A Southern Noir: Deception by Any Other Name

Chapter 12

At ten that morning, I drove to Alabaster, a few miles from the house on I-65. I passed by the school offices on the way and spotted the red Camry in the parking lot. I didn't stop to take notice of it as I drove past. My destination was an office building further down the road.

I parked in the lot down from the building, hoping I was wrong. An hour passed before I found who I was looking for this morning. Clayton's black BMW pulled into the parking lot.

Clayton wore and blue and black tie with a light blue button-up shirt. His light brown hair was perfectly in place. His body was well maintained from the fitness routine that Emilie said he followed religiously. His skin looked tanned, and I thought I could almost smell his aftershave. Clayton is of average height, but by all accounts, he's handsome. Yeah, I can't stand him.

Three hours passed before he came out of the office. He got in his car and drove toward where I was parked. Ducking my head, I tried to make it look like I was on my phone. He didn't seem to notice me; of course, he wasn't looking for me either. I followed him to the Galleria, where he took a left toward the Hoover Met. I knew his house was in that subdivision, so I kept driving after he turned into the subdivision.

Satisfied, I took the nearby on-ramp to 459 and drove back home. I stopped at a McDonald's drive-thru before going home since I missed lunch.

I was still at the drive-thru window when my phone rang. It was Emilie calling. "I guess you made it safely, right?" I asked as the food arrived at the window.

"Yes, I'm here. The place they put me up in is charming. I hope you get to come down."

"Me too. You sound tired."

"I am. You know, driving long distances wears me out."

"Well, get some rest. I'm on the way home, and once I've eaten, I'm going to bed."

We ended the call, and I left the drive-thru and headed home. When I got there, Rusty greeted me at the door. I gave him a fry from the bag and sat at the kitchen table.

Except for Rusty begging for food, it was quiet in the house. It felt empty inside without Emile and the kids. I tried watching television, but there wasn't anything I wanted to see. I thought about going to a movie but couldn't think of one at the theater. I gave the channel lineup one more glance, but I turned off the television in the end.

It was still early in the evening when I looked at my phone. The house was too quiet, so I went to the office for a few minutes. I walked inside, not knowing why I was there.

I saw the papers from the insurance company sitting where I left them yesterday. Trying to spy on Clayton, I forgot that Eric didn't call me back today. I made a note on a sticky note to call him in the morning.

Looking at the paper, they wanted a copy of my PI license for their records. I keep a copy of it in my filing cabinet, so I crossed the room to get it. While digging into the file, I stumbled across something I had not seen in a long time. It was a wooden picture frame with a photograph of a young woman inside. She had long black hair and dark-rimmed glasses. She had a fair complexion that showed only the slightest glimpse of a tan. She was standing outside the house that once belonged to her parents, looking over her shoulder back at me when I called her name. She smiled back at me, surprised I had my camera out. When she saw the picture she said it looked awful, but to me, she was the most beautiful woman in the world.

Her name was Tina Fallon, and she was the love of my life back then. Memories came rushing back for a moment of a time long ago. Inevitably, I remembered the day I heard that Tina had died. We weren't dating then, but the news still hit me hard. She was only twenty years old and had so much potential. In an attempt to push the memories out of my mind, I put the photo back in the drawer and returned to my desk without the license copy.

I sat at my desk briefly as I recalled those days. I always regretted how it ended between us, but I guess things were not meant to be. At least, that's what I told myself back then. Sometimes maybe I still wonder what might have been Forcing the thoughts out of my mind, I got up and left the office.

Mrs. Patterson sent me a text before I left the parking lot. She told me that Danny would meet some friends at a pub Saturday night called The International Deli at around seven. I'd never heard of the place but rarely visited bars and pubs, so that's not a big surprise. I replied, asking her to text me when he left home. She replied she would let me know when he was on the way. Satisfied, I drove back home.

When I got home, Rusty was waiting again by the door. He seemed a little angry that I'd left." Sorry, boy," I said. I brushed my teeth and then got into bed. It was strange being in the house all alone. I resisted the urge to call Emilie. I knew she was tired from the drive down, so I didn't want to bother her. I tried to sleep, but it only came in short spells no matter how much I turned.

I gave up and turned on the television sitting on the dresser. At some point I must have fallen asleep because my phone alarm startled me. Still half asleep, I stumbled into the kitchen and started the coffee. While it brewed, I took a shower in a futile attempt to wake up. After drying off. I returned to the kitchen and microwaved a frozen biscuit pack. Sipping my coffee, I began to plan my day.