Page 77 of I'm Watching You

Richard flexed his fingers. ‘So you’ve found something?’

‘Claire Carmichael.’

His patience wore thin. ‘I don’t know her.’

‘She owns the New Age bookstore about five blocks from the restaurant where Jimmy lost Christina.’

‘Why do I care about her?’

‘She’s part of this network of people who help abused women disappear. She speaks regularly at community centers in your area.’

Months of pent-up rage burned in Richard. ‘Abused women. Christina wasn’t abused. I gave her everything. I love her.’

Vincent nodded his head in deference. ‘I didn’t mean to suggest she was.’

Richard drew in a deep breath. ‘So you think this Carmichael woman helped Christina?’

‘Yes. Your wife’s driver remembered taking her to a Bay Area church several weeks in a row. I checked. It was a support group run by Claire Carmichael. I want to talk to her.’

Richard shook his head. ‘The bitch interfered with my marriage. Give me her address.’

Vincent looked doubtful. ‘Wouldn’t you rather I take care of it? Better to let me do the dirty work.’

‘I like the dirty work.’

*

Richard downshifted the gears of hisBMWand pulled into a parking spot in front of the New Age bookstore located near San Francisco Bay. The store was housed in an old row house that had survived the big earthquake a hundred years ago. Tall with a sharp roof, square bay windows, and lots of gingerbread trim, the building was considered a treasure, but by his way of thinking it was an old pile of junk.

He’d never have given the place a second glance if not for Claire Carmichael.

He shut off the car engine and got out. Inside the store, he spotted Claire. She was about thirty, olive skin, not tall. She wore a frumpy, flowing dress that hid her curves, and she had pulled back curly hair into a high ponytail that highlighted sharp cheekbones and bright eyes. Not his type, but loosen the hair and ditch the dress and she might be worth a spin.

Richard grew hard.

He imagined her eyes lighting with desire as he shoved inside her. And then he pictured the passion shifting to fear as he wrapped his hands around her neck and squeezed the life out of her. She’d fight to breathe. She’d kick, try to scream. But in the end, the life would fade from her body.

It was almost closing time and it didn’t take long before the store emptied of customers.

Richard had all night to chat with Little Miss New Age about Christina.

When she disappeared behind a curtain into the back room of the store, he went inside, careful to keep the bellson the door from jingling. Softly he shut the door, locked it, and flipped theOPENsign toCLOSED.

Richard moved behind the counter and unplugged the phone.

‘Hello, is someone out there?’ Claire called.

He reached into his pocket and let his fingers slide over the cold steel of his knife.

Claire heard the creak of footsteps in the store. The hair on the back of her neck rose. She’d had trouble with shoplifters in the last few months and didn’t like to leave the store unattended.

She took off her glasses and laid them on the ledger on her desk. She stood and crossed to the curtain separating the back room from the retail portion of the store. She pushed through the curtain. ‘Can I help you?’

The man standing by the display of healing crystals wasn’t what she’d expected. He was hardly a teen thug looking to grab up what he could. And he wasn’t remotely like her regular patrons.

He was smartly dressed in a stylish suit that looked handmade. His white open-neck shirt was made of crisp linen. His nails were buffed and his short black hair was brushed off his face. Strong jaw. Tanned skin. Nice to look at.

The man raised his head and met her gaze. His eyes were so dark that the pupils all but disappeared. She’d never glimpsed the face of Evil but now she sensed she was looking right at it.

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