Chapter Twelve
It had been four long days since Luke had professed his love to her. Dominique felt as if she was just existing, but not enjoying life like she used to.
She went to work and then came home to the silence of her shanty…silence that had once been filled with Luke’s presence. She missed him. She just hadn’t expected to miss him so much.
So, she read each hour that she spent at home. She went to dinner with her sisters one night and even their chatter didn’t help the wealth of loneliness that was inside of her.
She would have liked to invite Luke over and cook for him again. But knowing his feelings for her, it just wouldn’t be right. A clean break was what they had needed and in the four days of working and eating out, she hadn’t seen him at all.
Aside from her unsettled feelings about Luke was the ever-present fear that somebody was going to snatch her up and carry her away, and nobody would ever see or hear from her again.
She kept her knife at the ready anytime she was outside and alone.
There was no way she could forget that somebody was after her.
There hadn’t been any more notes or anything to trouble her, but each day her fear grew more intense.
Something was going to happen soon…something bad.
The ominous feeling had grown inside her with each day that passed.
She now dressed for work. Tonight, she was on dinner duty. It would be a short night for her as she was only scheduled to work from four to eight.
Before she left her shanty, she grabbed her knife firmly in her hand and then set out walking. The skies overhead were as dark and dreary as her mood. The weather report was for storms moving into the area later this evening.
As she walked through the swamp, she thought about the last time it had rained. That was the night Luke had danced with her…the night he had kissed her with so much passion.
She snapped her thoughts away from the memory. Stay focused, she told herself. Watch your surroundings and listen for anyone creeping close to you.
She breathed a deep sigh of relief as she reached her car and slid in behind the wheel. She immediately pressed the button that would lock all her doors and then started up her engine.
It was only as she was driving toward the café that she allowed herself to relax a bit. And in that brief time of relaxation thoughts of Luke once again intruded into her mind.
She had a feeling she’d remember him long after she was married and had kids. She would remember the soft glow of his green eyes and the infectious nature of his grin.
She hoped to find a man who would make her laugh like Luke had, a man who would make her feel safe in his presence. Of course, he would have to be a man who could be relaxed and comfortable in her crazy schedule of no schedule.
She intended to live the lifestyle her mother had with no nod to conventional ways, and that was why Luke was definitely the wrong man for her.
Arriving at the café, she pulled into one of the few empty spaces in the lot. It looked like it was going to be a very busy dinner time. But that was good. She needed to stay busy.
Once again, she grabbed her knife as she exited the car and hurried toward the back door. She was a few minutes early for her shift, so she sank down at the table in the break room and just breathed.
It wasn’t long before she was joined by a few more waitresses and then it was time to go to work. Thankfully, the dinner shift was much different than the morning and afternoon shifts since her regulars rarely showed up for dinner.
Knowing she wouldn’t have to put up with the awkwardness that still marked her encounters with the three regulars caused her to relax and just enjoy doing her job.
Couples and families usually filled the café in the evenings. She always enjoyed interacting with the children who came with their parents. Their orders usually consisted of one of three things…grilled cheese, chicken nuggets or a hot dog with ice cream for dessert.
“Hi, sweetie.” Nola greeted her from her seat at a four-top table. She was with two other women who smiled and nodded at her.
“How are you all doing this evening?” Dominique asked.
“We’re all well, but what’s wrong with you, honey?” Nola asked.
“What do you mean?” Dominique asked.
“The normal sparkle isn’t in your eyes and that means something is troubling you.” Nola looked at her intently. “Dominique, I’ve known you since you were a baby and I could always tell when something was wrong by looking at your eyes.”
“Oh, it’s nothing,” Dominique replied with a small laugh.
“It’s definitely something,” Nola pressed.
“I’m just very disappointed by the murder investigation,” she finally said.
“Who would have thought that Pierre was innocent,” one of the other women said.
“I still don’t know if I believe it or not,” Nola said. “I never liked that man. He and your mom were so different and they should have never been together. All they ever did was fight with each other.”
“So, what can I get for you ladies this evening?” Dominique asked, needing to get things moving so she could attend to her other tables.
They placed their orders and then Dominique left their table. That was what she and Luke would be like if they ever tried to be together, she told herself. The two of them were so different and they would probably fight all the time. It definitely wasn’t a match made in Heaven.
She stayed busy for the rest of her shift and then at eight o’clock she went back into the break room to grab her purse and head home.
Once again, she pulled her knife from her purse as she stepped out of the back door of the café. The skies overhead were angry looking and there were no signs of the stars or the moon.
There was nobody around so she had nothing to worry about. She’d had to park her car by the dumpster and she now hurried on her way to it.
She’d heard of people dumpster diving into the café’s trash bin, but she’d never seen anyone actually doing that. She would like to think that in the small town of Dark Waters, nobody was hungry enough to have to seek their next meal out of the dumpster.
The only sound came from the voices that spilled out of the kitchen where the back door was open and an occasional rumble of thunder in the distance. She definitely wanted to get home before the storm was upon her.
She’d nearly reached the driver door when he appeared. Clad in dark clothes and wearing a ski mask and gloves, the man seemed to materialize out of the dark shadows.
He rushed toward her, barely giving her time to process what was happening. With her heart beating frantically, she tightened her grip on her knife.
She slashed out at him with the knife and at the same time, he lunged forward and hit her upper arm with a hypodermic needle.
Whatever was in it burned as it entered her.
She flailed her arm out once again as she tried to stab him, but he’d stepped back from her and was too far away for her to strike.
Danger! Danger! Get in your car and get away, a voice screamed inside her head. Run back to the kitchen. For God’s sake, do something and do it now.
Her arms and legs felt strange, as if they were all wrapped up in cotton and wouldn’t work. Her brain became too slow to process everything as she became disoriented. What was happening to her?
She knew she had to do something, but the knife slipped from her hand and clattered to the pavement. She tried to scream, but only a soft mewl escaped her.
Dizziness whirled in her head as the dark edges of unconsciousness reached out to take her. She fell into strong arms and had one last rational thought. She was in deep trouble. That was her final thought before the darkness took over and she knew no more.
LUKE ONCE AGAIN joined Daniel and Clay in the murder room as they shared and discussed what they had learned the day before with their interviews.
“I really don’t believe that the women I interviewed had anything to do with the murder,” Luke said. “The only connection Helene Benoit has is that Jacob Benoit is her brother, and that’s connected to Dominique’s case and not the murder.”
“What about the men you interviewed in the afternoon?” Daniel asked.
“I spoke to all of Mystique’s closest neighbors to find out if they saw or heard anything on the night of the murder. None of them did,” Luke said with frustration. “Of course, Mystique’s nearest neighbors aren’t all that close to her shanty.”
He sat back and listened as Clay gave his report. He had spoken to several of the fishermen in the swamp and he’d come up with nothing as well. Somewhere in their small town, a murderer was hiding and they were going to have to work hard to ferret him out.
There was also another man probably hiding in plain sight. He was a man besotted with Dominique and he wanted her badly. Two criminals and they couldn’t find squat on either one of the cases. It was so damned frustrating.
“I hate to do this to you, but I want both of you to look at the crime scene photos again and see if you can find anything we missed.” Daniel opened the file folder in front of him and began to pull out the crime scene photos.
The photos were gruesome and hard to look at, but it was part of Luke’s job to thoroughly dissect them for any anomalies they might have missed. Thank God, Dominique hadn’t seen any of them.
Dominique. It felt as if it had been forever since he’d seen her, although it had only been four days. It was certainly not long enough for his heartbreak to ease.
They spent the morning going over the various photos, but the pictures gave up no further information than they’d already gleaned from them.
It was just after one when they stopped working for their lunch break. Daniel went to Angelique’s store where he was going to have lunch with her. Clay went home where his girlfriend had lunch ready for him.