She turned sharply, slamming her back against the wall, making it so she couldn’t be seen from where he stood. She huffed out a breath that turned into a laugh, her heart hammering against her chest. Because of course he would have seen her. That she had scrambled and hid. And the front door was unlocked, so if he wanted to come and investigate, if he wanted to get to her... There was no barrier.
But she stayed like that, frozen for two whole minutes. And when she turned back to look out the window, she didn’t see him at all.
She texted Dahlia, who was at the local coffee shop working on an article, and Ruby met her there and relayed the story over caffeine.
“Do you think you hallucinated it?” she asked.
“No, I’m sure that he was there. Ninety percent. I’m not usually given to hallucinating the existence of men.”
“Do you think it washim?” Dahlia asked.
“I don’t know,” Ruby said. “I mean, it would make most sense. Unless his dad hired someone to...”
“John Brewer died,” Dahlia said. “A month ago.”
“Oh,” Ruby said.
“So I mean, it could be a new owner, it could be... I don’t know what they ended up doing with the property. I didn’t see it go up for sale, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t sold.” Dahlia pulled a face. “I’m not really up for living next to a murderer.”
“I mean, we don’t know if he’s a murderer.”
Dahlia scoffed. “Rubes, he was her boyfriend. He was the last person to see her alive. He’s...well, it’s almost always the intimate partner, that’s just a fact.”
Ruby looked down into her coffee. “Or he isn’t.”
She didn’t know why she felt the need to defend him. She never had before.
“This isn’tJane Eyre. If a man locks his mad wife in the attic, he’s a monster, not a hero.”
“Speaking in metaphor, obviously,” Ruby said.
“Obviously.”
Ruby looked around the café. “I’m headed over to the museum today.”
“I didn’t think you started until Monday.”
“I don’t,” Ruby said. “But I’m eager to get started and I don’t have anything else to do.”
“Aren’t you recovering from jet lag?”
“Sort of. But I don’t like being bored. Lydia’s kids are in school so I can’t do anything to help with them.” Ruby felt... Lost then, and she searched Dahlia’s face for answers, which she didn’t find.
“What exactly did you think you were going to do to help Lydia?”
Ruby shrugged. “Just be here. It seems wrong for us all to be separated right now. And anyway, I can help if she needs something.”
“Most people would take the vacation.” Dahlia pointed one chipped nail on the table.
She shrugged. “I love being back here, but what happens when I spend a leisurely morning doing nothing? I start thinking that I see scary men standing outside my window.”
“Well, in fairness you might have.”
“It’sunnerving,” she said again.
The door to the coffeehouse opened, and Ruby fought the urge to slide under the table.
Because it was someone she knew. Very well.