Karen Rose - I’m Watching You

„So who did you tell?“

„My parents.“

„And?“

She could see her father’s face as if it were yesterday, scarlet and quivering in rage. She could still hear the sound of his palm whizzing through the air, just seconds before he slapped her to the ground. Where she lay, trembling and nauseous. And pregnant .

„He didn’t believe me.“

„What?“ Abe lurched to his feet on the outraged cry. „He didn’t believe you?“

„No. He accused me of being like my sister. Sinful and wild.“

She watched as Abe paced the floor. „Is that why you left home?“ he asked.

„I didn’t leave home. He threw me out.“ Terrified, penniless, and pregnant .

Abe froze, then turned, his face a mask of disbelief. „He threw you out?“

„Yes.“

„And your mother?“ he demanded. „What did she do?“

„Nothing. She just looked at me. Maybe if Kara had still been alive, she might have had the strength to stand up to him, but by then, she just went through the motions. Anyway, it didn’t matter. By mat time the boy had told all his friends what had happened. They all thought I was easy.“ And I knew by fall term I’d be showing . „So at the end of the summer term, I left KU. One of my sister’s old friends had moved to Chicago, so I came here to live with her. I transferred to University of Chicago and finished my degree.“

Abe’s hands were shaking and he shoved them in his pockets. „In art?“

She shook her head. „No, I couldn’t paint after that. I majored in business and decided to go to law school.“ And I had a baby. And I gave her away . But when she opened her mouth to finish the story, all she could see was the photo of Abe and Debra, pregnant with the child that was stolen from them. And I gave mine away .

Abe sat down heavily and buried his face in his hands. „God.“

„When I saw that Ferris wheel tonight…“ She shuddered. „I can’t look at Ferris wheels.“

He said nothing, just kept his head bowed. She reached out and stroked his hair. „It’s done, Abe. I went on with my life.“

He lifted his head, his eyes piercing. „Alone.“

She met his gaze, held it „For a time.“

„What happened to him?“

Kristen shook her head. „No, I won’t tell you that“

He glared at her. „Tell me.“

„Or what?“ she asked calmly.

His shoulders sagged and his face suddenly looked haggard. „Please.“

She should have known he’d need to know. She knew, after all. She’d kept tabs on him, even after all these years. „As irony would have it, he went to law school, too. He went into politics and is now the mayor of a small Kansas town.“ Her lips twisted. „He’s running for a seat in the state legislature. Polls show he’s ahead by ten points.“

Abe’s stomach churned. That the monster would prosper, never pay for his crime, never feel a fraction of her pain was more than he could take. „You could ruin him.“

She sat very still. „But I won’t. I didn’t say anything then and I won’t say anything now.“ She looked away, but not before he saw the glint of tears in her eyes. „Because the truth of it is, I’m a coward.“

Abe stared, not believing the words coming out of her mouth. „You are not a coward.“

She blinked, sending the tears down her face. „Yes, I am. These women that come forward, they’re the brave ones. I make them live through it again and again, publicly humiliate themselves again, and most of the time it’s for nothing.“

He gripped her arms and urged her to her feet „I don’t ever want to hear you say that.“ She’d told him her story with a clinical detachment, but she was weeping now and while her rape filled him with helpless rage, her tears broke his heart. He pulled her into his arms and held her tight. „There are all kinds of courage, Kristen. You go into work every day and relive your own experience. You make it possible for these women to get justice. You’re the bravest woman I’ve ever known.“ He kissed the top of her head, rocking her gently, feeling her wave of emotion subside. „After Debra was shot, I lived a day at a time. I volunteered for all the most dangerous jobs because living didn’t matter anymore. I was afraid of the future, Kristen. I was afraid to think about being happy again.“

She’d gone very still in his arms. „Are you happy now, Abe?“

He tugged on her chin until she lifted her face. „Yes.“ He lowered his head and brushed a kiss against her lips. „Are you?“

„Happier than ever in my life.“ She said it so gravely, it squeezed his heart.

He needed to see her smile again. „I bet I could make you happier,“ he teased lightly.

Her lips curved. „I bet you could.“

Thursday, February 26,

11:15 p.m.

He waited until they’d left the kitchen before making his way through her backyard to his van. At first he’d been shocked, shaken, and unsure, but now he was filled with cold rage and certainty. He’d hunted and bagged his quarry. Three men now lay moaning in his basement, waiting for him to mete out justice. He was ahead of schedule. He had time to right one more wrong.

Friday, February 27,

8:45 A.M.

It was Friday, but nobody was thanking anybody, Abe thought. Spinnelli looked haggard after last night’s press conference, like he’d rather be anywhere but leading their morning meeting, but he was there, marker in hand. There truly were all kinds of courage.

„What do we know, people?“

„I checked with the men you assigned to tail the six defendants common to Judge Hillman and Simpson,“ Abe said. „Four are accounted for, two can’t be found. The two we can’t find might be alive and kicking, but we don’t know, so they’ll keep looking.“

„They found Simpson’s car last night,“ Jack said. „The driver’s window was smashed in from the outside, like maybe he locked himself in and our guy broke the glass to get him. Nine-one-one got a call from his cell phone about six yesterday morning, but the caller never said anything and ten seconds into the call they were disconnected. They tried to call back, but no luck. We found the phone smashed into pieces on the floorboard of Simpson’s car. Apparently our boy is wising up to the danger of GPS.“

„Where did you find the car, Jack?“ Abe asked.

„Parked outside his health club. One of those twenty-four-hour places.“

„His wife said he liked to work out before the morning rush,“ Spinnelli said. „Did you find anything on the health club’s security tape?“

Jack’s eyes gleamed. „White van. Plates registered to an Oldsmobile owned by Paul Worth.“

A collective breath was drawn. „Finally,“ Mia said. „Something we can use.“

„But we didn’t get him on film,“ Jack said, disgusted. „The van blocked the camera.“

Spinnelli rubbed his hands together. „Let’s get a warrant for Paul Worth’s house. Kristen, do you have the name of the accountant who’s got his power of attorney?“

„No, I do,“ Abe said. From his notebook he pulled the piece of paper she’d given him the day before. „I’ll call for a warrant“

The door to the conference room opened and Murphy came in, bags under his eyes and Mia winced. „You don’t look so good, Todd.“

„Thank you for noticing,“ Murphy returned dryly. „I found June Erickson, the girl who filed the attempted rape charge against Aaron Jenkins. She’s a college student in Colorado.“

Spinnelli stood a little straighten „When did you find her?“

„This morning at about four a.m.“

Mia whistled. „You called people at four a.m.? I bet you made some lifelong friends.“