The Impostor, A Love Story (34 page)

“You okay, Nikki? You seem a little . . . I
don’t know . . . a little upset or something.”

“Yeah, you can say that.” I stood at the bar
for a moment in silence, biting at the inside of my cheek to gather
my thoughts. “Bradley, I was wondering if I could ask you a big
favor?”

“You always do, Nicole. What would be
different?” He smiled.

“No, really . . . this is . . . well it would
just be for a little bit. Until, well . . .”

“What’s up, Nicole?”

I exhaled, “I hate to ask. I just don’t know
who else to ask. I need a favor.”

“What is it? You know you can count on
me.”

“Can I?”

“Can you what?” He used his hands to gesture
spill it out
.

“I need a place to stay, and I wondered if I
could stay with you for a little bit.”

“You need a place to crash. That’s what this
is all about?”

“It’d just be for a little while. You won’t
even know I’m there.”

“Emily said she was leaving tomorrow, so just
you and your daughter?”

“Just me. Emily is taking Jessica to my
parents. We got a hotel for tonight, but if it’s okay, can I stay
there starting tomorrow?”

“Of course, Nicole. You know I can’t say no
to you.” He smiled again. “And you were afraid to ask me. Why?”

“I don’t know.” I was afraid he might say no.
I fidgeted for a moment.
Do I tell him what I just found out
about Steve
?

“I . . . I better get these drinks to the
customers. Thank you so much, Bradley. Oh yeah, and one more thing,
if it’s okay.”

“Yes, Nicole?”

“Jess flies out tomorrow, and I’ve got to
pick her up from your sister’s and bring her back to Anchorage
tonight . . .”

“Yes, you can leave early.”

“Thanks for understanding.” He was a good
friend. And with Dylan and Chris gone, he was the only person I
could trust.

I started thinking about what Steve’s ex-wife
said and started to get upset again. I wanted to have made it here
in Alaska. I wanted a fresh new start. Instead, I moved in with a
murderer, lost everything, and was worse off then I started.

I wondered if I should ask Brad to come with
me to the house. I approached the bar. “Bradley, are you busy
tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I’ve got to help my sister with
something. What’s up?”

It will be daytime. Steve will be locked
up. I’ll grab only what I need from the house
. “Nothing. Never
mind.” I convinced myself I’d be okay.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Katie
stagger through the door. She had obviously been drinking a lot. I
excused myself and went over to her, hoping to get to her before
she was discovered.

“Katie, you can’t come in here like this. You
are going to get in trouble.” I tried to guide her to the door to
hail down a cab for her. She slurred something I couldn’t
understand. She stumbled, barely able to stand up.

“Where do you live, sweetie?” I asked her.
She was ranting about something.

“He’s dead.”

“Who? What are you talking about?”

“He’s dead. Alan’s dead!” I staggered back,
staring at her. She started balling. I hugged her. Almost all her
body weight pressed against me. For someone so thin, she weighed a
ton.

“What are you talking about?”

“They found him, Nicole. They found his body.
He was stabbed to death.”

“What? What happened?”

“It was on the news. Someone cut him up and
left him in the woods.” She was hysterical. “He’s dead, Nicole.
He’s dead!”

“How do they know it was him?”

“It was on the news. They identified the body
as Alan
Thibodaux
from
Louisiana.”

“Are you sure?”

“I knew he wouldn’t leave without saying
goodbye. That man owed him money. That guy you live with. I bet he
did it. He killed him. That monster killed him.” Goosebumps waved
over me, sending a chill through my body. She finally calmed down,
and I was able to get her address out of her.

“Can you make sure she gets inside okay?” The
cab driver nodded. “How much will it be?” I paid him in
advance.

Alan is dead
? When I went back inside,
I was quiet. I was expressionless. I needed to ask Brad to come
with me. I shouldn’t go alone. I walked to the bar. It seemed like
an eternity away. Could it be true? I tried to convince myself that
it was a mistake.
I knew Alan. He’s gone?

“Brad?”

“You okay? You’re so pale. What’s wrong? You
don’t look too good,” he responded.

“Bradley?” I focused on the empty glasses
sitting on the bar. “Your sister, is it the sister that lives in
Wasilla?”

“Yeah, I’ll be at Karen’s.” He handed me the
directions to his place in case I had forgotten how to get there,
and he gave me a key.

I fiddled with the key in my hand. “I have to
get my stuff out of Steve’s house tomorrow. We thought we were just
coming to work, so we left all our crap over there. The worst part
is, like an idiot, I left some really important paperwork and my
address book. My parents moved because of Ronald and their number
is unlisted. I still haven’t memorized it. I need to get that book.
It has all my account info in it. It has my life in there. Is there
any way you can come with me?”

“Of course I can, Nikki.”

“I’m a little nervous to go there by myself.
He’s evil, Brad. I talked to his ex-wife today . . .”

Just then, the phone rang. Brad turned to
answer it. “Oh yes, she’s expecting your call.” He handed me the
phone.
Detective Jackson?
he mouthed.

“Nicole, this is Detective Jackson. I got
your message.”

“Yeah, I heard you were picking up Steve
tonight and just wanted to confirm that he will not be there
tomorrow. I have to get some things out of the house.”

“Yes, we will be picking him up this evening,
but why don’t you wait. I can meet you there around two o’clock so
you don’t have to go alone. Judy will be picking him out in a
lineup in the morning. Don’t go back there this evening. You be
careful. He is extremely dangerous.”

“I won’t go this evening. So I’ll see you at
two?”

“Two o’clock. I will meet you at the
house.”

I felt so much more relieved. “Brad, Steve is
supposed to be in prison tomorrow, and Detective Jackson is going
to meet me at the house. But just in case, I’d feel better if you
could be on call. Your sister lives close by.”

“Sure, Nicole. Try my cell, in some areas I
don’t have service, but you have Karen’s number. Call me if you
need me. I’ll be only fifteen minutes away. I don’t want you to go
alone.”

“I’m sure I'll be fine with Detective
Jackson. But it’s always good to have a back-up plan.” I put my
hand over his. “Thank you, Bradley.”

Chapter
Forty-two

“I’ll see you really soon, angel. I promise!
Can you take care of Grandma and Grandpa for me?”

“I will, Mommy. I don’t want to go.” Tears
filled both our eyes as she clung to me.

“I’ll be home soon.”

“You promise?” Emily asked. She didn’t want
to leave me alone.

“I promise!”

“And you will tell Chris why I left?”

“I’ll tell him for you, Em. He’ll understand.
I’m staying at Brad’s tonight, and I’ll try and see if I can stay
with Katie tomorrow. I’ll probably crash at her place till I can
get my own. I think she will be fine with it. Tell Mom I’ll try and
give her a call this weekend. No news is good news. You all be
safe! Call the bar and leave a message when you get in so I know
you’re okay.”

“Don’t go back to that house alone, Nikki.
I’m serious.”

“I won’t go till he’s locked up, I promise.
Detective Jackson is meeting me there. I’ll be fine.” I didn’t feel
fine, but I didn’t want her to worry.

I hugged both of them goodbye, and then
watched the plane fly off the horizon.

At two o’clock, I slowly drove down Steve’s
driveway, realizing his truck wasn’t there. There was an unfamiliar
car parked out front.
That must be Officer Jackson’s car. He
must be inside.
It gave me comfort. They must have arrested
Steve last night when he was out driving.

When I entered the house, I jumped, startled
that Steve was sitting at the table.

“You didn’t come home last night. I started
to worry.” He had a sinister look in his eyes—one that I had never
seen before. I looked at the door, wanting to run out of it, but
trying to keep my cool.

“I was too tired to drive, so we stayed with
Katie. I have to go pick up Jessica soon.” I wouldn’t dare tell him
she was on a plane.

In my mind I was thinking, “You dirty, sick,
beast.” I was hoping that he would leave.
Please God, let him
leave.

“I have my truck in the shop. I need to do an
oil change on it. Then maybe I can go with you to get her.”

“Yeah, that would be great.”
There is no
way I’m getting in a car with you
. The thought of being around
him made me nauseous, but I’d say anything to get him out of the
house.

When I saw that he was safely inside the
mechanic shop, I ran upstairs just to confirm what I had heard.

My heart pounding, I first ducked into the
kids’ room. She was right. There was nothing in the drawers. The
closet was empty as well. A show—it was all just a show. I peered
out the window. He hadn’t left the shop, so I snuck into his
bedroom, my heart racing.

My curiosity took over, and I lifted the
mattress and found a hand full of credit cards and IDs with his
picture on them. I picked them up. They all had different names. I
fell to my knees. A collection of DVDs was scattered under the
mattress—all kinds of porn: bondage, child pornography, torture—and
pictures. I snatched up a handful of pictures and fumbled through
them. My jaw dropped. There were pictures of me, pictures of Emily,
and pictures of Jess—photos of us getting dressed. Somehow he had
taken them in the downstairs bedrooms.

I had to get out of there. I had to get out
before he caught me in his bedroom. I bolted to the door, shaking.
I rushed to the car and jumping inside.

Frantically, I turned the ignition. Nothing
happened. I had to leave. I turned it again. It wouldn’t start.
Goosebumps prickled the back of my neck.

What the hell
? My hands cradled my
head and sighed. Grabbing the steering wheel, I pumped the gas,
turning the ignition again.
Nothing, damn it
! I screamed,
banging on the dashboard. This made no sense. I just drove here. My
car was just working.

Steve startled me, tapping on the window. I
jumped, and then quickly tried to hide my terror. I was a trapped
animal in a cage.

“What’s wrong, Nicole? Your car isn’t
starting?” His voice sounded eerie.
Shit what do I do
now
?

“Yeah, it was just working. I don’t
understand.”
He must have done something to it.
I stuck my
keys in my jacket pocket.

“It’s probably just the cold. I can give you
a ride to pick up Jessica.”
Shit, what do I say
? I couldn’t
get in a car with him. My car wasn’t working. How was I going to
leave? Panicking, I came up with an idea.

“Steve, can you do me a favor? Can you pick
her up for me? I’m so sick of driving and want to take a nap. The
address is inside. Let me go get it.” I got out of the car,
grabbing my purse.

“Of course, Nicole. That will be no problem.”
Thank god, Jessica was on her way home. He didn’t have to know
that.

“Do you think you will be able to fix the
car? I have to take Emily to the airport tomorrow. If not, do you
think you could bring her?” I felt sick, but was trying to act as
normal as possible.

I had to think of someplace far—someplace
that would give me the time to get away from here. He followed me
into the house as I wrote down an address of a place Dylan had
taken me to. It was a precious little cottage that had such a
quaint little restaurant in it. I remembered the address because it
was so cute 1234 Fairy Lane. I wrote 1232 Fairy Lane in case he had
ever been there and gave him directions the best I knew how. It was
over an hour away, so I knew I would have time to get out of there.
Officer Jackson would be here soon, or I could call a cab.

“Are you sure it’s not too far? Jess went
with the family to the girl’s grandparents’ house yesterday.”

“That is fine. I would be happy to get her so
you can get some rest.”

It was like he was eager to get her alone. He
thought he was going to have my daughter all to himself. I couldn’t
bear to think of it. I ran to the bathroom and threw up.

“Are you okay?” he called out to me.

“I’m sorry. I think I got a bug.” I wiped my
face with the hand towel and went back into the living room.

He grinned, the gap in between his stained
front teeth accentuating the clenched gold caps. His eyes narrowed
as if he was contemplating a devious plan. The smirk was forced,
calculated, sinister.

“You get some rest, Nicole. I will take good
care of Jessica.”

Steve walked out the door. The cold, bitter
air bit me as if to warn me, “If you try to leave, you won’t
survive a day in the cold Alaskan winter.” The highway was miles
down the road, and very few drivers traversed these gravel
roadways. My stomach turned as if I had eaten something rotten, but
it wasn’t something I ate. I was in danger.

I rushed to the phone and dialed the cab
company. The phone was dead. I panicked for a moment, flicking the
button. It was still dead. Examining the phone, I discovered the
cord was not connected to the wall. Was that why I hadn’t heard
from Dylan? I connected the outlet and began dialing again.

“I need a cab at 224 Burgundy Lane,” I began
with urgency in my voice.