Chapter 12
Twelve
Angry masturbation isn’t as fun as angry sex.
—Constance’s secret thoughts
Constance
I slept fitfully the night before, my brain turned up to eleven.
But the more time that I spent thinking about what Odin had shared, the more I realized that whatever they thought was happening wasn’t.
I mean, sure, it was possible that Errol was here.
But the Errol that I knew wouldn’t have been caught using his actual name in a place where he was doing illegal things.
And like I’d told Odin last night, Errol was smart. He’d gotten out of going to jail for beating Mackey to within an inch of his life. There’d been camera footage, he’d done it in public in front of several witnesses, and he’d admitted to it.
He’d still gotten off with probation.
The man was insanely smart, vindictive, and sneaky.
What he was not was stupid.
If he was here, we wouldn’t know.
Which meant only one thing to me.
Someone was here impersonating Errol.
That was the only viable excuse to what was going on.
Plus, I would know if he was here.
Errol left calling cards.
I may not see him, but he wouldn’t be able to resist leaving me what he called “presents.”
And honestly, the things that he left me could be considered presents to most women. Purses. Jewelry. Chocolate. Food from my favorite places.
But to me, it was terrifying. Because I’d never told him that I liked chocolate. I’d never shared with him that I liked gold jewelry over silver. I’d never shared where my favorite places to eat were.
Yet, he knew it all.
But I hadn’t gotten anything from him since I’d moved here.
Hell, I hadn’t gotten anything from him since his trial had concluded.
I also didn’t think he would be able to stop himself from showing me he was here.
With this information in mind, I got up and got ready for the day.
I’d share what I thought with Odin once I got Wendy dropped off at school.
Dressed and ready for the day in jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, I’d just stepped out of my bedroom when Wendy came skipping down the hall wearing a big jacket and boots.
My brows rose. “You cold?”
“Grandma told me that I had to take a jacket to school today because it’s supposed to snow before I get home from school.” Her eyes were lit with excitement. “Are you excited?”
No.
I hated snow.
I hated cold.
And I really hated pants.
“I guess so,” I lied.
Wendy made her excited jazz hands and said, “We can build snowmen!”
The “snowmen” portion of her statement was said in such a high-pitched tone that my ears protested.
“Inside voices, damn,” my father said as he came around the corner. “What’s up, buttercup?”
I studied my dad. “Why are you in my house?”
“Because I ran out of coffee and your mother is over here,” he pointed out. “I go where she goes.”
My lips curved at one edge. “Are you telling me that you let your expensive Colombian coffee run out?”
“I’m not telling you anything.” He sighed. “I need to make a run back to Texas to hit up H-E-B.” He looked deadly serious. “I saw that they had glazed croissants. I’ll bring some home for you.”
“Dad, the nearest H-E-B is over thirty hours away,” I pointed out. “There’s no way that the croissants will be any good by the time you arrive home. Plus, you’re busy as hell here. When will you find the sixty hours to drive there and back?”
“I was thinking about asking your mom if she wanted to go to that wildlife conference in Dallas again. It’s this weekend.”
I eyed him. “You have seventeen animals in the sanctuary right now. How do you expect them to be taken care of without you or Harvey here?”
“You’re perfectly capable,” he pointed out.
I mean, in a pinch I was.
I could feed them and make sure their kennels and aviaries were clean. However, I was not a medical professional. I also wasn’t a rehab specialist. Short of basic care, they needed someone here who could provide them with more than I could.
“Dad,” I sighed.
Dad groaned and threw his hands up. “I can’t live without my coffee, Constance Eugenie!”
“It’d make more sense for me to go to H-E-B to get these items than it would for you,” I pointed out.
“What are y’all talking about?” Mom asked.
“Grandpa wants glazed croissants. Mom told him he couldn’t leave. Grandpa is grumpy because Coco is right.”
“We’re not leaving, Israel.” My mother laughed. “We need to get more established here. Then when we’re ready to go on vacation, we’ll have to hire a vet.”
“What about a wildlife specialist?” Wendy chirped. “When I was at school, a veterinarian came by. He’s also a park ranger. He said that he used to work here for clinical hours. He would know what to do!”
“Who is that?” Mom asked.
“He said his name was Mr. Windsor.”
“Interesting,” Mom said. “I think that’s…”
That’s when it hit me.
Windsor.
Holly.
I slapped my head with my hand. “Oh.”
“What?”
I gave a quick run-down of what Odin had shared with me last night.
My mom looked at me like I was special.
“Why wouldn’t you connect the vet Holly to the same Holly that calls us once a week for wildlife pickups?” My mother rolled her eyes.
I knew that she was making light of what I’d just shared for Wendy’s sake, but I could see the worry in her eyes.
They were just as aware of Errol and his ways, too.
This new discovery meant unknown.
Unknown was scary.
At least the devil you knew you could anticipate. Prepare. Plan.
If we didn’t know what we were looking for, or who we were looking for, we were kind of left in the dark.
“I’m going to be late,” Wendy declared.
My mom, Dad, and I shared a long look.
“Let’s go, girl.” I sighed.
I left my mom and dad in my house, deciding to do something fun and stop for donuts on the way to school.
Wendy was already late.
Another ten minutes wouldn’t kill her.