Page 17 of What the Wife Knew

Even something as simple as hydration came with potential pitfalls with Richmond roaming around. I picked my glass. After thoroughly cleaning it, I poured the water. I locked my bedroomdoor. Richmond never got near anything that went on or in my body. The guy had access to drugs and no boundaries. A dangerous combination.

Tonight I forgot to bring the drink with me, which meant a trip downstairs to the kitchen. Flashlight in hand, I stepped into the hall and let the silence envelope me. I’d become an expert at using denial as a bandage for a lifetime of inflicted wounds. Pulling back from the edge, punching down, confining my fear to the waiting darkness and out of my head, was my specialty. None of those shields worked tonight. I employed every trick and learned behavior to force my legs to move.

Calm down.

Time for common sense. My stuttered breathing was a reaction to the house... and Richmond’s nonsense... and the ridiculous marriage that threw us together. Anyone would be twitchy. I was fine.

Thanks to the placement of the window and security lights outside, the upstairs was suspended in a sort of twilight. I could see around me and make out the top of the staircase without trouble. Being quick and quiet was the goal here.

Darkness welled up around me as I started to descend. The small lamp on the entry table was supposed to turn on automatically once the sun went down. I’d programmed several lamps around the house to stay lit... just in case. Tonight, only bleak nothingness greeted me.

Could silence grow louder? Because it thundered in my ears.

I slowed my steps and hit the light switch, expecting the chandelier to light up the entryway like a Christmas parade. I flipped it up and down and nothing happened.

I balanced my back against the wall and stood there, restless but still. Nervous to go up and terrified to finish going down. The night closed in as I fumbled with the flashlight.

Click. Click.

More nothing.

I shook it. Turned it around. Weighed it in my palm. It was lighter than it should be.

Where the hell were the batteries?

My knees buckled and my body started to slide. No. I could not fall. I could not sit on the step in a stagnant puddle of dread. I needed to race back up the stairs and lock myself in my bedroom, where I’d be safe with my bat.

But my bare feet stayed where they were. My heartbeat bonged like an old-fashioned grandfather clock and vibrated through every part of my body—head, ears, thighs. The blood pounded through me, rushing faster as the screaming ramped up in my head. My nerves tingled on the edge of pain. A full-body crash waited in the shadows, and I fought it with what little energy I had left.

Plastered against the wall, unmoving, I tried to slow my breathing. Willed my body to regain control from the strangling panic. I could handle this. I thought the words as I slammed my body harder against the protective barrier behind me.

No one could sneak up on me. No one could touch me.

The lights blinked on. All of them. The entire first floor burst to life. My eyes clamped shut to avoid the sudden brightness.

That’s when I felt it. That creeping sensation that said I wasn’t alone.

I opened my eyes again and there he was. Richmond, standingat the bottom of the steps in lounge pants and a sweater. Only a few feet away. Watching me.

His mouth broke into a smile. “You’re afraid of the dark.”

Shit.

He laughed. “Isn’t that interesting.”

Chapter Twelve

Her

Present Day

I’d spent the entire marriage, short as it was, hating this house. It stood as a symbol of Richmond’s wealth and reputation. As fake, empty, and cold as he was. Burning it down wasn’t an option, so I stayed in it with the intention of selling once enough time had passed to avoid inviting further suspicion.

Walking inside after the break-in, a different sort of weight crashed down on me. A whisper of unease ratcheted up to a deafening roar. The sense that while I was busy setting up my game, someone had hatched a plan that made me a target.

My presence in town shielded Richmond’s real killer. My lack of control over the situation pissed me off. The alarm had provided some security and now that bit of safety had been blown apart.

“You’re scowling.” Elias made the comment as he checked the den closet.

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