Behind the wheel of his white SUV, Willie Hayes was gleeful when he saw the little BMW approach the park exit with only one occupant: Laurie, finally all by herself.
Willie had been frustrated as he watched the scene unfold on Randall’s Island. What he had thought was a stroke of good luck—Laurie going to an isolated area—turned out to be anything but. He had done his research. He knew her father was a big-deal cop. His suspicion that Daddy Leo still carried a gun was confirmed when he watched Leo and Laurie arrest the two people who’d crashed their car. Just when he thought the opportunity was lost, Laurie got in the car alone and drove off.
Once he began following her from Randall’s Island, he thought about running her off the road on the way onto the Triborough Bridge, but it would take a serious accident to cause the kind of injuries he had in mind, and there were no guarantees in life—he knew that for sure. When she took the 96th Street exit, he assumed she was headed back to her apartment. He had never seen her drive a car on her own before. Did she park on the street or in a garage? Would he have a chance to force her into the SUV? He just needed to get her alone on the sidewalk and approach her from behind. He had a new gun in his jacket pocket that would do the trick. If only he’d owned it that night outside the piano bar. This would all be over by now.
His heart fell when she pulled over next to a fire hydrant, getting a wave from a tall, lanky guy waiting for her there. Willie recognized him as the friend who had sung that cloying song about marriage at her annoying little engagement party. Was he going to miss his chance yet again, after all the waiting he had done?
He was about to leave when Laurie tossed the BMW keys to her friend, who took her place at the wheel, giving her a cheerful horn honk before driving away. Willie inched his SUV forward, ready to make his move, but then she threw him for another loop by heading across the sidewalk to the entrance of an apartment building. Had they moved already? Based on the emails he had read on the laptop he’d stolen, he thought they were still searching.
A grocery delivery truck pulled away from its spot in the middle of the block. Willie inched forward to grab it, keeping his eyes on the rearview mirror as Laurie stopped to talk to the doorman. Willie hesitated for a moment on the sidewalk, arriving as she disappeared into the elevator. He assumed she was going to look at yet another apartment. His instinct told him that now was the time to make his move.
He walked up to the doorman, who was on the phone. “Excuse me, the woman who just passed—”
“Are you the husband?” the doorman asked.
“Uh, yes, I am.”
“Sixteenth floor. Use the door opposite the elevator,” he said as he went back to his phone call.
“Is my wife the only one there?”
“Yes, so far. The Realtor is on her way. She said to let you and your wife go up if you got here first.”
Nodding, Willie passed him, went straight to the elevator, waited for the door to close, and pushed the button for 16. He laughed aloud as the elevator began to rise.