A Southern Noir: Deception by Any Other Name

Chapter 5

It was ten minutes until four when I arrived at the gym. I parked in a different spot than yesterday but was still well within sight of the gym. I decided to do a quick walk by the window of the gym. On the way, I decided to peek inside Danny's truck.

Unlike on television or in the movies, you can't break into people's property without serious legal problems if you get caught. Of course, you can look inside without opening the door. The trick is to look like you've got a good reason to look inside and not like you're deciding whether or not to break into the vehicle. My favorite excuse is to have a listing for a similar vehicle on my phone and say I'm thinking about buying one. I have yet to use it, but it's a good cover if I need it.

I didn't need it today, either. The only thing I saw in the truck were a couple of shirts in the back of the cab. There wasn't a lot of traffic in the parking lot, so I had no trouble getting to the sidewalk. Standing by the window, I took out my phone and pretended to have a pleasant conversation while I looked inside. It was hard to see because of the darkened windows, but I did spot an outline of who I was sure was Danny.

Nothing suspicious as far as I could tell, so I decided to go on my errand. There's a Publix down Highway 280 before you leave town, where I usually shop. Yeah, there are closer places, but this one is far enough away from home that I won't see anyone I know. Handy if I ever decided to buy a six-pack since Baptists aren't supposed to drink. Not that I drink all that much.

I got the items on my list and checked out. After loading them into the Altima's trunk, I couldn't resist the urge to drop by the gym one last time. Danny was still there when I arrived, and since I didn't have anything frozen, I decided to wait a few minutes to see if he would come out.

While sitting there, I pulled up his social media accounts. Not surprisingly, he's not a big social media user. All of his profiles had almost nothing to go on. There was one account that Danny hadn't posted anything on since February. He didn't strike me as the social media type anyway.

My efforts paid off. After waiting only ten minutes, Danny walked out of the gym with a short-haired, blond woman. Cursing myself for leaving my camera at home, I used my phone to snap several pictures. They did not pay attention to me as they walked to his truck. The couple conversed by his truck for several minutes. While they talked, I took several clear shots of them.

With their conversation over, she handed him what looked like a large envelope with a metal clasp. I watched as she got into a red Camry. Lucky for me, she parked close enough to Danny for me to get a shot of her license plate. Danny sat in his truck for several minutes, and I guessed what she gave him included her phone number. He sat there looking at his phone and a slip of paper she gave him like he was putting her number in his contacts.

He finished what he was doing and drove away. I followed him but soon realized he must be going home. My guess was correct, so I decided to do the same. Looking at the clock on the dash, it was nearly seven. In the back of my mind, I could already hear Emile fussing about staying out so late again.

When I returned home, I took the bags inside and waited for the inevitable argument. The kids rushed to greet me as I walked inside, but Emilie was nowhere in sight. I greeted the kids, went to the kitchen, and put away the items from the store.

Looking out the glass door to the backyard, I spotted Emile, her hair in a ponytail, and the dog playing outside. She seemed to be in a good mood, so I decided to join her in the backyard. Rusty saw me immediately and sprinted to catch me, crouching as dogs do to their owners.

Emilie smiled and joined us. "Did you get what you needed?" she asked. Her voice held no sarcasm or spite, which surprised me.

"I did," I answered. I wasn't trying to sound guarded with my responses, but I know my wife and how she can be.

"Good," she said. "I'm going in, and I need a shower. Rusty wanted to come outside, so now we both have grass on us. Let's bathe him, and then maybe if the children are asleep, we can shower."

"We can shower?"

She took my hand and kissed it. "If you're up for it."

It was a great ending to my Sunday.