Page 77 of A First Sight

Except I still had unfinished business. Things weren’t entirely over.

I recalled a conversation with the security guard this morning. A woman had called in the bomb threat, he’d told me. She had sounded nervous. His theory was a disgruntled ex-tenant.

My theory was still Dale. He could’ve had someone make the call for him.

As I sipped on my scotch, I scrolled through my calendar, looking for the best time to see my family. Tax season was coming up, and while we weren’t an accounting firm, we always liked to be available to our clients, since taxes often brought out general money stress. Uncle Ben would probably tell me to go to Scotland anyway, but I didn’t think that would set a good precedent for my leadership. I could wait until late spring or early summer. That would be soon enough to see my family. Hopefully by then, Dale would be long gone.

A knock on my front door startled me, nearly causing me to spill my drink. Only a few people, besides tenants, could get into the building without being buzzed, so my thoughts immediately went to another bomb threat. When I looked through the peephole, however, I didn’t see a security guard.

It was Maggie.

Concerned, I opened the door and stepped back. “Are you okay?”

She nodded, but her expression seemed troubled. “I’m fine.”

I raised an eyebrow. If Maggie wasn’t smiling, she wasn’t fine.

“I’ll have whatever that is.” She pointed at my drink.

“Make yourself at home,” I said. “I’ll get you one.”

My mind raced with possibilities as I poured her a scotch, and by the time I returned to her, I was practically bursting with impatience. I kept quiet, though, letting her settle into a seat and take a sip of her drink.

She grimaced as she swallowed her sip. “I need your help.”

My pulse sped up. “I’m here for you.”

“I think you’re right about Dale harassing everybody. He’s also been after Carson.” She made a frustrated face. “And then he went after London. Broke into her apartment.”

“Is she all right?” I leaned forward, concerned. Dale was a dangerous asshole.

“She’s fine. Sort of. He didn’t hurt her, I mean. She wasn’t there. At her apartment. Luckily, she stayed with a friend.” Maggie shook her head and sighed. “Nothing was stolen, but it was trashed. And I meanseriouslytrashed. He destroyed everything.” She swallowed hard. “And he left a message.”

As she repeated it, rage swelled in me, and my hands curled into fists. If I hadn’t wanted to kill Dale before, I did now.

“Is she staying with you and Carson, then?” I asked, as Maggie lapsed into silence.

She nodded. “I’m seeing this through,” she said, raising her head so that our eyes met. “Coming after you and Carson was bad enough, but my little sister? He went too far.”

“What do you mean, ‘seeing this through’?” I chose my words and tone carefully.

“I called Dale and told him to stay away from my family.” Her expression said she was waiting for me to react badly.

“And what did he say?” I kept my voice even.

“He denied everything, of course,” she answered. “And he said a lot of other bullshit.”

I could tell how much of her emotion she was holding in.

“He said he wants to meet and give me a check to cover the cost of my violin.”

Another pause. Holding my tongue this time was more difficult. I didn’t want Maggie anywhere near that man. And I didn’t believe for a moment he wanted to give her money.

“What did you tell him?”

“I arranged a meeting with him tomorrow morning before rehearsal at The Smith, the diner at Lincoln Square.”

“You can’t go,” I said. “He’s too dangerous.”

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