Free Neighborhood Watch by Andrew Neiderman Page A

nodded.
    “It sounds like something that belongs in the Emerald Lakes directory.”
    Kristin laughed.
    “You’re joking but you might be right,” she added.
    They started for the bedroom, putting out lights behind them as they went, when they were interrupted by the sound of the doorbell.
    “Oh no, not another welcoming committee,” Kristin moaned. She waited in the living
    room as Teddy went to the front door.
    “Good evening, Mr. Morris,” she heard a deep-voiced man say. She moved toward the
    door because whoever it was kept himself outside.
    “Any problems?” Teddy asked. He looked out at the uniformed security guard. The name tag just over his right breast pocket read “Spier.” He looked more like a barroom bouncer with his thick shoulders and wrestler’s neck. He had large facial features, thick lips, and dull gray eyes.
    “No problems, sir. I just came on duty and noted in the day book that you and your wife just moved in today. My name’s Harold Spier. I take care of the main gate tonight, along with my assistant Carl Stark. I wanted to introduce myself because at eleven-thirty I make door rounds and I didn’t want to frighten you.”
    “Door rounds?”
    “Who is it, Teddy?” Kristin asked, even though she had heard most of it. She came up behind him. Spier took off his hat, revealing a closely cropped military-style haircut and nodded.
    “Evening, ma’am. I’m Harold Spier. As I was telling your husband, either me or
    someone else makes door rounds every night about eleven-thirty.”
    “What are door rounds?”
    “Just to be sure you’ve locked your doors for the evening. I’ll check every door in your house,” he replied without smiling. He looked like a man without a sense of humor,
    especially when it came to his work.
    “Really?”
    “Yes, ma’am.”
    “That’s something I thought police do in towns, check stores,” Kristin said.
    “We’re not police, ma’am. We’re the development’s security personnel. This is just our regular protocol.”
    “What if we don’t come home until after eleven-thirty?” she asked. She wasn’t sure she liked someone rattling her doorknobs.
    “We’d know that, ma’am, because you would have come in the gate. In that case we give you ten minutes or so and then we check your house especially.”
    “Have there been many burglaries around here?” Teddy asked quickly.
    Spier straightened up with pride. “Not a single one in Emerald Lakes, sir, because our security system is well respected by the criminal element. If you need us for anything, just dial two-one-one. Everyone’s phone is programmed so you can call the booth in an emergency.
    “Anyway, welcome to Emerald Lakes. I’m glad I met both of you. It makes it a lot easier for me when I recognize faces.”
    “Yeah, I don’t want to get shot if I take a walk around here at night,” Kristin quipped with a tone of annoyance that surprised Teddy.
    “We’ll get to know your peculiar habits after a while, ma’am. Have no fear about that,”
    Spier said, his face tightening. He continued to keep his gaze fixed on Kristin. “I understand you’re in your fourth month, ma’am.”
    “What is it, a national news flash?” she asked with a wry smile.
    “No, ma’am, but it helps for us to know these sort of things just in case some sort of related emergency should arise. It’s for your own well-being, and I assure you, no one outside of the development knows anyone’s personal business because of us. Just one more question and I’ll leave you two be,” he added, reaching into his back pocket for a notepad. He flicked it open. “Do you have any weapons in the house?”
    “Weapons?” Teddy repeated.
    “Particularly guns, sir, pistols, rifles. We like to keep that sort of thing on file for obvious reasons.”
    “No, we don’t,” Teddy said.
    “Do we have to go through this again with the day-time security, too?” Kristin
    demanded.
    “Oh, no,” Spier said. “We share