble like a rice cake on the witness stand.”

  Micah’s eyes flickered back the firelight. “You responded by trying to intimidate me.”

  “That served you right for underestimating me.”

  “But you were nothing like I expected. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine being called out by a petite little English major slash bookkeeper who wore her life like a comfortable old bathrobe. Man, did I get schooled. It’s like you’re a star in the sky, all cool light from a distance and a burning inferno up close.”

  “And you thought you could come at me with your gorgeous eyes and sculpted cheekbones and I’d be putty in your hands, all ready for you to form up into what you wanted.” I laid my hand on the side of his face. “How could you have been so naïve?”

  He kissed my palm. “I thought you were a pampered daughter of a wine dynasty who liked to party and read British literature so you could pretend to the world that you had a career path.”

  “You really thought I earned a doctorate so I wouldn’t seem too vacant at dinner parties? I don’t know whether to laugh or be insulted.” For a second I caught his fingertips in my teeth and nipped. “That night we met, you were an innocent little bunny who hopped right into my trap.”

  He grasped my chin. “This little bunny went away from you thinking that you could stand toe-to-toe with me, be at my side, have my back, and list my soul. But that’s not the night you bewitched me.”

  I twined my fingers in his. “No?”

  “No, you cast the spell when Caleb showed me a picture of you wearing a gorgeous little black dress with cut-outs over the shoulders and tiny little sparkles all around the bodice and hemline. You’re standing in front of a wooden railing holding a wineglass. The wind is blowing your hair around your face. You looked incredibly beautiful.”

  “Yes, that dress,” I said, puzzled. No images of me in that dress had ever appeared on social media because of what had come afterward. How had Caleb gotten them?

  “You rocked that dress.”

  “Yes, thanks.” In fact, that little black sheath had cost me two weeks’ salary.

  “Did I say something wrong?” Micah asked as his eyes searched my face.

  Why did he have to be so aware of my moods? My voice became rough. “I was wearing that dress the night I told Leonardo we were over. He just gaped at me like I was making a bad joke. When I didn’t answer his calls or texts for a week, eventually he got a clue and started fighting for the relationship.”

  “But not for you.”

  I flinched as if stung. That distinction hurt. “Leonardo saw me as an accessory to his life. He never knew what was in my heart and soul and didn’t think to ask.”

  “But you got back together with him,” he said softly. “Why?”

  “Faith accused me of being impossible to please. Mom and Dad thought I had lost my mind. So did his parents. I wanted something else and couldn’t figure out what that was.”

  “Wanting is painful.” It was a statement, not a question. “Don’t ever settle again.”

  “Who said I settled before?” I asked, testy because everyone had told me what a catch Leonardo was.

  “I’m saying it.” Micah’s gaze was moving around my face. His fingers still played in the tendrils of my hair. “For you Leonardo was settling.”

  I wanted to argue the point, but couldn’t. “Well, then don’t you ever settle again either.”

  Micah tightened his arms around me. “You know, I probably shouldn’t tell you this because your ego will grow out of control, but I grinned like a fool when I heard you’d been hired at Bailey College.”

  My heart swelled. “How big of a fool?”

  “So big that it’s a good thing my office door was shut when I saw the email.”

  My fingertip caressed his cheek. “But you stayed away from me.”

  Micah took my fingertip and kissed it. “Back then I was afraid of what Harry Spice would do to you because of me.”

  “My dad always says that fate meets you on the road you take to avoid it.”

  “Then maybe we’re together for a reason.�
��

  “We are. Because of that, I just might keep you around.”

  I turned my face toward Micah and he leaned down to touch his mouth to mine. My insides exploded and lights flashed in my head. I had imagined this for far too long, ever since the first moment my eyes found Micah’s handsome face. I could hardly move, so captivated by sensation that I forgot to breathe. Muscles deep inside me clenched. My hand crept toward the back of his neck and I pulled him tighter against me. I wanted him so badly. He started kissing the curve of my jaw, my chin, and my neck. My fingers found the button on his suit jacket, unfastened it, and then slid across his warm torso. He was so strong. I could feel his biceps bulging and hardening as he leaned over me.

  It was almost painful when he pulled away.

  “Good night, sweet Gracie,” he said on his way out.

  I pushed the door shut behind him and then leaned against it, grinning like a fool.

  *

  The next day, during the English Department faculty meeting, I paid attention to whether the other faculty seemed aware of the accusations against me. None stole glances at me or avoided looking in my direction. All were natural and relaxed, their minds on the meeting. I knew this bit of peace was only temporary. Deans always had certain faculty members they talked to, and those faculty were friends with other faculty. For a short time, promises not to tell would hold back the news of my disgrace, but then, as inexorably as the Sierra snowmelt, the word of my ignominy would spread, one person at a time. Meanwhile, I could enjoy the peace while it lasted.

  My mind drifted off while the dean reminded us about a policy stating that only approved service animals were allowed in the classrooms. He used a projector to show the form the students needed to present when bringing in an animal. Then he went on about duplicating allocations and a new program meant to reduce the amount of freshmen attrition, subjects that only managed to capture half my attention. My face showed earnest engagement in the meeting, but my mind was all over Micah. When I finally got back to my office, I stared out the window with a small, satisfied smile. Micah liked me. He had pined for me, as I had for him. My feet could hardly touch the floor. Finally, with the application of great effort, did I marshal enough of my attention span to get some work done. After finishing grading a set of quizzes and doing my lesson prep for the next day, I drove Micah’s Lexus home.

  After dark, though I was annoyed at myself for doing this, I kept looking out onto my patio for the reflection of Micah’s kitchen lights to see if he had come home. My imagination churned with ideas for getting him to visit. I could offer him dinner, something hearty and bold, since it was late in fall. My mother had always complimented my cooking, but which recipes would appeal to Micah? It would be easy enough to get him over for dinner. I could just say that I wanted to return the favor of the lasagna he had served me, but what would I make? What menu said that I liked him without coming across as a meal meant for a seduction? It was like the difference between red roses and white carnations. I pondered this as I went to the cluster boxes of my townhouse complex to collect the mail.

  Harry Spice stood by them waiting for me. He wore a knowing smile as he leaned against his low, red sports car, his arms crossed over his chest as he watched me approach. My step faltered. He noticed and grinned. I had to come within five feet of him to get my mail. I wanted to flee, but my determination not to let him win got the better of me. I’ll have my mail, come hell, high water, or Harry Spice.

  “What do you want?” I snapped.

  “To see you, of course. You always get your mail after work.”

  “Now you’ve seen me. Take your sick ass home.”

  “Not until we’ve talked.”

  I turned my back on him as I inserted the key into the mailbox lock. My shaking fingers could barely hold the mail. “Everything I’ve ever had to say to you came out in court.”

  Harry Spice put one of his arms on the cluster box, trapping me. I spun around, glaring. He tipped his head from side to side like a predator trying to decide where to take the first bite. His tall body loomed over mine. Impeccably dressed as always, the ironed creases in his clothes menaced me like knives.

  “Oh, but my little Gracie, there’s still so much unsaid.”

  “Let it stay that way.” My trembling legs wanted to take a step away, but I held my ground. I locked the box before facing him again. “Back off.”

  He looked amused as he took a couple steps toward his car. “I thought you should know that the student reporter who came to your office has gotten her hands on the entire transcript of my trial. It will take her a while to read it. She didn’t seem like the brightest bulb on the porch, but she’s ambitious and that can make up for a lot. Once she gets her article written, everyone at Bailey College will know all about your role in my unjust incarceration. Then they’ll know what’s going on between you and Micah Ekstrand.”

  “In lurid detail.”

  Harry Spice laughed. “Why bother if it’s not?”

  “Go ahead and remind everyone that you’re a rapist.”

  He smirked. “I’ll say it again, dear Gracie, for all the good it will do me. I never raped Tamra.”

  I felt cold fingers walking up my spine. “I saw you that night.”

  Harry Spice bent down to whisper in my ear. “And I saw you. For what it’s worth, that dress Tamra was wearing looked better on your sexy little body.”

  My heart started pounding. How had he known about that dress? Had he been at the restaurant that night I broke up with Leonardo, the only time I’d ever worn it?

  Harry Spice chuckled. “That dress was burning, smoking hot, the way it hugged your breasts and draped over your cute little ass. Pity you only wore it the once. Your idiot fiancé didn’t even notice how all the other men stared at you when they thought he wasn’t looking. I was at the bar watching when one of the guys at your table got down and proposed. That was sad since you had expected him to propose to you. The dumbass shouldn’t have gotten your hopes up by telling you it was going to be a night you’d always remember. No wonder you threw the dress into the garbage. I’m glad for the dress’s sake that Tamra rescued it.”

  My hand covered my mouth as I closed my eyes for a moment. “How did you know that I’d thrown that dress away?”

  He paused, taking in the various emotions flitting over my face. “The night of the attack Tamra told you that she was going to wear the dress to go out dancing with her friends. She made some joke about how it was fated for her because you had thrown it out. He watched her in the dim light because she hadn’t closed the drapes on the balcony doors.”

  My knees felt like they were vibrating. Who watched her and how?

  “Tamra fluffed the pillows on the couch as the two of you talked on the phone about being almost out of coffee and half-and-half. She added it to the grocery list and you promised to go to the store in the morning.”

  My hands became icy.

  “And you’re wondering how I know all that. Use that keen and penetrating mind of yours. Think.”

  Ordinarily I bristled whenever anyone told me to think, but in this time and place, the command chilled my blood. Then my stomach lurched at the realization that something that night must have been transmitting sound and images from my and Tamra’s apartment. Knowing Harry Spice as we did, we had been vigilant about watching for any sort of camera or listening device, including our own laptops and cell phones. I searched my memory for something that could have hidden a camera in the living room. What had gotten past us? Then suddenly I knew.

  “It was the Teddy bear, wasn’t it? It played love songs. You sent it after I broke up with Leonardo. He didn’t.”

  “Oh, dear Gracie, it was one of my more inspired creations. I counted on the fact that you didn’t care enough about Leonardo to really look at his gift.” His eyes travelled around my face. “Little Teddy is like a metaphor for your relationship, all words and silly tunes with no one looking inside. Of course, little Teddy didn’t see everyth
ing. Tamra stuck him up on a shelf so his lens was partially obscured by a Russian nesting doll. The video wasn’t that great, but the microphone worked well enough.”

  The ramification of his words hit me like blows. “Where were you when the intruder broke in?”

  “In my car, of course, at least most of the time, monitoring Tamra through the Teddy bear. The party host had good Wi-Fi. I was at the party. You saw me.”

  The memories tumbled around in my head. I had thought I had seen Harry Spice at the party, a fractured hint when some party guests jostled past, bumping me, but foolishly had doubted my own eyes. The room had been crowded and warm with dancing bodies. Alcohol made my perceptions fuzzy around the edges. “I glimpsed you when I was looking for my bracelet.”

  Harry Spice dangled a bracelet in front of my face. “Is this it?”

  I snatched it away from him. “My parents gave me that for my eighteenth birthday. You stole it off my wrist.”

  “I acquired it from your wrist so you would believe me when I told you this story. You left the party shortly after my acquisition and stood outside on the sidewalk laughing with a couple friends.”

  Everything I knew about that night seemed to tilt sideways. Harry Spice had been monitoring Tamra that night through the Teddy bear while at the party with me. I was the one who had interested him that night, not her. So why was he watching Tamra through the Teddy bear and yet surveilling me? That Teddy bear had disappeared that night. Until this moment I thought the rapist had taken it. My breath came quicker.

  “You came to our apartment to retrieve the Teddy bear.”

  “I couldn’t allow it to be found by the police. Think of the bad publicity that would have generated.”

  Hot rage burned my face when I put the pieces together. “You knew about the rapist and that I would call the police when I got home. The Teddy bear is what I saw you carrying in the hallway that night. That Teddy bear could have shown the identity of the rapist and proved your innocence.”

  “Think again, cutie pie.”

  I could hardly breathe for the wrath that tightened my chest. “That court case against you didn’t have to happen, you sick-ass bastard.”