by L A Walton
This was how Declan found his sister the next morning. She was huddled on the sofa, eyes bloodshot, and her head drooping to one side as she was trying her best not to fall asleep.
“Laci? What’s wrong with you? What are you doing?” her brother asked.
“Declan?” she was still in a sleepless stupor.
“What’s wrong Laci?”
“I need you to call Robert. Now.”
“Robert? Why?”
“I want him to do a sweep of the house. I think someone is spying on me again.”
“Laci are you joking right now?” Declan asked.
Laci almost lost it. She began sobbing and yelling, “Do I look like I’m joking? I want him here now Declan! Now!”
“Okay…okay! I’ll call him. Just calm down, alright?”
That morning Robert came over with a case of equipment. He took one look at Laci and whistled. “You’re a sight for sore eyes.”
“Don’t lie Robert. We both know she looks like crap,” Declan said.
Laci ignored him, “Robert did Declan tell you what I need done?”
“He said you think you have a bug in the house…or that someone was spying on you.”
Laci nodded, “I know you probably think I’m crazy but I still want you to check. Can you do that?”
“Of course I can Laci. We’ll start down here. Okay?”
Laci nodded and watched as Robert walked around the house with some small gizmo. He also searched the room for any hidden cameras. When he was done, he shook his head, “There’s nothing here. Should I check upstairs?”
“Yes!” Laci stood up and led him to her bedroom, “Check here first Robert.”
Robert turned on his gadget that was supposed to pick up on any listening devices and he made a strange face.
“What is it?” Laci asked.
“Just a moment.” Robert put his gizmo down and opened his case of tools. He took a chair and stood on it to reach the air conditioning vent. “Do you ever clean back here Laci?”
“No. Why?”
“Because if you did…you would’ve found this,” Robert said removing the vent and pulling out what looked like a white orb with a camera in the middle. Declan stepped forward and held it, “What is this?”
“It’s a baby monitor,” Robert answered.
“This is a baby monitor? Why is it in the vent?” Declan asked, still confused.
Laci felt her knees buckling beneath her.
“Aren’t baby monitors one sided?” Declan asked.
“Do you not listen when I talk about work?” Robert asked. “This isn’t just an ordinary monitor. It has a camera. This camera can move in any direction. Most importantly…if it’s connected to your internet, then anyone can spy on you, talk to you, hear whatever you say. This is an easy doorway into your home.”
“I don’t believe this,” Laci whispered to herself.
Robert looked at Declan who was slightly pale, “Guys, what’s going on here? Why did you have me sweep your house? Is everything okay?”
“It’s fine! Everything’s fine,” Laci stood back up. “Nothing is wrong. She grabbed the white baby monitor and held it in front of her, so that whoever was watching her could get her message directly, “Stop it! I don’t know what your problem is but stop it! Leave me alone! Leave me alone!”
Declan and Robert were both stunned. They had never seen the cool and collected Laci become so riled up.
“Laci calm down,” Declan stepped towards her but she quickly side-stepped him.
“Calm down? Me? Calm down? Don’t you know that’s the worst thing to say to someone that’s not feeling calm Declan?” She held the monitor in her hands and threw it against the wall as hard as she could, causing it to break.
“Let’s see if you keep spying on me now,” Laci was panting.
Robert turned to Declan, “I don’t know exactly what’s going on but if this person hacked into your internet, you may want to change your Wi-Fi password.”
Declan nodded as he watched Laci. She was standing still, staring at the broken pieces of the monitor.
After Robert was done searching the house, he confirmed that the only monitor found was the one in the vent.
“So where are they watching me from?” Laci asked.
“Their laptop or tablet most likely. All they needed to do was get it in there and hack into your router,” Robert answered. "We should probably call the police now."
"No!" Alex cried, "No police."
“How long has this been going on?” Robert asked, startled by her outburst.
“A couple of weeks,” Declan answered as Laci had shut down and wasn’t speaking.
“Has she noticed anyone different hanging around?” Robert asked.
“I don’t know. She has tons of fans so it could be anyone couldn’t it?”
“I’m right here boys. Don’t talk about me like I don’t exist,” Laci said in a low monotone voice.
Robert was about to apologize when the doorbell rang.
Declan stood up to answer the door. It was a delivery from 1-800-Flowers. “I have a delivery for a Dr. Laci Cummings,” the man said at the door.
Declan signed and took the delivery.
“That’s different,” Robert said, causing Laci to turn around and gasp. It wasn’t a bouquet of flowers. It was a bouquet of fruit cut up into the shape of flowers.
Declan handed the card to Laci who read it. “They’re from Andrew.”
“That guy is too smooth. You love these flower fruits, right?” Declan asked his sister.
Laci nodded, “Declan. Did you tell Andrew I liked these?”
Declan seemed surprised by her question, “No. Didn’t you tell him?”
Laci shrugged but she couldn’t remember ever telling him that bit of information. She thought back to what Robert had just mentioned.
“Has she noticed anyone different hanging around?”
All of this stalker business began around the same time Andrew had come into her life. An uncomfortable feeling started to form in the pit of her stomach. Andrew was handsome and sweet. He wouldn’t need to stalk women. They’d come to him willingly. It wasn’t possible. Was it?
CHAPTER 23
“Laci, we need to call the police,” Declan spoke, interrupting his sister’s thoughts.
Robert nodded, “Right. I don’t understand exactly what’s going on but you should call the cops if someone's trying to stalk you. Is it that crazy guy from before?” Robert was referring to Henry Meiser.
Declan watched as Laci shook her head, “No. The police told me it wasn’t him. He had an alibi around the time I was getting the notes and around the time Marie Ann was killed.”
Robert looked at Declan, “Marie Ann is your sister’s friend that you were telling me about?”
“Yeah. I told you things have been crazy around here,” Declan handed Laci her cell phone which she had put down on the coffee table, “Call the cops Laci.”
She reached for the phone as it began to ring.
It was Andrew.
Laci felt herself swallowing in nervousness. She looked at her brother as she clicked the green button, accepting his call.
“Hey Laci. Did you get my fruit bouquet?” Andrew asked.
Laci cleared her throat, “Yeah. I got it. Thank you.”
“I had a feeling you would like it.”
“It’s weird that you knew I liked fruit bouquets. Was it just a guess?” Laci asked.
Laci saw her brother roll his eyes, “Laci. Tell your boyfriend you’ll call him later. You have to call the cops. Now!"
“Is something wrong?” Andrew asked, as he was able to overhear Declan.
“A couple of things have come up. I’ll tell you about it later,” Laci remained vague.
“Laci, the cops? Screw it. I’ll call them myself,” Declan pulled his cellphone out of his pocket and Laci stood up.
“You’re calling the cops?” Andrew asked, overhearing Declan.
“Listen
. I’ll tell you about it later. I have to go. Bye Andrew.” Laci hung up on him before he could speak.
“Please don’t tell me you’re going to be stupid and not call the cops?” Declan asked, a look of disbelief on his face.
“It’s not that simple Declan!” Laci ran a hand through her dark hair and groaned in frustration. She was at her breaking point and she knew it. “It’s not that simple.”
“How is it not simple? Someone has been spying on you! It’s illegal! Someone snuck into this house and planted some stupid monitor crap in your room! For all we know it was the same guy who broke in and gave me a black eye.” Declan had his hands on his hips. He turned to his friend Robert and asked, “Don’t you agree with me?”
Robert remained quiet, watching the both of them. His eyebrows furrowed together as he thought aloud, “Honestly, I think your sister is an intelligent woman. If she didn’t want to call the cops, there’s probably a good reason.” He looked at Laci, “It’s probably a very scary reason.”
“What?” Declan sighed. “Just spit it out Robert. What are you trying to say?”
Robert shrugged, “Fear is a great way to control someone.”
Laci sat back down, pale. She lifted her hands to cover her ears.
“Laci?” Declan asked, “I know that this is all scary for you but I’m here. I’m here for you. I’ll help you in any way that I can. Do you know how hard it is for me to see all this happening to you? We have to call the cops.”
“He’s got my friend,” Laci whispered.
Both men heard her and looked at one another in surprise.
Robert spoke first, “Laci, when you say he’s got your friend…what do you mean?”
Tears were slowly trailing down her cheeks, “He’s got her. He threatened to kill her if I called the cops.”
“Son of a-“Declan was cut off by Robert.
“Laci, we still need to call the police.”
“And what if he kills her?” her voice rose in panic. “She’s one of my best friends! He already killed Marie Ann. What if he kills Kay too?”
“This isn’t something you can handle or negotiate. You should know that,” Robert chided softly.
Laci sniffed, “I know that! You think I don’t know that?”
“Call the cops Laci. We’ll be here for you,” Declan stepped forward and wrapped an arm around Laci.
“You’re right. Now that the monitor is found, there’s no way he’ll know anyway. It should be okay,” Laci whispered more for her own peace of mind.
She picked up her phone and dialed the number to someone she could trust, Officer Tracy Stewart.
James Palmer wished he had finished college. If he had, maybe he would’ve been able to get a better job than as an assistant apartment manager. He wondered if it wasn’t too late to quit and go back to school.
James stared at Seth Mathis, the manager of Olive Lake apartments, watching him scratch his armpits and other probably unclean areas.
James’s fake smile was reaching its limit.
Seth led James to a golf cart. Today he was showing James how to do the monthly apartment inspections. “Every quarter, the apartments we inspect change.”
“So we can just go into their apartments?” James asked.
“Of course! It’s in the lease and we already gave them advance notice James. The tenants are supposed to crate their dogs if they have any inside the apartment. We should know which apartments have dogs since they have to pay a pet deposit.”
“Do we ever have apartments that have pets without a deposit?” James asked.
Seth nodded, “Yeah. Some tenants think they can get one past me. I can tell when they have a pet without permission. The carpet is usually soiled and there’s a certain smell the apartment gives off.”
James grimaced. This job sounded horrible so far. He watched Seth rub his beefy hands together before he started the golf cart. James asked, “So today we’re going to do apartment inspections to check for any major damages and for unauthorized pets?”
“You got it partner,” Seth said in a country accent, making James cringe. “The first apartment we’re going to is number four hundred,” Seth explained as he pulled up in the golf cart to the building with a large number four on it. Seth and James walked to the apartment with the number four hundred and knocked.
No one answered the door. Seth knocked again. Still, there was no answer.
Seth looked at James, “Now the tenant may be at work, so we go in and just leave one of our notes.” He held up a stack of half-sheets of paper that were attached to a clipboard he was holding. They were notices indicating that an apartment inspection had been done.
James nodded and unlocked the door as Seth instructed him to. The apartment was quiet and immaculate in its cleanliness.
“This person must’ve taken our notice that we were coming seriously,” Seth smiled as he stepped into the kitchen, “James, you go ahead and check the bedroom. Just make sure that the blinds aren’t broken or missing and that the door handles are still working.”
James nodded and stepped to the bedroom door which was locked. He opened it, “Door handle works,” he called out to Seth, who was inappropriately looking through the tenant’s refrigerator.
James rolled his eyes and stepped into the bedroom. What he saw shocked him. A woman was tied to the bed. She was wearing sweat pants and a large T-shirt. Over her face was a large pillow. Her lack of movement and the failure of her chest to rise and fall indicated that she was no longer living.
His mouth opened, but words wouldn’t come out. Pricks of fear spread down his back. James stood there in shock. He wasn’t sure what he was looking at but he knew it wasn’t good.
“Are you done in there James? We have to finish before noon,” Seth called out. When James didn’t respond, he walked into the bedroom. He stood beside James and dropped his clipboard. He pulled out his phone to call 911.
James was finally able to speak, “Seth?”
“Yeah?”
“I quit.”
Officer Tracy Stewart was sitting across from Dr. Laci Cummings, fuming. “Explain to me again why you didn’t report this sooner?”
“He threatened to kill her if I called the cops,” Laci’ eyes were bloodshot and puffy from crying.
“You received this message yesterday?”
Laci nodded.
“Has your stalker sent you any other messages?” Stewart asked.
Declan spoke up, “He sent me pictures of Laci.”
“You?” Stewart asked.
Declan nodded, “Not too long ago. He left a note telling me to leave Laci alone for a night. He sent a bunch of pictures too. It scared the heck out of me.”
“I want to see the note,” Stewart said.
“Sorry. I tore it up,” Declan grimaced. “I was angry. I still have the pictures though.”
Officer Stewart looked at him suspiciously, “Fine. I want to see them. Anything you’ve received, I want.”
“Thank you for believing me,” Laci whispered.
Tracy Stewart had already called in a unit to drive by Kay’s home and check on her. She was surprised to get the call from Laci and decided not to tell Officer Joe Bishop about it. He hated Laci and wasn’t afraid to show his hostility. She held the pieces of the broken monitor in a plastic baggie. “You should have brought all of this to our attention sooner,” she scolded.
“I tried to,” Laci whispered.
“You asked us to close your case,” Stewart reminded her. “I’m not going to lie Dr. Cummings. I understand that people are afraid to call the police when someone they care about is being threatened. It’s a scare tactic I would never have expected you to fall for.”
“I understand what you mean…but when it’s affecting you personally. It’s not as easy to be so detached. I feel like I’m slowly losing control of everything in my life and it terrifies me Officer Stewart. I’m wondering when I’ll lose my sanity.”
Officer Stewart nodded in under
standing. Earlier, Laci had practically begged her to find Kay. She hadn’t turned off her CB radio and the sound of the static-like voices filled the room of crimes around the town of Roswell.
“Tell me your friend’s address,” Stewart had a pen out and a small pad.
“It’s the Olive Lake apartments across town. I don’t know the exact address.”
Stewart nodded as another report came in through the CB radio, “10-54 at 1515 Olive Cove. Olive Lake apartments. All available units please respond.”
Laci paled, “What’s a 10-54 mean?”
Stewart sighed. She didn’t believe in sugar-coating things, “It means a possible dead body.”
Declan ran to his sister and hugged her as she began to bawl. Meanwhile, Robert, who had been sitting in a loveseat across the room, looked at the time on his phone. He wondered what Amber was up to.
He was feeling antsy. On his desk was a framed picture of Laci leaving the radio station. The glass covering the picture was cracked and he smiled as he looked at it. By now, the body of Kay had been found, identified, and at the morgue. They wouldn’t be able to trace it back to him. He had been very careful to erase any messages of him on her phone. He had never allowed her to take a picture of him and the number he used to contact her was under Laci’s name.
He pulled out a photograph and giggled as he turned it over to scrawl a message for Laci. The photograph was placed in a gold envelope. He didn’t lick the envelope but instead, used a damp cloth to wet the seal. He couldn’t stop giggling as he thought of how she would react when she saw his new message and whispered to the framed picture, “You ruined my life…now I’m ruining yours.”
CHAPTER 24
Denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.
The five stages of grief played like a broken record in Laci' mind.
