Page 139 of Take Your Breath Away

Wasn’t expecting that.

“Handsome, skilled, decent,” she said. “That’s what you were. And I ended up with Norman.”

“Norman’s okay.”

Isabel looked reflective. “I’ve treated him horribly,” she said.

I didn’t see any point arguing with that.

“Belittled him, mocked him. All I’ve ever wanted was for him to strike back, to stand up to me, to put me in my place. I felt like I was pushing him to be a man, and he just wasn’t up to it. I don’t know why he’s put up with it.”

“Maybe he believes he deserves it,” I said.

Isabel gazed out the window. “Wherever it is we’re going, are we almost there?” she asked.

“Almost,” I said.

I’d been heading north on the Milford Parkway, and when we reached the Merritt Parkway I took the long curving ramp to get onto the westbound lanes. We kept going until we got to Trumbull, where I took the White Plains Road exit. I made a few rights and lefts until we’d reached our destination.

“I remember shopping here once or twice,” Isabel said as we entered the lot of the TrumbullGate Mall. “I didn’t know it had gone under.”

I gave her the two-minute lesson on how TrumbullGate was typical of hundreds of malls across the country. Victims of online shopping, the collapse of anchor stores, and, more recently, the pandemic, which forced millions of people to alter their retail habits.

“The owners tried to make a go of it but they’ve thrown in the towel. Now they’re letting various contractors pick over the remains. The retailers removed all their merchandise years ago, but there’s plenty of other stuff to cannibalize. Shelving, railings, light fixtures, all sorts of stuff.”

The massive lot was empty, save for part of the north end that had been cordoned off and was full of those Hyundais.

“There’s his truck,” I said, pointing to a pickup parked by a false front that hid the loading docks.

I parked the car, grabbed Matt’s gun, which I’d tucked into a compartment in the door, and got out. Awkwardly, I slipped the weapon into the back of my belt, then, like a true gentleman, went around to the other side of the truck to open the door for Isabel.

“What’s with the gun?” Isabel asked, raising a worried eyebrow.

“Never know what you’ll run into in an abandoned mall,” I said, offering a reassuring smile, but Isabel did not look particularly reassured. “It’s okay. I just don’t want to leave this in the truck.”

Then I made a trip over to Greg’s vehicle, found it unlocked, and opened the driver’s door. I leaned in, peered under the seat.

“What are you looking for?” Isabel asked.

“Nothing,” I said, then slammed the door shut. I looked around to see if Greg’s girlfriend Julie’s car was here, and didn’t see it. I was relieved about that.

I pointed to some nearby loading docks.

“This way,” I said. I led her up a set of stairs that went up to the loading area, then found an unlocked door that took us into a cinder-block hallway. We went a short way down it to another door, and when we opened it, we were in the main area of the mall.

“I don’t think I’ve ever met Greg,” she said.

“Oh, he’s quite charming,” I said. “He’s my best friend.”

Fifty-Nine

Andrew

“Well, isn’t this creepy,” Isabel said.

The abandoned mall was making the same impression on her as it had on me when I’d come in here two days earlier.

She let out a minor shriek when a squirrel ran across her path. A pigeon flew by, but I didn’t see any sign of that hawk this time. And I spotted a couple more sleeping bags than I did my first time here, but no actual homeless people. I figured they went out and about during the daylight hours.