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“I’m sorry.” I didn’t offer an explanation because I didn’t have one that would appease him. “It didn’t last for long. A few weeks, that I know of, but I only learned that after it all came to a head. I was married to Ryan at the time, so he helped me through it, and I tried not to think about it after.”
“I see.” Nate’s teeth were gritted. He glanced at Patton, who was studiously jotting notes. “What happened with Weich?”
“He was a fan of my books, but I don’t think I ever interacted with him personally. He convinced himself that we were in love and that the weekly newsletter I send my readers included hints about how much I missed him and secret clues to indicate I was being held against my will.” I breathed out slowly, hoping to calm my racing heart. Even thinking of him stressed me out. “I’ve done some research since then, and it seems it’s not uncommon for people with particular mental traits to fixate on someone in the public eye—even peripherally, like me—in that way.”
Nate nodded briskly and gestured for me to keep talking. I psyched myself up for what came next.
“One day, I was working from home, and he threw a brick through the back window. I thought he was just a vandal at first, but then he came into the apartment, shouting my name. He kept saying that he was there to free me so we could be together. Our closet had a trapdoor that went beneath the house, so I hid there and called the police. They arrested him for breaking and entering and helped me file a restraining order.”
“Breaking and entering?” Nate sounded pissed. “That’s all they could get him on?”
I shrugged. “He had no weapons, other than the brick he threw through the window, and I don’t think he intended to harm me. He honestly thought that Ryan was holding me captive.”
Nate pinched the bridge of his nose and growled in frustration. “Only you could find the good in a man who broke into your house and probably planned to kidnap you so he could enact his twisted fantasies. Did he serve any time?”
“No.” I looked at the table, not wanting to see the fury I knew would be blazing in his eyes. “I agreed not to press charges if he went to mandatory counseling until a psychiatrist was willing to say he wasn’t a danger to anyone.”
“Oh, Grace.” He sighed, long and low. “You have such a big heart, but where’s your sense of self-preservation?”
I straightened my spine. “I moved house and made sure our new place had a security system. I also put measures in place to ensure that nobody would be able to use my books to track me down again.”
“That’s something,” he allowed. “Do you know where Weich is now?”
“The last I heard, he’d gotten a job in Auckland and seemed to be on the straight and narrow, but that was years ago. Honestly, this whole thing was so long ago that it seems unlikely he’d be involved. Even if he were to regress, surely I’d have heard something before now.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.” Nate caught Patton’s eye and added, “As soon as we finish this interview, I want you to find out where this Weich guy is and what he’s doing. If he’s gotten so much as a parking ticket since the restraining order was filed, I want to know about it.”
Patton nodded. “Yes, Sarge.”
Nate turned back to me. “Have you learned anything else about Ezra? He seems suspiciously interested in you, and he would have had plenty of opportunity to deliver the letter.”
A chill ran through me at the thought that I could be harboring a villain under my own roof, but even though Ezra was odd and made me nervous, he hadn’t been hostile or come onto me. “I discovered that he’s newly divorced and his father died of cancer recently.”
“So, he’s had a lot of upheaval in his life,” Nate commented.
“Has he made any untoward advances toward you?” Patton asked, earning a scowl from Nate, who clearly wanted to take the lead on questioning.
“No.” I thought back through my interactions with him. “I don’t know that he reads social cues very well, but he absolutely hasn’t flirted with me. It’s more like he’s a nosy neighbor who doesn’t know when to back off.”
“Has he ever said or done anything threatening?” Nate asked.
“Not exactly, but I have to admit, it made me nervous when I caught him around the side of my house that time I was coming over for brunch at your mum and dad’s place.”
“It’s possible you interrupted him trying to figure out how to get into the house,” Nate pointed out. “Was the ring there at that time?
“I don’t know.” I felt useless, not being able to offer more information. “It could have been. I’m sorry, I really don’t remember when it disappeared.”
“It’s okay.” He patted my hand briefly, and Kennedy scooted her chair closer. “Patton, digging into Ezra Mendel is priority number two.”
“Got it, boss.”
Nate searched my eyes as though hoping he might find all the answers he needed inside them. He could search for as long as he wanted, but I doubted he’d ever see what he was looking for. “I know we already talked about friends and exes who might hold a grudge after the ring was stolen, but I have to ask again. Is there anyone you could have forgotten? Even something as simple as a bad blind date could trigger the wrong person.”
“Nate.” I sounded as exasperated as I felt. “I don’t even remember the last time I went on a date. I hate online dating, and it’s not as if there’s a thriving singles scene in town. I might have met up with a guy in Queenstown a year or so ago, but I doubt he’d remember my name now.”
“We’ll need that information anyway.” He pursed his lips. “I know it’s a nuisance, but we’ve got to cover the bases.”
“Yeah, fine.” I sighed. “I’ll try to find the details.”
