Page 34 of Secrets Along the Shore

“Probably a good idea.” Reuben nodded. “I just—” He put his hands on hips and sighed.

“You just what?” I pressed.

His jaw worked back and forth, and for an irrational second, I calculated our age difference as if he were a potential bachelor. He had eleven years on me. Thirty-eight, if I remembered correctly.

Reuben coughed to clear his throat. “I just don’t feel good about this.” He looked around us, squinting into the dark places the apartment building’s lights didn’t reach. “Your case—Sophia—the other two missing women. I think it’s best if you stay with Livia for more than just tonight. I think you should camp with her for a while.” He confirmed my fear. “So we know you’re safe.”

But was I? Was I ever safe? We didn’t know where the Serpent Killer had been this past decade. After I escaped, he’d gone dormant—or something. There had been ten years of tenuous peace. The kind that felt good but always left me looking over my shoulder like I was being watched, or he was going to jump out at me.

And if he wasn’t associated with Sophia’s killer, then that meant there was another deviant lurking.

Two.

They said trouble comes in sets of three.

I was more than willing to stop with two.

I wasn’t sure I could take another one.

“Heard you had a fun night.”

It was Toby. Gosh, I loved Toby’s frankness. He was the one person at work I could count on to not to patronize me. He was predictable and because he was too old to be anything other than brotherly and platonic, sometimes I had the insatiable and really weird urge to throw myself into his teddy bear arms. I was sure he would beat all my villains to hell and I was okay with that.

But then, he was also Toby. He installed fireplaces and air conditioners and, to my knowledge, had zero interest in the bodyguard career. Bummer.

Once again, we’d met at the time clock. This morning, someone had left an open box of doughnuts from the local gas station on the table below it. The only ones left were pink frosted with colorful sprinkles. Toby wasn’t above taking the pretty pastry and stuffing half of it into his mouth.

“How’d you hear about it?” I slid my time card into the machine and it punched the inked time and date on the line. I eyed the last remaining doughnut. The calories would probably be worth it, and after last night, I deserved it.

“Social media is the number one tattle tale, kid.”

“What?” I frowned.

“Haven’t you been on the Wisper’s End Community United thread?”

I eyed Toby. I hadn’t pictured him to be a social media browser. “No.” I reached for the doughnut.

“Well this morning someone posted a report off the police scanner with an incident at the apartments you live at.”

“And they posted myname?” I couldn’t help my voice raising. Sprinkles fell from my delightful circle of sugar and flour.

“No.” Toby stuffed the last bit of his morning breakfast into hismouth, chewed, and swallowed. But I put two and two together. I mean, it mentioned police were seen outside a first-floor apartment with a bay window on the east end of the complex.”

“That’s worse than giving my name,” I grumbled. “I’m the only apartment on that end with a bay window.”

“I know.” Toby gave me a meaty-handed pat on the shoulder. “Don’t worry. Most people ignored it. The next post was about a dead cat in the road on Third Street and the entire town is in an uproar that anyone would allow their cat to roam free.”

I was bested by a dead cat.

I was okay with that. Poor pitiful creature. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy. On second thought . . . I didn’t allow myself to ponder.

“Well, I’m fine.” I wasn’t, but Toby didn’t need to know that. He didn’t know that I considered staying here in the break room for the rest of my work shift. The white walls were scarred with marks the guys made by leaning back in their chairs. A framed poster of a woodstove was the only thing on the walls, but someone had put a Christmas wrapping bow on the corner of it and never removed it. Probably Elsie.

The door between the office and the back room opened and the warehouse manager came through, gripping a Styrofoam coffee cup with a black lid.

“You okay?” Alan asked. He glanced at the empty doughnut box.

“Does everyone know?” I retorted.