“You!” Suzette said, her voice loud. “You were the one who wanted to know if I had a little girl.” She felt her body start to tremble with fury.
“I’m sorry, but you need to go.” The woman tried to close the door, but Suzette was blocking it now.
“I’m not going anywhere until you explain to me what’s going on.” Suzette stepped over the threshold and pushed the door open, shoving the woman backward. “Why are you stalking me?” She was in the front entryway now, facing off with her. At such close range it was apparent that she was just a little mouse of a woman. One Suzette could easily intimidate.
“Get out of my house. Now.” The woman looked shocked at her boldness.
Suzette laughed. “Not until you tell me what your problem is with me and my family.”
“You’re crazy. You need to leave now. I’m going to call the police.” The woman was trying to keep her voice steady, like she was in charge, but Suzette detected fear and knew she had the upper hand.
Suzette said, “Go ahead and call the police. Then you can explain why you’ve been nosing around, climbing over my fence, trespassing on my property, looking in my windows.” The woman’s eyes widened, making Suzette think she was onto something. “That’s right,” she said smugly. “Last night. In my yard. I know it was you, and I have it on film as well.” She leaned toward her and watched as the woman shrank back. “What do you have to say to that?”
“I believe you are mistaken, and I think you should go.”
“I’m not mistaken,” Suzette insisted.
“You need to leave right this minute.”
“Explain yourself!”
The woman turned on her heel and walked away from her, the very thing Suzette hated. She was up for almost anything: drama, tears, anger. But she couldn’t stand being ignored. From down the hall, the woman said, “In a minute I’ll have the police on the phone, and you’ll be charged with unlawful entry.”
Suzette wasn’t that well versed in small crimes and misdemeanors, but “unlawful entry” sounded like an actual thing. She yelled back, “I’m leaving, but don’t think I’m going to forget about this. The police will be reviewing the video footage, and once they confirm it’s you, they’ll be taking you away in handcuffs.” She slammed the door on her way out and strode angrily down the walkway to her car. The nerve of the woman to talk to her that way.
After she’d gotten into her car and buckled her seat belt, Suzette took a quick look at her phone, smiling when she saw there was a new text. Mary had messaged back saying she’d love to meet for drinks and dinner, and she’d suggested a new restaurant across town. They have small plates! Along with a smiley face and some random food emojis. As if small plates were some new, exciting concept. Poor, sad Mary had so little in her life. Suzette confirmed the place and texted back with a time.
Tonight would certainly be the highlight of Mary’s year. Suzette was glad she was the one who could give her this thrill.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
When Sharon realized that Suzette wasn’t going to budge, she left her standing in the front hall and went to retrieve her phone from the kitchen counter. It was a relief when Suzette yelled that she was leaving, but the encounter still left Sharon shaking. After she heard the door close, she returned to the front of the house and peered through the gap in the living room drapes, watching Suzette in her car. From what she could tell, Suzette was sitting there, calm as could be, boldly looking at her phone. Was she talking to the police? It didn’t look like it, but it was hard to say.
Sharon still had her eyes on the car as Suzette pulled away from the curb and drove away at a leisurely pace. Apparently Sharon’s threat of calling the police hadn’t worried her at all. Was that because she had nothing to hide, or was the woman completely lacking in remorse?
Letting the drapes drop, she turned her attention to her phone, quickly dialing Amy’s number. As usual, it went to voice mail, so Sharon frantically filled her in on what had happened and asked her to call back as soon as possible. “It’s urgent,” she said.
Ten minutes later, Amy called back, opening the conversation by saying, “Have you completely lost your mind?”
“In my defense—” Sharon started to say, but Amy wasn’t going to let her go there.
“I thought you’d be a good influence on Niki. I never imagined you two would dream up some half-baked plan and you’d get her in trouble.” From there, Amy went on to talk about how Sharon had done the complete opposite of what Amy had advised. “Didn’t I tell you to sit tight and let the experts do their jobs? Didn’t you promise me you wouldn’t do anything rash? You agreed with everything I said, so I’m not sure how all this happened.” From the exasperation in her voice, a person would have thought she was the parent and Sharon was the kid.
“I’m willing to concede that we might have made a few mistakes . . .”
“A few mistakes?” Amy whooped with laughter. “Talk about an understatement.”
“We can’t go back, though, so what’s your advice for what I should do now? Do I call the police and tell them she forced her way into my house? Or should I call the social worker and let her know everything that has happened?”
“How about doing both?”
“Yes, but if we tell the whole story, won’t we get into trouble for going into her yard?”
“You might, but that’s a relatively minor offense.”
“I wouldn’t care if it were just me, but I don’t want Niki to get into trouble.”
Amy sighed. “This sounds like something you should have thought of before you had Niki climb a fence and spy on the neighbor.”
“What if I just call the social worker and explain? Do you think she can help me navigate the situation legally?”
“Oh, Mom.”
“What?”
“It’s not her job to help you get out of trouble. I can’t believe you even asked that.”
Sharon could picture her daughter shaking her head disapprovingly. She took a breath and said, “Help me out here, Amy. I just don’t know what to do.”
“Mom, I have a meeting in ten minutes,” she said abruptly.
“So you have nine minutes to talk me through this?”
“No, I have zero minutes. I always take a few minutes before a meeting to go over my notes, and I really should be doing that right now.”
So why didn’t she wait until after the meeting to call me back? Sometimes Amy was a puzzle. “Well, thanks anyhow. I’ll figure something out.”
“I’m sure you will. Oh, and, Mom?”
“Yes?”
“Going forward, don’t open the door for strangers.”
Amy wrapped up the conversation by saying they’d talk later in the day. Sharon thanked her for calling, even as she felt as if the discussion hadn’t been helpful at all. When it came right down to it, her only option was to file a police report saying that Suzette had forced her way into her house and threatened her, but she had no proof that the incident had actually happened. There also was a risk in doing so, since Suzette could bring up the fact that Niki had been in their yard peering into their windows the night before. She’d claimed to have video footage, something Sharon thought dubious, but she’d made the accusation with such conviction that it did leave her wondering.
No, she decided. She wasn’t going to call the police. Let Suzette make the first move, if there was going to be one. There was one person she wanted to talk to, though. Picking up her phone, she called Niki and left a quick voice mail. Thirty seconds later, her phone rang.
“What’s up?” Niki asked cheerfully.
“Can you talk?”
“Sure, there’s no one in the store, and Albert said it was okay. Funny thing you called—I just saw Suzette Fleming drive by. She’s a terrible driver. Barely paused at the stop sign.”
“She’s the reason I’m calling.”
When Sharon finished telling the whole story, Niki was irate on her behalf. “She pushed her way into the hou
se?” Niki said. “Now that takes balls.”
“I was really afraid,” Sharon admitted.
“Well, of course you were,” Niki said, her tone protective. “Anyone would be.”
“At one point she got aggressive, and I honestly thought she was going to hit me.”
“That bitch!” Niki exhaled in disgust.
“She wouldn’t leave until I went to get my phone and told her I was going to call the police.”
“Did you call them?”
“No, I didn’t want to start something.” Sharon knew Niki would understand the meaning behind the words.
“So are you okay now?”
“If I’m going to be completely honest, I’m still a little shaken up.”
“Yeah, I bet. Just a minute, okay?”
“Certainly.”
Sharon could hear Niki’s voice in the background. When she returned, she said, “It’s slow here, so Albert said I could go home early. I’m getting my coat right now.”
“I can pick you up.” The offer was half-hearted but sincere.
“No, keep the doors locked and stay inside. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
A wave of relief washed over Sharon. “Thank you, Niki.”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Sharon had hot tea ready when Niki got home, so after she took off her coat and boots, they both sat down at the kitchen table. After Sharon was done relating the full story of the confrontation with Suzette, Niki made a decision. “I’m going to go over there right now.”
“No, you don’t want to do that.”
“Yes, I do. Just listen a minute.” Niki had an argument ready. “It’s a fair guess that Mrs. Fleming is gone, and I saw the school bus go by, so Jacob should be home by now. I think he really likes me. I bet I can get him to tell me what the deal is with the little girl. And if I can get in the house, maybe I’ll even see her and get a photo.”
Sharon shook her head, and Niki knew she was thinking about Amy’s warning.
“Oh, honey, I can’t let you do that. We’re already in trouble. She says she has video footage . . .”
Niki scoffed. “She doesn’t have video footage. You said she seemed surprised to see you, right? That she seemed nice at first, but then she recognized you, and that’s when she got mean.”
“Yes, that’s exactly what happened.”
“And she thought it was you climbing over the fence?”
Again, Sharon nodded. “That’s right.”
“She’s got nothin’.” Niki waved a hand dismissively. “She saw something in her backyard, or maybe she noticed my tracks in the snow, but she certainly doesn’t have video footage, or she’d already have reported it to the police. She came over to ask if you’d seen anything, and then when she recognized you, she knew something was up. She only lashed out at you because she’s scared. We’re onto her and she knows it.” She wrapped her hands around the warm mug.
Sharon leaned over and gave her arm a motherly squeeze. “It’s nice that you want to see this thing through, but you can’t go over there. I can’t let you take a chance like that.” She sighed. “No, I’m thinking we need to pull back. Amy said to let the experts handle it, and I think that was good advice. I should have listened to her in the first place.”
“You’re afraid Amy is going to get mad.”
“That’s part of it,” Sharon admitted. “She’s already mad. And I don’t want her to get even madder. But she does have a point. We need to let the social worker handle this. We’re probably just making things worse.”
“Maybe it can’t get any worse.” Niki took a sip of her tea. “You wouldn’t believe the horror stories I’ve heard. Knowing what I know, I can’t stand by and do nothing. Give me ten minutes with Jacob and he’ll crack like an egg. A simple conversation, that’s all I’m saying. What could go wrong?”
“And what if Mrs. Fleming answers the door? She’ll recognize you from the nutrition store.”
“But she doesn’t know I’m connected to you,” Niki pointed out. “If she comes to the door, I’ll say that I came to apologize for my behavior. I know her type. I’ll ask for her forgiveness. Really lay it on thick. Believe me, it will totally make her day.”
“Oh, Niki.” Worry crossed Sharon’s face, but she didn’t say no.
“I’ve got this. And if it comes up with Amy, I’ll tell her it was my idea and you advised against it.”
Niki didn’t waste any time after that. She pulled the elastic off of her ponytail and combed through her hair with her fingers before putting on her outerwear and heading for the door. Sharon offered to drive her, and Niki responded, “Don’t be ridiculous. It’s just around the block.”
As Niki made her way down the front walk, Sharon called out, “Be careful!” Niki gave a wave in return.
When she got to the Flemings’ house, Niki hesitated for a second and stared at the house from the street. There was nothing menacing about the place. The windows on the first floor were covered, but even that didn’t look suspicious. Some people liked privacy. The driveway and front walk were neatly shoveled, and the garage door was lowered. No one passing by would guess there was anything out of the ordinary going on here. Which made it even more imperative to see this thing through. Gathering up her courage, she strode up the driveway and turned onto the L-shaped front walk until she was on the front porch. She gave the doorbell button a push and slipped off her gloves, tucking them into her coat pockets.
A long time passed before the door opened, but when it did, Jacob was the one who answered, his face peering around the edge of the door as if afraid of what he might find there. When he recognized her, his expression changed to guardedly happy. “Niki?”
“Hey, Jacob!” She kept her tone light, as if they were old friends who’d unexpectedly run into each other. “I thought this was your house. Do you have a few minutes?”
He sucked in a breath and glanced back over his shoulder. “Sure. What’s up?”
“Someone dropped a twenty-dollar bill at the Village Mart, and no one’s come back to claim it. I thought of you right away and wanted to check to see if you’re missing any money.”
His eyes narrowed in thought. “I don’t think so.”
Niki unzipped her coat. Quickly shaking it off, she slung it over one arm. She leaned toward him so that their noses almost met. “Well,” she said in what she hoped was a seductive way, “as long as I’m here, how about a tour of the house? I’d love to see inside the world of Jacob Fleming.”
“You want to come in?”
“Yeah, just for a few minutes. I won’t stay long, I promise.”
“Umm . . .” From the look on his face, it was clear he wanted to let her in, but something was holding him back.
“Are your folks home? I can come at another time.” She tossed her hair over her shoulder and gave a flirtatious laugh. “Although I’m here right now. Ready and waiting.”
Jacob shook his head. “No, my parents aren’t home.” He turned to look behind him. “It’s just me.” He held up a finger. “Can you wait just a minute? Don’t leave.” He closed the door to narrow the gap, but he didn’t shut it all the way.
Niki felt the cold but kept her coat off, certain she’d be going inside soon. She had counted on Jacob Fleming being like most guys. She suspected she was right.
When he returned a few minutes later, he opened the door wide, grinning. “Come on in.”
Inside, she wiped her feet on the front rug, a wool rectangle patterned with fleur-de-lis. “I like your house,” she said, looking around.
“It’s not mine,” he said. “And you don’t have to be nice. My mom picked out everything, and her taste sucks.”
“She won’t mind that I’m here?”
He shook his head. “She’s gone until later tonight.”
Niki laughed and placed a hand on his arm. Without his usual hoodie he looked less bulky, but the gray T-shirt with the biohazard symbol he wore wasn’t all that flattering either. His hair fell over
his forehead and curled around his ears. Jacob had the appearance of someone who was trying to hide in plain sight, but in this instance his expression said he was glad she was there. “I want to see all of it,” she said.
He walked her through each room, and she made positive comments as they went along. In the laundry room, she spotted a little dog curled up on a dog bed. “Hi, puppy,” she said.
“That’s Griswold.”
“Can I pet him?” When Jacob nodded, she bent down and stroked his head. “Such a good boy,” she cooed. “Aren’t you a sweet thing.” When she finished, they continued on, ending up in the kitchen. “Everything is spotless,” she marveled, running a finger over the island counter. “It even smells clean.” She grinned at him. “Like a hospital.”
“My mom is mentally ill that way. She’s a big fan of those bleach wipes.” He placed his hand on the counter next to her own. “And if anything is ever dirty or out of place, she has a complete meltdown. Usually she blames me, even if it’s not my fault.”
“Wow, how terrible for you.” She set her hand over his. “I can sympathize.”
“Your grandmother is crazy too?”
“No, she’s okay. I’ve encountered other crazies, though. I have no idea why people have to be that way.”
“Me either.”
He leaned in as if to kiss her, and she squeezed his hand and turned her head. “I want to see the upstairs.”
Jacob led the way, nervously talking as he went. “Don’t be surprised if my room is a mess. I kind of like it that way. It’s the one place I can be myself. If it was up to my mom, it would be empty except for the furniture.” He opened a door on the left and said, “My dad’s office.” Niki noticed a bedroom pillow and a folded blanket on the sofa opposite the desk and had an idea of what that was all about. On the same side of the hallway, they passed a bathroom and a room Jacob called his mother’s room. He opened the door to reveal a bedroom filled with white furniture with gold trim.
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