Page 13 of Asher's Assignment
“Yes, but they can’t do anything, because nothing actually happened.”
“Okay, start from the beginning. What did happen?”
Edie sank onto the tan couch that faced the windows overlooking the backyard. “We had movie night tonight, like we always do on Fridays. After it was over, she carried the laptop into the kitchen while she cleaned up her dishes; we were still talking. She looked out the window and saw someone in a hoodie standing on the sidewalk, staring at her house. I made her show me. It was creepy, Asher. The guy had on a black hoodie and jeans, and he just stood there, under the streetlight, facing her house. We couldn’t see his face because of the angle of the light and the hood. It was like a black void.” Her mouth twisted as she recalled the event. “Anyway, she closed the blinds, and I encouraged her to call the police and report him as a peeping tom. We argued about it, then someone knocked on her door.”
“Edie pretty much forced her to call the cops at that point,” Jordan said.
“Fat lot of good it did.” Edie’s expression darkened, and she glared. “They said they’d inform patrol.”
“Did she answer the door?”
“No.” Edie shook her head. “The dispatcher advised her to check her door and window locks, so that’s what she did. Then she kicked me off the call so she could shower and read.”
Jordan snorted. “She did not kick you off. You mutually agreed to hang up.”
Edie directed her glare at her husband. “You’re supposed to indulge your pregnant wife.”
“Not when you lie.”
“I’m not lying. I’m just… stretching the truth. I’m worried about her, and I want answers.”
Asher crossed his arms. “I don’t know what I can tell you. Are there cameras I can hack into?”
“No.” Edie got up and paced to the window, staring out into the blackness. “I’m just frustrated. My gut tells me something is wrong, that she’s in danger, but at the same time, my head is a mess, so I don’t completely trust my gut.” She turned back to him. “Have you uncovered anything that can give us a clue about what’s going on?”
Again, Asher shot Jordan a quick look. He didn’t want to upset Edie, but now that she’d asked, he didn’t want to lie to her, either.
“What? Don’t look at him for permission to tell me. I’m not an invalid now that I’m pregnant. Tell me.”
Asher sucked in a breath. She was right. He couldn’t coddle her just because of her condition. Edie could handle a lot, even when she felt scatterbrained. “Connie Tyler didn’t exist before Leah was born.”
“Hell,” Jordan muttered. He crossed an arm over his chest and rested his other elbow on it, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“So, who is she, then?” Edie walked closer.
“I don’t know. I haven’t been able to figure that out. She hid her tracks well.”
“Dammit.” Edie paced to the window again, then spun back. “I knew something was off.” She pointed at Jordan. “I told you something about this whole thing bugged me.”
He dropped his arms. “That doesn’t mean the weird guy outside her house tonight and the Tylers are connected, babe.”
“So, there are two dangers circling my sister? That makes it better?”
Jordan tipped his head back and looked at the ceiling. “That’s not what I said.”
Asher waved his arms, coming to a quick decision. “Before you come to blows over semantics, how about I take a trip up there? I can put some cameras up at her house, maybe do a little surveillance on the Tylers.”
“Good luck with that,” Jordan said. “Essy’s quieter than Edie, but she’s no less stubborn.”
“Hey!” Edie propped her hands on her hips.
Jordan showed his palms. “I’m just telling the truth, honey. You know it’s true.”
She flattened her lips and narrowed her eyes. “It doesn’t mean you say it out loud.” Her expression cleared some as she turned to Asher. “But he’s not wrong. Esther is just as stubborn.”
One side of Asher’s mouth lifted. “I can be rather charming and persuasive.”
Edie blinked twice. “Asher, I hate to break it to you, but Esther’s had your number from day one.”
