AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter 9
He wasn’t breathing heavily when he reached the bottom of the stairs, but he still took a deep breath before he pushed the bar open. He let his hand hover near his chest, ready to grab his gun.
But the only person he saw was the security guard. “He still here, Bob?” Spence asked.
Bob shook his head. “I heard a beep on his phone. He looked, said he had to pick up another delivery and took off.”
“What was he wearing?” Spence asked. “Quickly.”
“Black jacket. Jeans. Sneakers.” He shrugged. “All I noticed.”
“Hair color? Length?”
“Brown,” Bob said immediately. “High and tight.”
“Thanks.” Spence slammed through the door and stood on the sidewalk in front of the building. He scanned the crowds of people streaming by on the sidewalk on both sides of the street, looking for a guy who matched Bob’s description. But most of the people hurrying down the street wore dark jackets and jeans. Too many of them to check everyone. And unfortunately, the high and tight haircut was apparently popular with Seattle men. And so was brown hair.
After ten minutes, knowing Davies would be long gone, Spence went back inside. Bob studied his expression. “No luck, huh?”
Spence shook his head. “Too many people out there. And he could have ducked into the lobby of another building. He say anything to you?”
“Nope,” Bob replied. “Just that he had the lunch that Zoe Melbourne ordered.”
“Did he seem nervous? Excited?” Spence asked.
Bob frowned. “Now that you mention it, he did. Both nervous and excited. He was doing this weird thing with his fingers. Tapping them on his leg.”
Had Zoe mentioned that? He’d ask her. “Did he leave the food when he took off?”
Bob nodded and set a bag on the counter. It was from Shake Shack. A burger place. He wondered if Zoe ate meat. She hadn’t ordered it on her pizza last night.
“Thanks, Bob.” He reached for the bag, then drew his hand back. “Do you have a panic button somewhere? To call the police in case of an emergency?”
“I do,” he said. He pointed out a button at the back of the desk. “Ms. Melbourne was insistent the reception area had one. ‘Just in case’,” she said.
Of course she had. She’d needed a panic button thirteen year ago and hadn’t had one. “If that guy comes back, first thing you do is push that button,” Spence said. “Even before you call up to the office. But do it subtly. Don’t let him see you lunging for it.”
“Got it,” Bob said.
“Most important?” Spence leaned closer to emphasize his point. “Don’t scare him off. Act like he’s just another food delivery guy. If you usually chat them up, do that. If he wants to look at his phone and not engage with you, let him do that.”
“Got it, Mr. Riley.” Bob nudged the bag toward him. “Here’s your order.”
“Thanks, Bob.” Spence struggled to relax his tight shoulders, then rapped his knuckles on the counter. “Have a good rest of your day.”
Spence stabbed at the elevator button, tapping his feet until the doors slid open and he stepped inside. Davies was getting aggressive. Coming to Zoe’s building? Clearly trying to get up to her office? The guy was escalating. And that was bad news for Zoe.
Maybe good news for him. If Davies was taking chances, it gave Spence opportunities to take him down. Get him locked up until the authorities could do what was best for Davies. His opinion? Davies belonged in a mental health facility.
He’d been stable for eight years. He’d controlled his behavior. But something had changed. He’d email Mel and ask her to check the last few months of Davies’ life. See if anything major had changed. Job loss. Breakup with a girlfriend. A friend’s death. Any of those major, life-altering events could have set Davies off.
The elevator stopped at Zoe’s floor and the doors opened silently. Janet looked up from her desk. Studied his face, sighed. “He was gone, wasn’t he?”
“Yeah,” Spence said. “Bob said he was a little jittery. Something must have spooked him.”
“I’m surprised he wasn’t still there,” Janet said, frowning. “I told Bob that Zoe was on her way down.”
Spence shrugged. “We’ll never know why. Maybe he decided he wasn’t ready to confront Zoe. Maybe some small thing spooked him. Hell, maybe he saw a Seattle PD cruiser drive past.” He shook his head. “Only thing we can be sure of? He’ll be back. Either here or somewhere else.”
