"Fog? What are you talking about? Fog doesn't just drop itself in front of a goddamned camera while the rest of them work," Robert bellowed, just slightly quieter this time.
Johnson nodded his head up and down so fast he looked like a bobble head doll. "I know. That's just what I thought too, sir. But that's exactly what happened. Take a look. You can see it as clear as day right there on the tape."
Robert glared at him, and I winced at his poor choice of words. He spun around in his chair to point at the monitor that showed what the camera outside of Serena's apartment recorded that evening. A few minutes before she said she was attacked, the camera shot became cloudy, obscuring the view for an hour's time. Then he pointed to the monitor next to it and we saw the front gate camera going black for long periods of time as it had for the past week.
I stared over Robert's shoulder knowing it had been Oliver who did it. Probably with something sprayed directly onto the lens. It wouldn't have been difficult.
But did Robert suspect him?
I had no idea, and as he stood hunched over Johnson staring at the monitor, he said nothing. Finally, when he stood up, he simply shook his head.
But there were other ways to make sure he suspected Oliver. Quickly, I suggested he look at the tapes from the other cameras around the estate. "Whoever did this didn't just disappear into thin air. What about looking at the footage from the side door of the garage? That should show if anyone drove past anytime during the night."
As if my idea made him happy, he nodded and patted me on the shoulder. "Good idea." Then he turned to Johnson, who was already loading up the garage door footage. "Why didn't you think of this? Does Ryder have to do everything here? He saved Serena, for God's sake. I'd think someone else who works for me could pick up the ball here."
Johnson didn't have an answer for Robert's questions, so he wisely kept his mouth shut until the footage was available. "Here it is, sir."
The three of us watched, and I waited with my heart in my throat to see Oliver's car pass by on his way out of the estate after attacking Serena. The angle wasn't perfect, so there was no way the driver of any car going by could be seen, but at least if Robert could see proof that a car like Oliver's had driven by during that time he might put the pieces together.
Minute after minute passed with no sign that anyone had gone near the garage door, but then a single car sped by, barely visible on the security tape. My heart sank. It wouldn't be enough to point the finger at that fucker, even though I knew it was his car.
Robert and Johnson saw it too, and Robert yelled, "Wait! Back it up! I saw something pass by. Ryder, did you see that? There's a car there."
Johnson did as ordered and slowed the tape down to show that a car had gone by during the window of time Serena's attacker would have fled the scene. The problem was between the angle and the darkness of the camera shot, the car may have been black or even a dark green or blue. It wasn't definitive.
"What color is that car?" Robert asked the two of us. "We need to know the color of that car."
Johnson guessed it was probably black, and knowing Oliver drove a dark blue BMW, I said, "Black or blue. Either one."
I hoped Robert took the hint.
He looked off in the distance like he was running through every car that he knew could be on the estate, and then he narrowed his eyes.
"Hmmm."
I wanted to ask if he'd remembered something, but I didn't have the chance. Spinning on his heels, he pushed past me as he barked, "Johnson, keep looking at those tapes! Ryder, be ready when I call you."
All I could hope for was he had finally come to the realization that the only person who could have hurt Serena was her husband. When the time came and he gave me the order to take care of Oliver for what he'd done, she'd have to understand.
Even if I had a choice, he'd be dead. Thankfully, I wouldn't have a choice.
Chapter Three
Serena
Oliver's footsteps coming toward the kitchen made my stomach tense up, and a second later he appeared in the doorway sneering at me like he always did since I'd returned home from the hospital.
"Are you planning to just sit there moping all day like usual?" he asked as his disgusted sneer morphed into an angry glare.
"I'm not moping. I'm just sitting here having a cup of tea. Aren't you late for work?"
His face twisted into an ugly grimace. "Even if it wasn't, I wouldn't be staying here another minute anyway."
The sun streamed in through the kitchen window, warming my back and making me feel safe, for the moment. I wanted to tell him he hadn't succeeded in hurting me. He'd taken my baby, but I was still here, and I was getting stronger every day.