Page 120 of Fall to Me
The days seem to blur together, and the holidays creep up way too fast when you’re playing game after game during the fall and winter. Sinclair Tower—where we live—has severaldepartment stores on the bottom level, and not too far sits a Tiffany & Co. Maybe I should stop in there and grab her a necklace or something. She’s not a materialistic person, but like any woman, she loves pretty things.
“Hey, man,” I say, grabbing his attention over the music. “We’re close to some of the shops, and I need to pick up a few things for River for Christmas. Just drop me off at the Tiffany & Co. I’ll walk to my building from there.”
“I can go with you.”
“Nah,” I argue. “It shouldn’t take me too long. I’m gonna pop in and pop out. Go pick up your boy, then you can swing by and grab me. I’ll run the gifts up to my floor and pick up a few days’ worth of clothes.”
Turning left, he rounds the block, then pulls up in front of the store. I hop out and pull my jacket tight around my body, then brace a hand on the cold truck door as I tell him, “I’ll shoot you a text when I’m done. Shouldn’t be too long. It’s just a ten-minute walk home, so give me maybe forty minutes to an hour?”
He jerks his head in a stiff nod of agreement. I close the door and dash between the cars of traffic before ducking into the store.
I know . . . I know! You don’t have to point out that I straight up Jay walked. I have shit to do, and I’m on a time crunch.
An older gentleman who appears to be in his fifties greets me as soon as I cross the threshold. After telling him what I’m looking for, he directs me to a glass case, displaying various bracelets. I pick out a dainty, gold bracelet with two hearts and a diamond in between them to represent the twins. Of course, I don’t stop there. I’m Carter Fucking Graham. I don’t half-ass anything.
In the next display case, I spot a gold necklace with a charm in the shape of a key encrusted in diamonds. It’s the perfect symbol of her strength and the power she wields. The doors she’sclosed and locked up tight and the ones she’s opened to start a new chapter in her life.
After paying, the salesman takes the jewelry to a counter where someone wraps them. A few minutes later, he hands the teal bag to me, then I’m out the door. As I step outside into the cold air, the wind whips around, funneling through the tall buildings like a wind tunnel. Car horns blare over the Christmas music playing along the street, and people hang their heads out of their car windows, yelling and cussing at other drivers.
Everyone is always in a rush to get somewhere here in New York.
I consider hailing a cab to stay out of the cold but think better of it. I’ll get home much faster if I walk. It takes about five minutes to make it to my building and shivers wrack through my body as I step into the heated lobby. I pass by the reception desk and almost stop to confront Brian and ask him how he knows the “private investigator,” but something stops me from turning around to do so.
Instead, I pluck my cell out of my back pocket and pull up the contact for Detective Matthews to see if Ryder’s been in touch. I meant to do it earlier, but then Cal asked me if I wanted to ride with him to pick up Tucker.
Pressing the call button, the phone rings a few times before a gruff voice clips out, “Detective Matthews.”
“Detective, this is Carter Graham,” I say as I press the up button on the elevator.
“Good to hear from you, Mr. Graham,” he greets, his voice holding a more pleasant tone than before.
The elevator dings, and the steel doors slide open. I didn’t think this through very well, so I add as I press the button to my floor, “You can just call me Carter. I’m stepping onto the elevator in my building, so I might lose reception.”
“No problem. What can I do for you, Carter?”
“We met with Ryder Vance last night. Any chance you could tell me if he’s spoken to you or not?”
“Yes. He filled me in. Of course, this is an ongoing investigation, so I can’t say too much. But I will advise you to act normal and not ask anyone any questions. That includes this Brian guy if you should happen to run into him. I want an authentic reaction when I bring him in for questioning. We don’t need to give him time to ponder his reposes, especially if he’s guilty of accessory to stalking or breaking and entering.”
That checks. The elevator comes to a halt on my floor. I step out and begin to make my way to our door.
“Funny you should say that. I almost stopped at the desk and asked for him, but something told me not to.”
“I’m glad to see you have some common sense.”
I chuckle at that as I open my door. I drop the little bag, along with my keys, on the entryway table, then shed my coat, hanging it on the coat tree by the door. When I turn around, I find myself staring into the eyes of the man who’s been my wife’s living nightmare as he lounges on a chair in my living room. Heat and tingles travel up my body. Blood rushes to my head. Adrenaline courses through my veins.
Pure rage engulfs me.
My initial thought is to drag that son of a bitch out of my goddamn chair and rip him apart with my bare hands. But the analytical side of my brain tells me not to. I’m a smart enough man to know that I need to assess the situation before acting. This man is fucking crazy.
I relax my expression, unclench my jaw, and allow a mask to fall into place.
“Hey, Mom, I need to go. I have company,” I say nonchalantly.
“Uh, Carter, you do know that I’m not your mom, right? Do we need to send you in for a psychological evaluation?”
“Yeah, Mom. Yeah. I know that.” I chuckle as if I’m in on a joke. “Well, you go right on ahead and tell Dad that he needs bring his ass up here and I’ll show him what a good time is.”
