Chương 6 - The Woman Behind the Perfume
I didn't go home.
Detective Ruiz met me twenty minutes later.
Laura came with me.
When Ruiz saw Rebecca's letter, her entire demeanor changed.
“This helps.”
“Helps?”
“It establishes a historical allegation.”
“Seventeen years ago.”
“Yes. But paired with your account, the insurance policies, Mercer, and the searches, we have something to work with.”
“Can you arrest Julian?”
“Not yet.”
I hated those words.
“What about the syringe?”
“We need it.”
“He probably destroyed it.”
“Maybe.”
Ruiz looked at me.
“Where's your son?”
“Safe.”
“Keep him there.”
My phone rang.
Julian.
Ruiz nodded toward it.
“Answer.”
I did.
“Hi.”
“Where are you?”
“Shopping.”
“At which diner?”
Silence.
Then I forced a laugh.
“You're tracking me?”
“We share location services.”
Of course.
I had forgotten.
“I met someone for coffee.”
“Who?”
“Friend.”
“Name?”
“Why are you interrogating me?”
His voice softened.
“Because I'm worried.”
There it was.
The performance.
“I'll be home later.”
“When?”
“Soon.”
“Clara.”
“Yes?”
“I love you.”
My eyes filled unexpectedly.
“I love you too.”
That wasn't entirely a lie.
And I hated myself for it.
After the call, Ruiz helped disable location sharing.
Then Laura said something I'd almost forgotten.
“The perfume.”
I looked at her.
“What?”
“You mentioned smelling perfume on him that morning.”
“Yes.”
“Describe it.”
I did.
Floral.
Heavy.
Distinctive.
Laura's face drained.
“Rebecca wore something like that.”
“That doesn't mean anything.”
“No.”
Laura hesitated.
“But Nathan Mercer has a daughter.”
My stomach tightened.
“Who?”
“Sabrina Mercer.”
She showed me a photograph.
I recognized her.
Not personally.
But I had seen her before.
Three months earlier, Julian had introduced us at a charity gala.
He called her an investment consultant.
Sabrina had hugged me.
Her perfume was unmistakable.
The same scent I'd smelled on Julian the morning after he entered our bedroom with the syringe.
Detective Ruiz took the photograph.
“This changes our priorities.”
Sabrina wasn't simply connected to Mercer.
She worked for the brokerage that had processed two of my insurance policies.
Suddenly the forged signatures made sense.
The machinery around my planned death had more than one person operating it.
Julian had a doctor who understood medical records.
A broker who understood insurance.
And perhaps others.
That evening, Ruiz arranged for me to stay somewhere Julian wouldn't know.
But I refused.
Not because I was brave.
Because I realized something.
If Julian believed I had fled, he would destroy evidence.
If he believed I remained unsuspecting enough to come home, he might reveal something.
Ruiz hated the idea.
Eventually, we compromised.
I would return only briefly.
Officers would remain nearby.
I entered the house at 8:42 p.m.
Julian sat in the living room.
No television.
No music.
Just Julian.
Waiting.
“Where were you?”
“Coffee.”
“With?”
I removed my coat.
“Laura Vale.”
The lie was over.
Julian's face became completely still.
For several seconds, the house seemed to hold its breath.
Then he smiled.
“I don't know who that is.”
“Yes, you do.”
He stood.
I didn't move.
“Rebecca's sister.”
Silence.
“What has she been telling you?”
“Interesting question for someone who doesn't know her.”
His smile disappeared.
“Clara.”
“What happened to Rebecca?”
“You've been digging through my past.”
“What happened?”
“She died.”
“How?”
“You know how.”
“Tell me.”
He walked closer.
I felt the recording device beneath my blouse.
Detective Ruiz was listening.
Julian stopped.
“She had problems.”
“Depression?”
“Yes.”
“Medication?”
“Yes.”
“Insurance?”
His jaw tightened.
“Everybody has insurance.”
“Did you kill her?”
The question changed the room.
Julian stared at me.
Then laughed.
Not loudly.
Almost sadly.
“You've lost your mind.”
There.
Exactly what Rebecca predicted.
“You've been under stress,” he continued. “Your migraines. Your anxiety.”
The narrative.
He was building it even now.
I backed toward the doorway.
“I should go.”
Julian stepped sideways.
Blocking me.
“Where?”
“Caleb's.”
“He isn't home.”
My heart stopped.
“How do you know?”
Julian smiled.
“Because I've been looking for him too.”
Then he reached into his pocket.
For one horrifying second, I expected another syringe.
Instead, he pulled out Caleb's hotel key card.
Room 814.
May you like
My son wasn't safe anymore.
And Julian knew exactly where he'd been hiding.
