Page 54 of I'm Watching You

‘How could I forget? We lived next to that girl who liked to play Broadway tunes at five in the morning. I swear, if I ever hear the theme toCatsagain I’ll go nuts.’

Nicole smiled. ‘I was thinking about your garden.’

‘I filled the windowsill with pots.’

‘And when the windowsill filled, you expanded your garden pots onto the roof. Inch by inch you took it over and filled it with every kind of vegetable imaginable. I’m surprised security didn’t bust you.’

Lindsay sipped her coffee again, hiding a grin. ‘Actually, they did. Mr Wheeler, the head of security, found the garden and threatened to tear it down. I gave him a few tomatoes to try and he was hooked. I supplied him with vegetables all spring and he looked the other way.’

‘Bribery? I’m shocked, Ms O’Neil.’

Lindsay laughed. ‘I learned early on how to work the system.’

Nicole’s normally tanned skin looked pale, tired. At first, Lindsay had attributed it to her change in hair color. Lindsay had cut Nicole’s dark hair and helped her dye it blond. It was a shame because her black hair had been so beautiful.

‘Want some coffee?’ Lindsay offered. ‘I just made a fresh pot.’

Nicole held up a hand in surrender. ‘No, thanks. I’m a little queasy again. I think I’ve caught another bug from one of the kids I photographed. I had one yesterday sneeze all over me.’

‘So, how was work last night?’

She tucked her legs underneath her. ‘Good and bad. I actually got some great shots of the two kids I photographed. Their mother was thrilled and she ended up ordering twice as many prints as she’d planned.’

‘Good. What was the bad part?’

‘My boss, Bill, loves my work too. He keeps raving about it. He keeps wondering how such a talented photographer landed on his doorstep.’

‘Why is that bad?’

She brushed her bangs out of her face. ‘He wants to enter some of my photography in a national competition. Says the publicity would be great for his business. I really was flattered. I’d gotten so used to downplaying my work. And it’s been too long since someone has praised my photos. I’d forgotten how much I missed that.’

Lindsay set her cup down on the arm of the chair. Sheunderstood living in secret was hard, but it was necessary right now. ‘Nicole, you can’t enter a national competition.’

‘I know, I know. I’m not foolish enough to risk national exposure.’ She drummed her fingers on the chair’s arm. ‘But I really hate living under the radar. I want my life back. And I want a divorce.’

‘You’ve only been here a couple of weeks. The bruises have only just faded and you’re running on raw emotion. It’s very natural that you’d be angry.’

‘I am angry. In fact, I’m furious. Last night I woke up and was so mad I couldn’t get back to sleep.’

Lindsay kept her tone even. She remembered how battered Nicole had been when she’d first arrived. And from what little Nicole had shared about her marriage, Lindsay knew Richard was a monster. ‘And if Richard were to find you, he would force you back to San Francisco. And I’m afraid he would treat you far worse than before.’

Nicole picked at a loose chip of paint on the chair arm. ‘This is the twenty-first century. It shouldn’t be this way. I have rights too.’

‘I know, I know. This isn’t fair. But sometimes it’s better to be safe than right. Sometimes the only solution is to just vanish.’

A heavy silence settled between them. ‘I’m starting to feel like Christina Braxton died. She’s starting to feel like a distant memory.’

‘She became Nicole Piper. And Nicole Piper is going to have a wonderful life.’

‘But I’ll always worry. I’ll always have to look over my shoulder. Unless I get lucky and Richard drops dead.’

Lindsay understood Nicole was in a no-win situation and didn’t bother with platitudes. ‘What time do you work today?’

‘Three.’ Nicole shifted in her seat and looked through the sliding glass doors at the wall clock. ‘Hey, it’s almost eight. You’re running late.’

Lindsay had been up since six. She’d practiced her yoga for almost ninety minutes, trying to fill her time and to push the murder and Zack from her mind. ‘I don’t have to be in the office until nine.’

‘Is today a shelter day?’

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