Creep by Jennifer Hillier

Author:Jennifer Hillier
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Mystery, Suspense & Thriller
ISBN: 9781451625844
Publisher: Gallery Books
Published: 2011-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

It was a twenty-five-minute drive to the Harvard-Belmont district in the historical Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle.

Morris drove slowly down Sheila’s street, parking his fat Cadillac in her skinny driveway. He looked up at the three-story home for the third time that week, breathing in the chilly night air. A few lights were on inside, but they were the same lights that had been on all week. A thick wad of mail was sticking out of her mailbox.

“Can I help you?” a voice behind him said.

Morris was startled. A spritely woman in her early seventies was standing behind him, holding a leash attached to a small, hairy dog. The dog eyed him suspiciously under a mop of rusty bangs.

“Hi,” he said, feeling foolish. “I’m Morris Gardener. I—”

“Oh, you’re Sheila’s fiancé.” Recognition lit the woman’s wrinkled face. “We met once, last summer, at Sheila’s barbecue. Julia Shelby.”

“Hello again.”

The woman was only vaguely familiar, but Sheila had spoken of her often.

“Sheila with you?” Mrs. Shelby said, peering into the Cadillac’s tinted windows. “I haven’t seen her around for a few days.”

“Neither have I.”

The woman blinked.

Morris softened his tone. “Sorry, I guess you haven’t heard. The wedding was canceled and Sheila’s . . . left town.” He was beginning to sound like a broken record. If he had to explain what happened one more time, his head might explode.

“Yes, I got the note. I was sorry to hear that. I was looking forward to seeing you two get married.” Mrs. Shelby frowned and the dog at her heels barked. She bent down to pick it up, scratching its auburn hair thoughtfully. “So she’s away? Where’d she go?”

“I’m not sure.” He couldn’t meet Mrs. Shelby’s eyes. “She didn’t tell me.”

“I thought maybe the two of you decided to elope at the last minute. I was wondering if I should bring in her mail.” She spoke openly, no trace of awkwardness. “Guess not, huh?”

He held up his left hand and wiggled his bare ring finger. “No such luck. Still single.”

“Well, I’m very sorry to hear that,” Mrs. Shelby said again, her kind eyes filled with concern. “I didn’t realize you two were having problems.”

Morris stuffed his hands into his pockets. “We were working on it.”

“When will she be back?”

“Seven weeks.” Morris hesitated. “Maybe longer.”

“So I suppose you’re coming by to feed the fish and water the plants.” Mrs. Shelby put her dog back down on the lawn. It barked and nipped at his pants. “She should have asked me—it must have been terribly inconvenient for you to drive all this way. You live on the East Side, don’t you?”

Morris stared at her. Jesus Christ, he hadn’t even thought of that. “She didn’t ask me, actually. I—I lost my key.”

“That’s odd.” Mrs. Shelby’s gray hair was blowing in the chilly night wind. “If she didn’t ask you and she didn’t ask me . . .” Her voice trailed off and she looked toward Sheila’s house. “You want to go in and look around?”

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