To Tell An Altswood Lie (The Altswood Saga #3)

Chapter 18 - Erasure

Chapter 18 - Erasure

"You've done that before, haven't you?"

Gabriel slid his eyes to me momentarily, then returned to his perusal of the house in front of us. "What, run from federal agents?"

"No," I huffed, drawing out the syllable. "Set up a scene in your bathroom to make it look like you left."

Gabriel shifted on his feet, so that he wasn't crouched uncomfortably. We were lurking behind a large tree, taking turns to peer at Maire Reeve's holiday home. It was too dark to really see much.

I didn't think Gabriel would answer, since he was concentrating so hard on watching the house for movement. We had almost settled back into the quiet, when he said, "Once."

"Thought so," I said quietly. "You thought of that shoe detail far too quickly."

The corner of Gabriel's mouth quirked up. "I pulled the same stunt when I was ten. I got into an argument with my dad, locked myself in the bathroom, and pretended to climb out." He snorted at the memory. "My dad sent his interns out to look for me until sunset. When they all came back empty-handed, he found me reading in my bedroom."

I tried to imagine it. I couldn't help but smile slightly. "Poor interns."

"Poor interns," Gabriel agreed. "No interns to help with a search right now, unfortunately."

Instead, we had an entire police force who refused to listen to us.

"I'm certain the house is empty," I told Gabriel when another silent minute passed. "We've been watching it for ages now."

"It feels ominous," he replied, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Of course it does." I checked the time on my phone. 8:24PM. "Gabriel, listen, I don't think we should both go in."

He turned to face me, eyes wide. "If you're trying to suggest going in yourself—"

"Hear me out," I cut in. "Remember the mannequins dumped at the school? Someone needs to keep watch from the outside this time so no one surprises us again. I'm good at digging through small details and snooping, you're good at running fast to get to me if an intruder climbs in unexpectedly. And look—" I pointed at the large windows along the side of the house that offered a clear view into Maire's bedroom, "—you'll be able to see me every second."

Gabriel didn't look happy, but he had to admit that I was making perfect sense.

"Okay," he said, looking like he was chewing on something sour. "I'll keep watch from here. You keep your phone in your hands so I can reach you."

I planted a sloppy kiss on his lips. "I love you. See you in a few."

"Why would you say that?" I heard him whispering furiously as I skittered away. "That's what people say right before they get slashed by a killer in a mask! Don't you dare let go of your phone, Luca!"

I stuck my thumb into the air, conveying my understanding without turning around. Since I wasn't sure if the security camera outside Maire's front door was still operating, I played it safe rather than sorry, and crept along the side of the house until I came around the back.

I immediately registered the sound of the pool lapping quietly in the night breeze. The police really needed to drain that thing before it developed super-bacteria in its waters. Dead bodies were known to host some strange chemicals.

Grimacing at the thought, I trod along the patio as lightly as I could. In the deathly quiet, my imagination ran wild, imagining the killer tip-toeing down this exact path before strangling Maire inside, imagining Douglas and Kaydee stepping where I did while Maire's body floated lifelessly in the expanse of water beside them.