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His rakish grin made her laugh. “I’m here for the summer, Santos. Like whomever you please. I’ll be gone soon.” That was the way she was going to keep it, even if she did have to remind both of them often.
Javier Cazares arrived with a manila folder. “I photographed the protesters while the excitement of people entering the arena would cover it. Later, I pretended to be sympathetic to the cause. I didn’t want to be accused of interrogating them, but those I spoke to appeared sincere.” He laid the photos on the glass-topped table. “Do any of these people look familiar to you?”
Santos picked up the first photo and passed it over to Libby. “I’ve ignored them, so I can’t say if this is the same crowd that usually hugs that corner.” He stopped on the fourth photo. “Is this Victoria?”
Libby leaned close. Her pose and long, black hair were impossible to mistake. “Yes, but she’s standing back, not yelling or waving a placard. She could have just been passing by. Did you speak to her?”
Cazares pointed to the man beside her. “I made a brief attempt, but he blocked my way. When I asked him if he thought the group was making progress, he sneered at me, and I moved on. I’ve no desire to confront a man who’s half my age and lifts weights before breakfast.”
“I don’t blame you.” Santos sorted through the other photos. “May I keep these? If I see someone from this crowd somewhere else, I want to recognize them.”
“Of course. The group meets tomorrow night. I’ll go and see what I can discover about the woman. Her name may or may not be Victoria.”
“She moves like a dancer,” Libby remarked. “That would be a way to find her, wouldn’t it?”
Cazares responded with a rare smile. “Yes, a beautiful dancer would want to be found. I’ll do my best. Is there anything else?”
Santos glanced toward Libby and shrugged. “Well, yes, we did have a little trouble last night.”
Cazares listened with increasing horror. “You must change the locks immediately. I’ll call a locksmith who carries a brand that’s nearly impossible to pick. He’ll also upgrade the dead bolts. As for security, I’ll check the main panel. People are very clever with electronics, but there would be evidence left behind.”
After he left them, Libby continued studying the photos. “The outfit she’s wearing looks familiar. I wonder if she could have bought it at the boutique where Maggie shopped. Do you mind if I take the photo and go and ask? I’ll make it sound as though I’m interested in the dress, not Victoria.”
“Go ahead, but first will you please bring my Stephen King book from my room?”
She got up and kissed him on her way into the house and when she came back. “I won’t be gone long. I’ll take my purse so it will look as though I’m really shopping.”
She moved across the sand with a determined grace. He couldn’t see her without wanting her. He meant to open his book, but his gaze remained on her until she had vanished in the distance.
Libby entered the boutique expecting to find the friendly clerk who’d helped them last week, but a petite redhead stood at the counter. “Hi, is Carmela here?”
The clerk leaned close to whisper, “She found a better job. I’m Abigail. May I find something for you?”
Libby had counted on Carmela remembering her. It would have made things so much easier. “Hi, Abigail. A friend of mine took photos at the bullfights yesterday, and this woman was wearing a dress I thought I’d seen here. I wo
ndered if you had it in my size?”
Abigail took the photo and squinted slightly, then pulled her glasses from her pocket. “I need to get contacts. We might have one on the sale rack, but I don’t believe it’s in your size. Let’s look. Maybe you’ll see something else you like.”
Libby reached for the photo. “It’s just that it’s so cute on this girl.”
“Everything looks cute on Victoria. She’d be a model if she were taller.” She looked up at Libby. “You’re a model, aren’t you?”
“No, but I’m considering it. Does Victoria come in often?”
“She used to work here and comes in once in a while. She had a tremendous crush on Miguel Aragon, the matador, and heard he lived near here. He had a heart attack and died a month or so ago, and she wept as though he’d been part of her family. His son Santos is nearly as hot, butis sHisHiHis son is nearly I like to know that when my man goes to work, he’ll be coming home for dinner.”
“So do I,” Libby agreed. “Victoria looks familiar. Maybe we’ve met. Do you know her last name?”
“Rubio, but I don’t know where she’s working now.”
There was an extra-large size of the dress in question on the rack. Libby wouldn’t have to try it on and make up an excuse not to buy it. That was a relief. “I don’t really have time to shop now, but I’ll come in again soon.”
“Please do. I work on commission.”
Libby walked down the beach until she’d passed the tourist shops, then pulled off her sandals and jogged along the damp sand at the shore to the Aragon house. She dropped into her seat and startled Santos so badly he lost his place in his book.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to surprise you.” She set the photo on the table. “Her name is Victoria Rubio, and she used to work at the boutique. Apparently she had a crush on your father, so it seems odd she’d join an anti-bullfighting demonstration. Has Mr. Cazares left?”
