Phone in hand, she dialed the number of the locksmith. A man answered on the third ring, his voice gruff and a bit irritated. “Watts Locksmith.”
She glanced at the front door and wondered if she’d locked it. “Can you change the locks on my house tonight?”
“Tonight?”
“Yes. I had a break-in today and I think someone has a key to my house.”
“Sure, I can change the lock. It’s overtime rates, though.”
“Do you take checks?”
“Cash or credit.”
“All I have is a check. My credit card was skimmed and I’m waiting on the new one.” Philip had boxed her in. “I’ll pay double if you take a check.”
“How do I know it’s good? I’ve been stiffed before.”
“I’ve never bounced a check in my life.”
“Right.”
“I’m a vet. I can give you my work address, and you’ll know where I live. I wouldn’t be pressing if I weren’t scared. He’s gotten in at least once before.”
“He?”
The words stuck in her throat. “My ex-husband.”
A sigh shuddered through the line. “Give me your address.”
She rattled off her home address and he promised to be at her place within the hour. As she waited, she moved from window to window in the house, checking and rechecking the locks. Charlie followed her from room to room, carrying her chew stick. She sat patiently as Leah went from room to room.
When she’d moved in, she’d taken a hammer and nails and secured each window in place with a single nail. It was a simple but effective trick she’d learned after Philip’s last attack.
By the time she’d checked the windows, her doorbell rang. Charlie barked, the fur on the back of her neck rising. Most dogs would be excited by a visitor, but this dog, like Leah, associated strangers with trouble.
She looked through the peephole and saw an elderly man wearing a white work shirt. The name Mike had been stitched over the right breast pocket. He carried a well-worn toolbox, and beyond him was a van that read LOCKSMITH.
“Ms. Carson,” he said. “It’s Mike Watts.”
Holding Charlie’s collar, she opened the door. “Mr. Watts, thank you for coming so late.”
He glanced at the puppy, a grin tipping his lips. “Mighty tough dog you got there.”
She picked up Charlie. “I’ve only had her a couple of days, but she owns the place.”
He laughed. “The best dogs always do. My dog Buster has me wrapped around his paw.” He nodded to the lock. “Any other doors in the house?”
“Off the kitchen there’s another door. Just the two doors.”
“Well, then, it shouldn’t be too hard.” He inspected the lock and then jabbed his thumb toward his van. “Let me grab a couple of locks. Be right back.”
She and Charlie waited as he moved slowly and easily to his van and opened the back. He rattled around there for several minutes. As she watched, she glanced around the darkened street, searching for a car or a person, anything that was there that didn’t belong. There was nothing out of the ordinary on the street, and yet the hair on the back of her neck rose, as if invisible fingers stroked her skin.
Mr. Watts reappeared with two locks and a work blanket, which he laid in front of the door. He knelt and got to work on the lock. He had it removed and replaced in twenty minutes. He moved through the house and opened the back door, noticing the collection of broken-down boxes.
“Getting ready to move?”
“No,” she said. There’d been a time when she’d have chatted about her day and told him about the mix-up. Instead, she stayed silent, holding Charlie close as Mr. Watts changed out the lock.
With a grunt, he rose. He locked and unlocked the door with the key three times before declaring the lock sound. “You’re good to go, Ms. Carson.”
“Thanks.” No sense of relief because she knew this was only the beginning of a new chapter, which she thought had ended four years ago in South Carolina.
Leah walked Mr. Watts to the front door, where she dug out her checkbook. She wrote the check for double the rate, wincing at the financial hit. “Thanks again.”
He reviewed her check, folded it, and tucked it in his pocket. “Glad to help.”
By the time he’d left it was nearly midnight. Charlie was asleep in her arms and her body ached with fatigue and tension.
She locked the doors, once, twice, three times, and then put the keys in her jacket pocket before taking Charlie into the bedroom with her. She climbed in her bed, slid under the covers fully dressed, and lay back against the pillows. She might be safe for now, but now didn’t last very long.
The locksmith was a setback he hadn’t been expecting. Leah was smarter than he’d anticipated. She wasn’t as timid as she appeared.
Kinda sucks, doesn’t it, Leah? No friends, always looking over your shoulder, jumping at every sound. If you think this is all I’ve planned for you, you don’t know how motivated I am.
Chapter Twenty
Monday, January 23, 6 A.M.
Leah packed the journal from the last six months into a brown paper bag. She wasn’t sure if Alex would be at the running group this morning, but she needed to speak to him and show him what she was up against. She needed him to really understand what kind of monster he was fighting.
She worried about what to do with Charlie, but after an early morning walk, she decided the dog would be safer in the crate she’d put together in the living room. She lined the crate with one of her blankets and put a chew toy inside before scooting the dog inside.
To Leah’s relief, Charlie settled down in her crate and began to chew on her toy. She left and made the fifteen-minute trip to the park where the group was meeting today. She was glad to see the collection of cars that lined the parking spaces. However, a wave of disappointment washed over her when she didn’t see Alex’s SUV. You would pick today not to show, Agent Morgan. Now I’ll have to hunt you down.
She grabbed her knit hat, pulled it over her ears, and got out of her car. Most mornings she hated these first few minutes. Hated the cold. Hated the tension in her muscles. Today she welcomed it all.
She stretched as the other runners got out of their cars and made their way to the open field that led to the woodland path. She checked her watch, set her timer, and glanced around the field. No place for anyone to hide. Good.
As she was about to start her run, the black SUV pulled up next to her car. About time, Morgan.
Feeling the weight on her shoulders ease again, she began to run slowly. The other runners passed her easily, but she didn’t mind. After a poor night of sleep, it felt good to move, to breathe full, deep breaths.
The steady thud of footsteps sounded behind her, but she didn’t glance back, knowing it was Alex. He came up beside her. She was already breathing hard. He looked almost bored with the pace.
“You doing okay today?”
“I’m hanging in there. I had the locks on my house changed.”
“Smart. You might think about an alarm system.”
“It’s crossed my mind.” More money. More expense. The vacation she’d considered taking in the fall was slowly moving out of financial reach.
“I want to talk to you after practice.”
“Good.” He matched her pace.
“You don’t have to babysit me.” The words puffed out of her as she struggled to talk and run at the same time.
“I’m happy to take it easy today.” He had barely broken a sweat.
“Don’t patronize me, Alex. Run.”
“You’re willing to go the route alone.”
“I’ll be fine. Anniversary isn’t for two more days.” Bravado aside, she was afraid, but she wasn’t going to let it ruin the lives of the people around her.