by J. L. Drake
His night had proved futile once again. Frustration at not being any closer to finding the bastard bubbled to the surface and caused him to have a short fuse. He had used his siren without guilt as he cut across the morning’s traffic to get to Natalie’s office. He had tried to call but no one had picked up. Seeing as it was too early for Natalie’s receptionist to be there, he had taken a chance that she would still be at the office.
He leaned down and whirled the coffee under her nose before gently nudging her awake with his index finger. She groaned and blinked a couple times as she looked up at him, surprise etched onto her face. Natalie rubbed her hands over her face to wipe away the last vestige of sleep and frowned. Matt could see her wondering why he was there and wondered at that himself.
“Matt?” she asked, her voice croaky from sleep.
Matt raised the cup. “Coffee?”
She groaned again. “Yes, please.”
Natalie took the cup from his hands and sipped it, making another delightful sound that travelled the length of his spine to the ends of his toes. Please, he begged for sanity and control. A man can only take so much. He prayed she’d quit making noises that made him think things he shouldn’t. Any longer and he wouldn’t be able to hold off and might grab her and pull her down to the floor.
He watched as pure bliss passed over her face and thought she looked like she was in nirvana. Well, at least she was enjoying her coffee and he wondered if she enjoyed other things half as well. He shook his head to clear it and scolded himself for his undisciplined mind that was often wandering when he was around her. He had to be careful. As a cop he had to be vigilant at all times. One moment’s distraction could cost lives. He had to get his head in the game and keep it there or pack up and go home.
He sat down on the edge of Natalie’s desk as she sat up, tucking her feet beneath her chair. He watched as ten brightly painted pink toes disappeared before giving her his full attention.
“Officer Jeffries says you called last night—a lot. Want to tell me what’s on your mind?”
Natalie’s face paled, tension causing her lips to tighten. She clamped her hands harder around the coffee cup as if sucking the heat from it. Her eyes glistened in the light and Matt had to restrain himself from comforting her. She looked so scared and lost he felt pained. He made himself mentally take a step back. Natalie was just a consultant. He mustn’t treat her any differently. He waited patiently as she collected herself and watched as her hands loosened their hold on the cup.
The process took less than a minute but to Matt it felt like a lifetime. He rested his palms lightly on his thighs as Natalie swallowed and then in a clear voice spoke.
“I saw a man at my window last night.”
“What?”
He jumped off the desk so fast it gave him a head rush. He spun around to face her. He was furious to think someone had gotten close to her, someone who caused such a reaction from her. Natalie was hardly the type of woman to get riled up over nothing and she was clearly distressed. He was outraged on her behalf for the invasion on her privacy and he had to admit it, he was scared for her too. In such a small span of time, she had been hit, stalked, and now had men staring at her through the window. Something had to be done before this escalated any further. His hands became fists and hung uselessly against his thighs.
“Was it Derek?”
Natalie shook her head. “No. At least I don’t believe so. It was dark but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t Derek. I can’t tell you who it might’ve been though. I only saw his face for a second. A long heart stopping second,” she added. “And it was dark.”
How could she be so calm? He was sweating bullets just at the thought of someone being that close to her. He took a deep breath, telling himself to relax, forcing his fists to straighten out. He flexed his hands to work out the stiffness and when he felt his voice would be steady again he asked, “Have you seen him before?”
Natalie shrugged and took another sip of her coffee. “If I had, I wasn’t paying attention. I see so many people professionally and my social life leaves a lot to be desired.”
The blood pumping through his veins was cold. While he hadn’t had a chance yet to talk to Derek, he couldn’t rule him out even though Natalie was adamant it wasn’t him. Matt liked to believe it was him. Dealing with Derek would be a real pleasure, one he was certainly looking forward to. He didn’t like the thought of her being in danger.
“What did he look like? Can you remember?”
She picked up her notepad and handed it to him. Matt looked down at the roughly drawn face on the paper. She wasn’t by any means an artist but the impression was there.
“The only thing that really stuck with me was his eyes.”
“What about his eyes, Natalie?”
“Think about the darkest night you’ve ever seen. No moon, no stars. Nothing. Just lifeless black wells. As dramatic as that sounds, it’s the only way to describe them. I didn’t even know he was there watching me until by chance a flash of lightning lit up the sky.”
Matt’s hand became a fist again. He could hear the fear in her voice, even though she tried to hide it. Natalie would never admit it to him but he knew she was scared and when he found the man responsible, he would personally see to it that everything he inflicted on Natalie was paid back with interest.
“You know who else has dark eyes?” he asked. He shuddered to think that maybe Natalie had a new admirer. One who would not leave roses and chocolate on her doorstop.
“Who?”
“The Butcher.”
She laughed but the sound fell flat. “Why would he be interested in me?”
“Well, that’s the fucking question isn’t it?” he shouted. “One we don’t have a damn clue about and if he has his sights on you—”
He broke off as Natalie lay her hand on his arm. “I doubt that is the case, Matt, so let’s not go buying trouble. There could be a number of explanations as to my midnight visitor. The Butcher isn’t the only criminal in Harbour Bay and although my neighbourhood isn’t usually one targeted for burglary, we can’t rule it out.”
Matt stared stonily at her. She made it all sound so damn reasonable and had him looking like a jackass in a matter of minutes. He wasn’t ruling anything out though. The Butcher was out there and Natalie was standing in his way to get to Hallie.
“You know, at first, I thought I was imagining it. Overstimulated brain, a trick of the light…but when I went outside, I saw a footprint in the dirt and—”
His eyes widened as what she’d just said sank in. His voice was dangerously quiet when he spoke.
“You went outside?”
Natalie frowned at his tone.
“Well, yes.” She gave him a ‘duh, what else could I do’ look.
Stay calm, he told himself.
He gritted his teeth, reminding himself he could get in trouble if he shook her. Besides he didn’t think she would appreciate being shaken. She would more than likely return the favour by bopping him over the head with something hard. If the Butcher really had fixated on Natalie, she was in a mass amount of danger and for her to foolishly exit the safety of her home was more than enough to piss him off. For an intelligent woman she was being extremely stupid and he assumed she wouldn’t like being told so. He would have to be careful how he phrased things, because antagonising her wouldn’t help the situation.
“Are you fucking out of your ever-loving-mind?” he practically yelled at her. What the hell happened to finesse? He might as well jump right in with both feet. “You should be the one locked up inside Paradise Valley for your own safety. Jesus, haven’t you ever watched scary movies? You never go outside to investigate strange noises and you never go looking for trouble.”
Natalie stood up, planting her hands on her hips. Not a good sign. Matt took an instinctive step back. Growing up in a household of women had taught him when to back down or shut up or both, and right in front of him was one very pissed off woman and he had caused it. Natali
e was really spinning him for a loop for him to miss the warning signs. He knew she was only human and did what any person would do in the situation and he shouldn’t have lectured her. He was halfway towards an apology when she narrowed her eyes at him.
“And what would you have me do?” She stepped closer to him while he moved back. “Stay locked inside my house, unable to sleep for fear that a man could be looking through my windows, wondering if every sound I heard was him breaking in?”
She had a point. He wouldn’t have put up with that shit either. He looked into her angry eyes.
“Well put it that way,” he conceded.
“I won’t live my life in fear. No one will take my choices away from me.”
Again. He heard the word even though she hadn’t spoken it. He wondered what was hidden beneath the beautiful outer shell and if she would ever trust him enough to tell him. Her voice was fierce and he could see the determination in the deep blue of her eyes. She was shaken but wasn’t about to let the fear rule her life. She reminded him of Hallie. No wonder the two got on so well. There was a connection between them, one he hadn’t seen until now.
“Sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything. I just don’t like to think of you in danger. It’s more than I can deal with right now.”
She gave him a small nod. “I’m not totally unreasonable. I promise not to take any more unnecessary risks.”
She flashed him a bright smile, melting the ice that had fallen. Matt ran his hand through his hair and took the truce she was offering. He wasn’t entirely sure what had happened over the past few minutes. He had been through so many emotional changes his head spun, but he was a smart guy and smart guys didn’t question or argue. They just agreed.
“So what else happened last night?”
She shrugged, looking ridiculous in her pyjamas but cute at the same time. He wondered if she knew the sight she made.
“Oh, not much. The face at the window was the highlight of the evening.” She paused. “Which reminds me, if any speeding tickets pass your desk…it would be greatly appreciated if you could push them under the rug.”
He let out a long suffering sigh and muttered an explicative under his breath. “Let’s go.”
He waited as she grabbed her keys and put on her daffodil yellow smiley face slippers. She glared at him when he glanced down at her slippers and tried to hide a smile.
“Hey,” she said and poked his ribs with her index finger. “I wasn’t expecting a midnight camp out in my office, okay?”
“Didn’t say anything.” He held up his hands in surrender.
She gave an unladylike snort. “You didn’t need to. I can read your expression.”
He opened the door for her. “Yeah, well, I should at least get points for not mentioning your relaxed work wear.”
He flashed an amused look at her and stifled a chuckle as she glanced down at her clothes. He watched with delight as a mortified look crossed her face followed closely by embarrassment and could only guess what was going through her mind.
She raised her head, her face tomato red, and with her back straight passed by him and out the door.
Chapter 20
Natalie watched as Matt deftly navigated past a car accident, several road works and work day traffic delays as he explained the situation to his partner, Darryl on his mobile. An hour later, Matt parked in her driveway and she was surprised to see a forensics team already on site, most likely dusting and combing her backyard for signs of her intruder. She grimaced. Her neighbours were going to love this. Matt got out of the car and bent at the waist to look through the open window at her.
“Stay here,” he ordered and held up his hand, effectively stopping the argument she was about start. “Just until I have the all clear, then you and the pandas are free to go inside and change.”
She crossed her arms under her breasts and glared at him. He gave her a wink before joining a group of officers that were standing beside the gate that led to her backyard. Thankfully, they had foregone the crime scene tape, but their police issued vehicles still gave curiosity seekers something to talk about. She was pretty sure her name would be on her neighbours’ lips for some time after this.
Natalie sank down deeper into the seat in Matt’s car. He had offered to drive her home and then back to the office once their work was completed. She hadn’t argued. Her legs were still a little shaky and he had parked at the kerb of the building in a clear ‘no parking’ zone. She hadn’t wanted to take the time to walk to her car, not that she would be able to drive once she got there. She also didn’t want to be left alone even for the short drive home. She wasn’t used to feeling so dependent on another person but she felt if she was to lean on anyone, Matt was the man who could easily take the load.
After a few minutes of watching the forensic team move about her property, Matt made his way towards her. She got out of the car and leaned against the closed door. She raised an enquiring eyebrow at him when he was close.
“Good news. No forced entry and all the doors and windows are secure. No one entered your house.”
Natalie nodded. That was good news. She didn’t like to think the creep had entered her house and looked through God knows what, touching whatever he desired. She didn’t think she could deal with that degree of violation.
“And the footprint?” she asked, somewhat relieved.
Matt shook his head. “There’s no footprint. It seems last night’s rain worked in his favour.”
He took Natalie’s arm and led her to her front door, relieving her of her keys. He unlocked the door and allowed her to precede him into the house.
“What about the fingerprints? The face print?” she asked.
Matt made his way into her kitchen and started preparing the coffee maker as if he did it all the time, measuring out the coffee beans and hitting the right buttons.
Oh yes, he hit all the right buttons, she thought.
Once he was done prepping the coffee maker, he turned back around to face her. He leaned a hip against her counter. “Gone.”
“Gone?”
“As in not there.”
Anger bubbled up inside of her. Did he really believe she had just made all this up? That she had nothing better to do with her time than to create this elaborate story to get him and his forensic team down here to cover her windows with fingerprint dust? She was not that pathetic, thank you very much. So last night got away from her. Sure, she had been tired, scared from reading the horrific accounts of the Butcher’s victims but she didn’t make up the story of the face at her window and she didn’t dream or hallucinate the evidence.
She crossed her hands under her breasts and once again glared at him. “I didn’t make this up, Detective. I’m not a crazy loon out for attention.” She advanced on him. “Furthermore, I find this incredibly insulting that you and all your little friends out there would think that about me—a trained professional no less.”
She held up her hand signalling that she was not done. “I have a good mind to resist helping you any further in your case, Detective Murphy. You obviously have no regard for my talents at all.” She covered his mouth with her hand when he looked as if he was about to speak. “But I’m not going to do that. You need help and I’m going to give it to you. I’ll prove to you that I can do the job you assigned me whether you want me to or not!”
She took a deep breath. She felt remarkably better now that she’d gotten that out in the open. She looked at him, waiting for a response. “Well?” she asked, after it became clear he wasn’t going to speak.
Matt raised his hand and removed her own from his mouth. She then realised she hadn’t let it drop after she was done with her tirade. She blushed, her face hot. The coffee maker beeped loudly, signalling it was finished and Matt turned around and busied himself pouring the black liquid into the mugs he found hanging from a cupboard.
“Sugar, milk?” he asked, his tone conveying no emotion, his face showing none of his thoughts.
“
Yes, please,” she squeaked, her mouth dry. She tried to swallow but it didn’t help. Natalie couldn’t believe she went off like that. Of all her years keeping her cool, this one cop made her lose it so quickly—and so embarrassingly at that.
Matt nodded and added sugar and milk into each mug before handing her one. She lightly blew over the hot drink before taking a tentative sip. She met his eyes over the rim of her cup and saw laughter there. Natalie resisted the urge to hit him. How dare he laugh at her! She narrowed her eyes and contemplated throwing the coffee into his face. As if reading her mind, Matt stepped back a few paces.
“What I was going to say before your little outburst back there was, it looks as if your midnight prowler revisited you last night and removed the evidence. Forensics found some smears and a few cotton fibres on the glass.”
“Oh.”
Matt raised an eyebrow. “Oh? That’s all you have to say. Just a minute ago I couldn’t shut you up and now all you have for me is one word—oh?” he asked mockingly.
Any minute now, the blush on her face was going to burn her up and she would be a blissful pile of ash. Yes, she thought, any moment now.
“I might’ve said a few words, a sentence really.”
“More like a paragraph, or two,” he added under his breath.
“I don’t do well sleep deprived and sleeping in one’s office chair isn’t really conducive for a good night’s sleep.”
He nodded as if all this made sense. “I don’t believe you’re crazy. Nor do I believe you made any of it up. I know you saw what you saw. You’re a pretty unflappable person.” He grinned at her and the dimple in his cheek appeared. “Unless of course you didn’t get a good night’s sleep.”
“Right,” she said, indignant.
“Also, I have the upmost confidence in your professional capacity.”