Free A Shiver of Wonder by Daniel Kelley

that you know her. She
told me how you’re friends with Todd. I don’t know what kind of
game you’re playing here, but that’s well outside the bounds
of what’s appropriate.”
    “This isn’t a game, Wilcott.” Ormsby leaned
forward until his chin was practically touching David’s nose. “But
a word of advice. A woman like Genevieve MacGuffie deserves better
than you. If I find evidence of anything, anything inappropriate that might have happened between you and Janice, it’s
going on the public record. Understand?”
    David glowered upwards, pure hatred flowing
through him like molten fire. This time, though, it was Ormsby who
backed off first, calmly, taking a single reverse step before
striding into the common area and heading out through the
lobby.
    David resisted the urge to slam his door
shut with all his strength. He had already drawn enough attention
from the neighbors this afternoon.

Chapter Thirteen
    A long, hot shower hadn’t been enough to
purge the distaste regarding his encounter with the detective from
David’s thoughts. He’d pounded the stall’s tiles a few times just
to release some of his negative energy, but all this had
accomplished was to bring Johnson into the bathroom, the same
inquisitive look on his face each time.
    “Goddamn it all!” David muttered to himself,
not even sure what it was that he was angriest about. Ormsby’s
cavalier superiority? His absurd allusions? His tenuous connection
with Genevieve, along with the ridiculous threats to expose David
should he unearth some impropriety with Janice?
    But there hadn’t been any! What had they
done, other than talk, and share the courtyard, and eat a few
afternoon snacks together while she disclosed cautious hints about
her dreadful relationship with Heck?
    Of course, the last couple of times they’d
been together, her caution had been absent, and she’d made quite a
few upsetting disclosures.
    But a crush on him? From what source had that supposition been dredged?
    David turned off the water and stepped out
of the shower. He grabbed a towel and began to dry himself. And
then he poked his head into the bedroom and winced: it was 5:45
already. So much for a leisurely perusal of the wine selection at
the liquor store en route to Genevieve’s.
    He dressed quickly, and did his best with
his hair. And then he packed a backpack: sneakers, a tee shirt and
shorts, and a handful of dog treats. While he had managed to slip a
toothbrush and razor into a drawer at Genevieve’s house without
upsetting the applecart, his minor encroachments into her closet
space had been firmly rebuffed.
    “You ready to go out again?” he asked
Johnson. Johnson leapt off the couch to paw at the front door. “All
right, let’s go.” David closed and locked the door behind them, and
was halfway to the lobby before he performed an about-face and
headed for Apartment 1D.
    “Let me just see if she’s home,” he said to
his dog, who appeared confused.
    But knocking on Janice’s door yielded no
response. Her doorframe still had shreds of yellow and black Do Not
Cross tape dangling here and there, and where a doormat should have
lain was a welter of jumbled footprints.
    Fifteen seconds later, David found himself
bounding up the stairs to the second floor, only his third foray to
the Rainbow Arms’ upper level in nearly two years.
    Knocking on the door of 2B, though, where
Clair and Mrs. Rushen resided, was also unfruitful. What David
would have said to either one of them was a mystery, even to
David, but he felt a strong urge to ask Clair if she could explain
things to him.
    Which was insane. She was a child. She was
in first grade.
    David closed his eyes for a few seconds
before turning to descend the stairs. What was going on at the
Rainbow Arms? A man murdered; David an alleged suspect in that
murder; the relationship of the victim’s girlfriend to David under
a microscope. Janice had been visiting her mother when the incident
happened, and a