Page 9 of Unexpected Danger
“I’m sorry. I’ll have to pass today because I have a meeting with the detective at the police department.”
Dustin perched on the corner of her desk. “We can always have lunch tomorrow instead. Do you need anyone to go with you to the police station?”
“I appreciate the offer, but I think I’ll be fine. I’m hoping it will just be a quick and painless process.”
Jasmine slung her purse over her shoulder. “Hopefully, they’ll be able to find out whoever this is. I wonder if they spoke to Mr. Nuss.”
Londyn had wondered that herself. If they had, how had the man reacted? Had he admitted it? How had he obtained her personal information?
Dustin offered to accompany her to her car since he and Jasmine were walking to the parking garage anyway. The three of them went their separate ways, and Londyn was grateful she hadn’t seen anybody out of the ordinary.
The Rowland Police Department was about three miles from Londyn’s employment. It was at least five times the size of the one in Pronghorn Falls, which was combined with the Sheriff’s Office.
A man in his late forties, Detective Rivas was a few inches taller than she was, possessed a high forehead and a widow’s peak, a broad nose, and a serious demeanor.
Londyn took a seat in the chair across from him in his office.
“According to your file, you have been receiving unwanted texts and have seen a man loitering around your apartment building and attempting to enter.”
Londyn shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “Yes, sir.” Hearing the law enforcement officer say the words made them all the more real. “Would this be considered stalking?”
“For it to be considered stalking, it has to be a series of events, but I would say this has the potential to reach that point if it is the same person.” Detective Rivas rehashed the notes in the file. “We visited BJ Nuss today. You mentioned you had concerns that it may have been him last night at your door.”
Could he be the one across the street? The one who texted her? Was it just one individual? Her breath caught in her throat. What if the texter and the visitor were two different people? Finally, she found her voice and answered the detective’s question. “Yes, because he’s the only one I can think of whom I’ve ever angered in Rowland.”
“Could there be anybody from your former town who could be potentially harassing you?”
She could think of no one. She had no enemies here or there. “No. Not very many people even know I moved here.”
Detective Rivas rifled through the papers in the file folder. Had Londyn ever thought she would have an actual file at the police department?
He produced a picture and put it in front of her. “It’s my understanding that you have never seen Mr. Nuss but have only spoken to him on the phone.”
“That is correct.”
“Here is a recent photograph of him.”
Londyn stared at the man in the photo. He was thin, red-haired, green-eyed, with a chipped upper tooth, and looked to be in his late thirties. Not at all what she had expected from speaking with him on the phone.
“Could this be the man who attempted to enter your apartment or the one you saw across the street?”
“It’s really difficult to say. The man last night wore a ski mask, and the man across the street was too far away for me to determine his facial features.”
Londyn squeezed her eyes shut and tried to recall the image from last night before slowly shaking her head. “I am sorry to say that I can’t provide any other details about his features. All I saw was that he was on the taller side, skinny, and was wearing a black or navy hoodie and a black ski mask.”
“You said that he tried the door. Did you happen to see a weapon?”
Londyn again attempted to think back to yesterday. Her chest tightened. Had the man possessed a weapon? Would he have used it? “I don’t know if he had a weapon. If he did, I didn’t see it.”
Detective Rivas stared at her, his eyes unblinking as if attempting to understand what a poor witness she was.
She was absolutely no help at all.
“All right, then. But you do think there might be a possibility that it is Mr. Nuss?”
“From the photograph you showed me, it could be him. He has the same build as the man at my door and probably a motive since I was unable to satisfactorily assist him with his account before sending it to collections.”
“I’ve spoken with him, and he denies both visiting your apartment and sending any texts. He, didn’t, however, have an alibi. Hopefully, my visit will encourage him to keep his distance from you if he is, in fact, the one who has been texting and hanging around your apartment. In the meantime, I would highly recommend you speak with your landlord about the possibility of installing cameras. I will need you to keep a record of each incident and include as many details as possible.”
