Chance (Constance) by Matthew FitzSimmons
Author:Matthew FitzSimmons [FitzSimmons, Matthew]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Published: 2023-02-14T00:00:00+00:00
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Judging by the packages stacked by the front door, Maggie hadnât been home in days. The house was silent but, more than that, felt abandoned. There was no answer when he rang the bell, and after his third try, the house asked if heâd like to leave a message. Chance declined. Heâd tried Maggieâs LFD on his way over and left a message when she didnât answer the third time. That didnât mean she wasnât home. It wasnât unlike her to draw the curtains and unplug from the world if she needed time to herself. They had that in common.
The side gate was never locked. He went around back in case she was in the garden. All he found was an antique glass ashtray and an empty bottle of wine. Sheâd quit smoking years ago but would sneak a cigarette when she was stressed out. Judging by the packâs worth of butts in the ashtray, sheâd been in a very bad way. He cupped his hands to the sliding glass door and peered inside. The house was dark and still. As an afterthought, he tried the door, but it was locked. Fussing with it would only set off the alarm.
âWhat are you doing back here?â a voice from behind him asked.
In the reflection of the glass, he saw a white woman had followed him into the backyard. She was older, perhaps fifty. It looked like a crow had done an angry dance at the corners of her eyes, or maybe she was only squinting to better aim the gun she was pointing at him. It wasnât big and looked small even in her small hands, but the way she held it told him sheâd been to a shooting range more than once. He also got the impression that sheâd never pointed a gun at a person before and was more than a little excited that the opportunity had finally presented itself.
âI said, what are you doing?â The woman shook the gun to remind him of the pecking order.
He wanted to answer, but heâd also never had a gun pointed at him before, at least not that he remembered. It wasnât like in the movies, where people coolly carried on entire conversations like it was nothing. He was one false move away from dying. Really dying. His legs went rubbery with fear.
âIâm not going to tell you again. Turn around.â
He turned slowly and showed her both his palms. In the gloom, he couldnât tell if her finger was on the trigger or the trigger guard. âIâm a friend of Maggie Soto. She lives here.â
The woman made a face as if heâd told her heâd been a passenger on the Titanic. âSheâs not home. So what are you doing in the backyard, Maggie Sotoâs friend?â
She stepped forward into enough light for him to place her: the next-door neighbor. Heâd seen her in passing lots of times, though theyâd never spoken. Her husband was the social half of the couple.
âHavenât been able to reach her,â Chance said.
Download
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.
Sita - Warrior of Mithila (Book 2 of the Ram Chandra Series) by Amish(51587)
The Crystal Crypt by Dick Philip K(35695)
Cat's cradle by Kurt Vonnegut(13895)
Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han(13657)
Ready Player One by Cline Ernest(12863)
The Last by Hanna Jameson(9237)
Year One by Nora Roberts(8497)
Persepolis Rising by James S. A. Corey(8281)
The remains of the day by Kazuo Ishiguro(7577)
Dark Space: The Second Trilogy (Books 4-6) (Dark Space Trilogies Book 2) by Jasper T. Scott(7389)
Red Rising by Pierce Brown(7345)
Never let me go by Kazuo Ishiguro(7153)
The handmaid's tale by Margaret Atwood(6874)
The Circle by Dave Eggers(6269)
Legacy by Ellery Kane(5952)
The Testaments by Margaret Atwood(5793)
Frank Herbert's Dune Saga Collection: Books 1 - 6 by Frank Herbert(5761)
Pandemic (The Extinction Files Book 1) by A.G. Riddle(5597)
Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty(5213)