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“It’s not an insult, Chief. As far as I’m concerned, we’re two kindred spirits.”
She adjusted her hat. “I think I might be a little grumpier than you. Then again, I have a lot more weight on my shoulders.”
If she only knew.
She stopped next to her SUV and cast a furtive glance at the coffee shop. “There’s something off about that Smith woman.”
That got my attention. “What makes you say that?”
“I don’t know. I feel like she’s hiding something.” The chief turned to meet my gaze. “And she was asking too many questions about you, to the point where I had to shut them down. I almost keeled over when you walked in there. I knew she’d pounce.”
“I can handle myself, but I appreciate you looking out for me.”
The chief narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing me. “Any idea why she’s so obsessed with you?”
“I assume because I was the last person at the house on Thoreau Street. She seems to think I interacted with someone called Solomon.”
“And Bruce. The woman seemed to think Bruce was alive and that you have information…” Chief Garcia shook her head. “The whole situation is bizarre, and I don’t have time to deal with bizarre.”
“Full plate again?”
“Between careless accidents and flaring tempers, this town is ready to combust. I had to drive over to Walden Lane at five o’clock this morning because of a domestic dispute. They were both sleep deprived and at each other’s throats. I’m trying to shield Officer Leo from most of the mess, so he doesn’t have a change of heart and leave us for greener pastures.”
“I’d say Fairhaven’s pastures are still pretty green, even taking what you said into consideration.” I hesitated. “Did the couple mention anything specific about their sleeplessness?”
“Like what?”
“Do they have a newborn? Were they stressed?”
“They were certainly stressed when I got there.” She pursed her lips, thinking. “They said they slept like ten hours but woke up feeling irritable. I mean, we’ve all experienced that on occasion, right?”
Yes, but not all at the same time. I was starting to think West was right. The sleep issue wasn’t natural in origin—it was supernatural.
The chief tapped my arm. “Whatever you do, I’d advise you to steer clear of Smith. Whatever her real agenda is, it doesn’t seem to have your best interest in mind. Hopefully, she’ll slink off into the night and we’ll never see her again.”
She didn’t need to tell me twice. “I appreciate the warning.”
“I might give her a ticket. See if it aggravates her enough to leave town. She seems like someone who doesn’t respond well to that sort of thing.”
My stomach tensed. “I think it’s best if you don’t antagonize her.”
She cocked an eyebrow. “Something you want to share?”
“Like you said, something seems off about her. I’d steer clear.”
She cast a glance in the direction of the coffee shop. “You’re right. A wide berth is best. See you around, Clay.”
I waited a moment to make sure Naomi wasn’t following me, then proceeded on foot to the library. The strange sleep issues seemed to coincide with her arrival. She’d identified herself as supernatural, but I was uncertain as to which species. Like me, she was hard to pin down.
But she wasn’t like me. Not really. No one was.
CHAPTER7
The trail of Cheerios on the floor of the library tipped me off to the toddler invasion. Impeccable timing as always. I departed from the trail and turned left toward the adult section, wishing I’d brought noise-canceling headphones to block out the sound of excited children.
Hailey Jones intercepted me halfway to the stacks. “Thank you, Jesus. It’s one of my favorite patrons. How can I help you today?” There was a note of desperation in her voice.
“You’re trying to avoid the kids, aren’t you?”
