The Secret (Watty Award Winner) | ✔️

Forty - Steven

Ch40 - Steven

When Steven left his hotel room in Miami, he didn't really have a plan. At first, he thought he might just drive straight to The Ivy House and confront Sarah face to face. But after considering his options he figured that seemed rather careless. What if they had an audience and she refused him, making him look like the bad guy? And then what if they called the cops? He wouldn't be able to prove Sarah's indiscretions to authorities, making him appear crazy, too. No, he had to be smarter than that. As much as he wanted to take care of the matter that had been plaguing him for so long, he needed to be patient. Everything would work out in due time, and Sarah would be forced to pay the price for her many crimes.

Instead, Steven decided to plan a stake-out. If O'Reilly could play super sleuth, certainly he would be able to investigate, as well. After all, the detective was no rocket scientist, and look at all of the information he had uncovered.

Plugging the address of The Ivy House into his GPS, Steven let it direct the way, leading him straight to the tree lined street the cozy bed & breakfast sat on. He circled the block, finally deciding to park his rental car in the lot of an antique shop that sat on the opposite side of the road. It was still early, not even 7:00 am, and there were very few people on the street. He sat in his vehicle, sipping on the luke-warm cup of coffee he had picked up at a local diner.

They call this Macchiato? This junk is unpalatable! It tasted stale and bitter, so unlike the beverage he had become accustomed to recently. Steven had developed an unfortunate addiction to caffeine over the past several weeks, and began to frequent a quaint coffee cafe near his penthouse suite in downtown Seattle. He hated feeling the desire for such chemicals, but he couldn't help himself. Everything Sarah had put him through was keeping him up at night, and he needed a little pick-me-up most mornings to help keep from dragging. Just one more nuisance he could blame his dear wife for...

Steven was looking around for a nearby garbage to dispose of the disgusting swill, when suddenly something caught his eye. It was a young woman, pulling up to the bed & breakfast on a bike. He observed her carefully, trying to make out her features. Could this be Sarah?

Silently, he watched as the girl parked her cruiser and hopped off. She began to make her way toward the front door, stopping briefly to pick at a couple of weeds in the garden. She looked an awful lot like the young woman who had boarded the bus in Seattle, the one O'Reilly had shown him pictures of. She was not wearing the glasses she wore that day, but she had the same short, brown hair, and thin build. The same frame that Sarah had. His wife.

He watched her meander around the front yard, delicately picking up sticks that had fallen from the many trees that decorated the property. The graceful way in which she moved, how she would casually toss her hair back and out of her face. There was no doubt in his mind. This girl was definitely Sarah. His Sarah.

Steven felt his heart rate quicken as he fought the urge to get out of the car and confront her, right there and then.

Play it cool, he reminded himself. It would not be wise to approach her now. You need to wait until the timing is right.

The young woman opened the door and walked inside; she didn't even knock. It appeared as though she were very comfortable with the establishment, as if perhaps they were expecting her. Maybe she did work there after all? There was only one way to find out.

Earlier, Steven had passed a small flower shop in the downtown area of the little hick town he now sat in. Maybe he should buy a bouquet and have it sent to her at work? Natalia Nicholson. If the bed & breakfast accepted the gift, it would prove Natalia was there. And if Natalia was there, that would mean Sarah was there. His Sarah, who had assumed another person's identity so that she could run away, leaving him by himself. It still boggled his mind she would even want to do such a thing. Didn't she realize how good she had it? Hadn't he given her everything? The perfect life most people only dreamed of? And this was the thanks he got...