SEE HIM DIE (4 page)

“Sign the papers, Julie,” he threatened, his fingers digging into her upper arms, “or face the consequences.”

She shook her head firmly from side to side. “No way.” There was nothing quiet or calm about her voice this time. Everyone in the room heard her when she continued. “Take your new friend and go, Austin. I’ll see you in hell before I’ll sign those papers without a proper settlement!”

Something changed in his eyes... something visceral and savage glittered in those icy green depths. For the first time since she’d met him, Julie felt fear... absolute fear.

“I think that’s your cue to leave, pal.”

Julie’s gaze shot to the man who’d spoken.
Detective Duncan
. Austin released her and turned to go toe-to-toe with the detective.

Knees nearly too weak to hold her, Julie swayed.

“I would advise you to mind your own business, my friend,” Austin warned.

“Keeping the peace is my business.” Detective Duncan planted his hands on his lean hips, revealing his police badge attached to his belt.

Austin smiled. “Aren’t you a conscientious civil servant? I think I’m quite finished here, Detective…?”

“Duncan,” he responded. “Detective Blake Duncan.”

“Jules.” Marie was tugging her backwards. “Let’s go to my office.”

Julie’s heart was pounding. She wanted to cheer. Austin’s face was tight with fury. Not once in the three plus years she had been married to him had he been publicly humiliated this way.

One of the bar’s three hundred pound, muscle-bound bouncers appeared next to Austin. “Let me show you the way out, sir.”

Austin turned his glare toward Julie for a moment before he relented and walked away with Barbie curled around him like a snake.

As soon as he was out the door, the crowd resumed their conversations. Julie’s head was still spinning.

“Thank you,” she said to the detective. There were no words to adequately convey how good it had felt to watch Austin get his for once.

“Just doing my job, ma’am.” He flashed a smile and returned to his table.

“Come on, Jules,” Marie urged. “Hang out in my office and have a glass of wine.”

Unable to stop staring at the detective, Julie felt herself being pulled toward the kitchen and the office beyond it.

As soon as she could no longer see Detective Duncan, the adrenaline receded and she drooped with emotion. “Why is Austin doing this?” She couldn’t think, couldn’t slow her mind’s sudden, frantic whirling. “Why did he come here?”

For that matter, why was the detective here? She didn’t remember ever seeing him here before. Maybe he’d hunted her down when she hadn’t returned his call.

Marie ushered her into the chair at her desk. “Skip’s bringing you a glass of wine. Stay right here, drink the wine and calm down. Everything is going to be okay.”

Julie nodded, knowing Marie needed to get back to the bar. She didn’t have time for this. Tears welled in Julie’s eyes. She did not want to cry. Austin wasn’t worth it. She braced her face in her hands and fought the urge. Her shoulders shook with the effort. Why didn’t he just settle as he’d promised he would in the prenuptial agreement? The one dollar he’d offered in his petition for divorce was ridiculous. It wasn’t as if she was asking for the moon. The amount was paltry compared to his net worth.

“Hey, Jules.” Blond and tanned, Skip breezed into the office; glass in hand, along with a full bottle of Chardonnay. “I figured a glass would never do it.”

She had to smile. “Thanks.” Skip was such a nice guy. A great guy and a super waiter.

He left the bottle of wine on the desk and patted her on the back. “He’ll get his.”

Julie sighed. “You know what, you’re right. He will get his.”

Skip winked and left her to the task of calming her nerves. She filled her glass and downed it, scarcely pausing for a breath. Her feet and legs ached. She’d really tried to make this job work. It wasn’t fair that Austin had invaded her new reality to taunt her.

It just wasn’t fair.

But then, life wasn’t always fair.

She shuddered as she remembered his threatening words. He was wrong. She wasn’t
going
to regret it... she already did.

Saturday, June 27, 2:00 a.m.

Julie had one glass of wine too many and ended up asleep on Marie’s desk. By the time her friend woke her, the bar was closed and Julie had arm prints on her forehead.

“I’m so sorry, Marie,” she offered as her friend drove her home. Julie didn’t even have her car back. The last two nights her neighbor had let her borrow the Buick, but tonight she’d had plans. It was pitiful. Even a seventy-two-year-old woman had plans on Friday night.

“Don’t worry about it,” Marie assured her. “It wasn’t the first time my customers witnessed a domestic dispute. I doubt it’ll be the last.”

Thank God for good friends.

Marie waited until Julie had unlocked the door to her apartment and waved goodbye before driving away. Julie went inside, a little bit of a buzz still slowing her reactions. She didn’t drink often. Apparently for good reason. Even a power nap hadn’t cleared her head completely. Her sleep had been haunted by dreams of the gallant detective who’d come to her rescue.

Another man is exactly what you need, Julie
. God, she was a mess.

“Lock the door,” she muttered. She turned the latch and then tossed her keys on the counter that served as a dining table and divided the living room from the kitchen. Had she ever been this exhausted?

Without bothering with lights, she headed straight for the tiny bathroom. She just wanted to slip into the tub and soak for a while, then drag herself into bed. She didn’t want to look at the crummy place she now called home. The dinky kitchen cupboards were basically bare. She ate lunch and dinner at the bar whether she was hungry or not. Marie insisted she didn’t want her to starve.

Right now, Julie only wanted that hot bath. She didn’t want to think about how out of sorts her life was or how alone she felt. She didn’t want to think at all.

She closed the bathroom door and rested against it for a moment, allowing the darkness and the quiet to soothe her. The inordinately cold air abruptly penetrated her senses, making her shiver. It was so cold in here. Was her thermostat broken?

Maybe it was just her. She needed that hot bath. All she had to do was move. Push off the door. Twist the knobs to start the water flowing.

The distinct creak of a floorboard sounded in the hall outside the bathroom.

Julie froze against the door.

Her eyes widened.

She knew that sound.

This apartment didn’t have carpet. Hardwood floors throughout. In certain places, the floor creaked.

Fear exploded in her veins.

Someone was in the apartment.

She whirled around and slammed the lock on the bathroom door into place.

The knob turned.

Her heart surged into her throat.

The door shook on its hinges. Whoever was out there, he wanted in. Oh God!

The fight or flight instinct kicked in.

She had to get out of here!

Julie scrambled into the tub. She shoved the blinds out of the way and twisted the window’s lock.

The intruder’s weight slammed against the door.

She bit back a shriek and pushed on the stubborn sash with all her might. It wouldn’t budge. The damned thing was painted shut.

She was trapped.

As hard as Julie pushed, the window would not open. Her arms trembled with the effort. She heard the sound of groaning wood and whirled around. The bathroom door would give way any second now.

The knob twisted violently.

Her breath evaporated in her lungs.

He was going to get her. The crime rate was high in this neighborhood.

She didn’t want to die like this... or to be... oh God... raped.

The door abruptly stopped shaking... the knob stopped twisting.

Silence
.

Her heart pounded so hard in her chest that the blood roared in her ears like a freight train.

What was he doing?

The floor creaked.

She frowned.

More silence
.

He’d moved away from the door.

Why?

A new rush of fear plunged through her. How would he try to get to her now?

Then she heard it… banging on the front door.

“Ms. Barton, I know you’re in there!”

The landlady
.

Julie’s knees went weak even as confusion screamed through her brain. It was past two a.m. What would Mrs. Allison be doing at her door? Where was the intruder?

Did she dare leave the bathroom and open the front door? Had the intruder left by some other route? Had Mrs. Allison scared him off?

Julie climbed out of the tub and moved soundlessly to the door. She fought to control her breathing and the trembling rampant in her limbs. She had to listen. Had to be calm.

She pressed her ear to the bathroom door.

Nothing.

Silence
.

“I saw you come in!” Mrs. Allison drummed her fist against the front door again. “Why aren’t you answering the door? What’s going on in there?”

Julie could scream. The landlady would hear her and call the police, but it might be too late by the time help arrived.

If she waited until Mrs. Allison was gone, there would be no one to help her.

Holding her breath, her heart thundering, Julie unlocked the bathroom door. The sound echoed like a shotgun blast in the ensuing silence. Slowly she opened the door, her chest heaving with relentless terror. Summoning the last vestige of courage she possessed, she stepped into the dark hallway.

Nothing.

Thank God.

She rocketed toward the front door, hitting the nearest light switch, and grabbing her cell phone en route. No one came up behind her or attempted to stop her from wrenching the front door open and bursting out onto the stoop.

“Mrs. Allison!” The woman had headed back to her own place. Julie half stumbled down the steps after her. “Mrs. Allison!”

Her landlady paused and turned to shuffle back up the walk to where Julie stood at the bottom of her steps.

“I thought you were hiding from me,” her landlady accused.

Julie shook her head. “I was...” She swallowed hard. “I was in the bathroom. I was about to take a bath and I didn’t hear you knocking.” She didn’t mention the intruder. Maybe she’d imagined the whole damned thing. As God was her witness, she would never drink again. The receding terror combined with the fading effect of the alcohol left her as weak as a kitten.

“Well.” Mrs. Allison crossed her arms over her bosom. “I just wanted to tell you that a policeman came around looking for you this evening.” Her already beady eyes narrowed. “You in some kind of trouble? I don’t permit tenants who have troubles with the law.”

Julie managed a shaky smile. It must have been Detective Duncan. Her landlady had probably told him where she worked. So maybe he had been looking for her since she hadn’t returned his call. “No, ma’am, I’m not in any kind of trouble.” She took a couple of calming breaths. “I’m sorry you felt compelled to sit up this late just to give me that message.”

Mrs. Allison still looked suspicious. “I don’t like when the law comes snooping around. You just see that there’s no trouble. I won’t have it.”

Julie nodded adamantly. “You have my word, Mrs. Allison. You don’t have to worry about any trouble from me. The policeman who came to visit you was probably the...” Damn, she couldn’t explain about the accident without the worry that her landlady would tell her neighbor and there would be no more borrowing the Buick. “The... ah... one I talked to about a car.”

“Yeah, Thelma said your car got repossessed.”

Thelma was the neighbor with the Buick. Were there no secrets around here? It was nice to know some of her instincts could still be counted on.

“I’m afraid that’s true,” Julie confessed.

Mrs. Allison huffed a big breath. “Just pay your rent on time, stay out of trouble with the law, and I’ll be happy.”

Julie forced another smile into place and called a goodnight to the nosy old woman’s retreating back. She turned and faced her open apartment door. Did she dare go back in there?

She certainly didn’t need to call the police unless absolutely necessary. Not and risk being thrown out of the only home she had.

Screwing up her courage, Julie clenched the phone like a loaded weapon and moved up the steps. She depressed a nine and then a one on the keypad to make calling for help easier. Inside, she turned on the overhead light before moving fully across the threshold. The living room looked clear. She eased inside and pushed the door shut behind her. She shivered again. God, it was so damned cold in here. She’d have to check the temperature on the thermostat.

Eventually.

After listening intently for a few seconds, she moved toward the kitchen area turning on each light she passed. She drew up short when she found the sliding patio door open. She stood stock-still long enough to ensure that no sound came from inside or outside the apartment other than the usual sounds of traffic in the distance.

Fumbling in her haste, she quickly slid the patio door closed and locked the damned thing. For the good it would do, she mused, since it had been locked when she left for work this afternoon. Damned crappy lock.

Okay. She stood back and drew in another bolstering breath. So there had been someone in her apartment. She hadn’t been imagining anything. Well, she certainly didn’t have a thing worth stealing.

She didn’t even have a television set. Her intruder had likely been sorely disappointed. Though, admittedly, if he was shopping in this neighborhood his expectations had to be low anyway. On the other hand, why try to get to her through the locked bathroom door? Why would a common thief do that? The answer was likely one she didn’t want to know. She shuddered, thankful for her landlady’s nosiness.

Her attention shifted to the short hallway. All she had to do now was check the bathroom and bedroom, and then she could relax. Firming her resolve, she checked the bathroom first.

Clear
. Nothing out of the ordinary except for the vinyl blinds she’d damaged in her haste to get to the window. Covering all the bases, she peeked into the hall closet as she passed. Her relief at finding it empty made her a little lightheaded. Thank God.

The bedroom and then she could relax. The door was closed. She couldn’t remember if she’d left it that way or not. Her hand shaking she reached out, gave the knob a twist, and pushed the door inward.

No sound. No reaction. That had to be good.

She eased into the doorway and felt for the light switch.

Why hadn’t she gotten a weapon? A knife or something?

Because you don’t have one
. You don’t have anything.

Okay. She readied to press the final button on the phone.

She could do this.

She shoved the light switch upward with her free hand and the overhead light glowed to life.

Nothing moved.

Relief rocketed through her.

Her gaze landed on the bed and her heart skidded to a near stop.

Austin lay sprawled across the tousled sheets. He still wore the charcoal suit he’d been wearing at the bar tonight.

Only... his crisp white shirt was...

Red... the whole front was... red...

Blood
.

A scream rent the air. Not until after the sound faded into nothingness did Julie realize it had come from her.

She rushed toward the bed. Her feet hit something wet and flew out from under her. Her backside hit the floor hard. Julie scrambled up, grabbing the phone that had slipped from her hand.
Blood
. On her hands. On her legs and feet. The sandals she’d thought would be comfortable in her new job were smeared with...

Blood... so much blood. On the floor and the bed. It was everywhere.

“Austin.” She crawled onto the bed.

How could this be? It didn’t make sense.

“Austin.” She reached out to shake him.

He didn’t respond.

His eyes were open. Glassy. Staring straight up at the ceiling.

She forced in a ragged breath.

Pulse
. She had to check his pulse.

She shuddered when her fingers pressed against his neck. He was so cold.

A desperate sound pushed past her lips.

Help
.

She needed help.

It took three tries to get the number dialed properly. She couldn’t stop shaking. She somehow pushed the end call button twice. Her hands were sticky with blood.

Austin’s blood
.

“9-1-1, what is the nature of your emergency?”

“My name is Julie Barton. My husband,” she said, her voice shaking so badly she could scarcely speak, “my husband is... I need help.”

“What is the address you’re calling from, Mrs. Barton?”

Julie’s mind went blank. “I don’t know. I can’t remember. Please send help. I think... I think he’s dead.”

She shoved her hair back from her face only then realizing that her cheeks were damp with tears.

Austin was dead
.

She kept watching his chest... expecting it to move.

Why didn’t he breathe?

“Ma’am? Ma’am, I need your location.”

The words tumbled past Julie’s lips as if her roiling stomach had hurled them forth.

“I’ve got your location, Mrs. Barton. Help is on the way. The police and the paramedics are en route. I need you to work with me until they arrive.”

“Okay,” she whispered. Julie felt suddenly and utterly numb.

“Mrs. Barton, tell me the nature of your husband’s injuries.”

Julie knelt over his motionless body and stared at his bloody chest. “I... I think he’s been shot.” A wave of dizziness took her breath and she had to brace her free hand against his body. There was an angry hole in the center of his chest. Then another just a little lower. The smell of coagulated blood was suddenly stifling.

“I need you to check for a pulse, Mrs. Barton.”

She shook her head then remembered that the woman couldn’t see her. “There is no pulse. He isn’t breathing. He’s... cold.”