Lauren knew, somehow, that they were being followed. She turned around. There was no one there, but it didn’t matter. She knew what she knew. But she didn’t have a sense of darkness or of shadows. Instead she knew that, at home in the night, the cop was following them.
“Let’s go on a river boat cruise tomorrow,” Deanna suggested.
“Cool idea,” Heidi agreed. “And before we leave, I want to drive out to the zoo, too. I really love it.”
“Great idea,” Lauren said, turning around again. She couldn’t see him, but she was sure that he was standing in the shadow of one of the nearby buildings.
They reached the courtyard of the B and B without incident. The gates creaked when Lauren opened them. They walked around the pool. The gorgeous and friendly lesbian couple from cottage three were sitting at one of the tables, sipping from plastic cups and watching the stars. Both women, Janice and Helen, were tall and blond, and modeled for a large clothing chain.
“Beautiful night, huh?” Janice called.
“It’s so pretty here, just breathing in the magnolia, watching the sky,” Helen offered. “Don’t you think?” She seemed anxious for them to agree with her.
“Beautiful,” Lauren agreed.
“Janice thjinks it’s kind of creepy, too,” Helen added.
“Darkness and shadows,” Janice said, then laughed. “I’ve got too much imagination. Helen doesn’t mind the most gruesome horror movie, but I can only watch them at home, where I can leave the room when I can’t take it anymore.”
“Well, I’m going in. I’m beat,” Deanna said, and, walked on toward their cottage to a chorus of good- nights.
“I’ll follow her,” Heidi said.
“I guess we’ll go in, too,” Janice said. “Although we do have more champagne, if you’d like some.”
“Tomorrow night?” Lauren suggested.
“Great,” Janice said. “Meet you out here? I really do love this place at night. It’s just that sometimes…”
“Sometimes what?” Lauren asked.
Janice shrugged and looked apologetically at Helen. “I get the feeling we’re being watched.”
Were they all crazy, Lauren wondered, or was their uneasiness just natural? The cottages were secluded, it was true, but the main house overlooked them. And the wall that separated the B and B from the old Victorian next door, where the bottom floor sold T-shirts, coffee and voodoo potions, and the upper floor was rented out as apartments, was tall and solid and would be hard for an intruder to scale.
“Deanna thinks she’s being watched sometimes, too,” Lauren said.
“What a shock,” Helen said, laughing. “She’s gorgeous. Imagine that. Some peeper watching a gorgeous woman.”
“Let’s all keep our doors locked, huh?” Lauren said.
“You bet,” Helen agreed.
Lauren couldn’t help but be glad that the other women had been outside to greet them—even if Janice’s words had given her a start. And Helen’s explanation
They wished each other goodnight and headed off toward their own cottages. Lauren looked back toward the street when she reached her door and saw that they had indeed been followed back from the bar by a man.
But she could see him plainly. It was definitely the cop.
She turned away and went inside.
“I’m going to bed,” Heidi said. She quickly hugged them both. “Forgive me for being bitchy. Tomorrow night, no fights, we just have fun.”
“Absolutely,” Deanna swore.
“You got it,” Lauren promised.
Deanna gave Lauren a hug, too, as Heidi went into the bedroom. “You’re a great friend. And I’m being a really weird one. Sorry. Love you.”
“I love you, too,” Lauren assured her. “And it’s not you being weird. It’s just that weird things that have been happening, you know?”
“Yeah, I do. But do you want to know the really weird thing?”
“What?”
“In spite of tonight, I really want to see Jonas again. Don’t worry, though. I’m not going back out in the night or anything. I’m wiped, too. I’m going to bed.”
“Goodnight.”
When Deanna had disappeared into the bedroom, Lauren went to the window, pulled back the curtain and looked outside again.
The cop was gone.
As she stared out, she heard a soft tapping on the door. She jumped, just managing to hold back a scream. It was the cop, and that was why she couldn’t see him on the street.
