A Deadly Web Read Online Free PDF Page A

a couple of their watchers in the last week or so, but they’re hanging back pretty far, not
quite
being their usual creepy hovering selves.”
    “Any idea why?”
    “Maybe because she caught them off guard when she moved here and began taking care never to be alone except in her condo. Her very secure condo. I’d think twice about trying to get in there myself. She’s on the third floor, and on the corner, with main windows very visible, and in an area of the city that really doesn’t sleep.”
    “So any move they made against her there would have to be a very public one.”
    “Yeah, unless they managed to pay off the security and concierge staff. I did some checking, and my bet is that isn’t likely. They’re well paid with great benefits, plenty of manpower, and many in security are ex-cops or retired military with very good records who got in their twenty and retired to a nice city and a very good job to supplement the pension and other benefits. A job they appear to enjoy, with no signs of restlessness or boredom. Not the sort of people Duran could hope to bribe unless he can offer something one or more of them
really
wants. Not the sort to have dirt in their pasts to invite blackmail—and I looked. Very clean records, and not the sort to bow to pressure. Just not in their natures, at least as far as I can tell.”
    “And the concierge staff?”
    “Pretty much the same. Well paid with outstanding benefits, highly trained, more than enough manpower so nobody’s overworked and the job gives them good time off in a wonderful city.” Murphy paused, then added, “The people who built Solomon’s condo complex knew what they were doing. It ain’t cheap, but most working professionals could easily afford to live there. They provided a safe, service-oriented set of homes for busy people living in a lively city, and they didn’t cut corners doing it. They even built well above code for hurricane safety.”
    “You think she was consciously looking for safety?”
    “I think she had a lot of choices, especially given her sizable inheritance, and chose a place where security, especially for singles, was at the top of the list of selling points.”
    “Has she made friends?”
    “Selectively. Through volunteer work with an organization here helping animals, a neighbor or three outside the complex but nearby, a few casual acquaintances met through school, a couple of other single women in the complex she occasionally meets for dinner, maybe one or two in the gym she goes to. She doesn’t lack for acquaintances, just doesn’t seem especially close to anyone. I get that’s an intentional choice, not a cold nature.”
    “She’s a beautiful woman. Dates?”
    “Not that I’ve seen. She’s worked with a few men in the volunteer organization, and of course some attended the same classes she was taking or auditing, but when I audited some of the classes myself, it looked to me like she rebuffed a few tentative passes. Politely and pleasantly, but not reallyleaving any room for a second try. If I had to guess, I’d say she was a bit wary of men, though I’m not sure if it’s because of what she senses or some past experience.”
    “Nothing stands out in her past, certainly no trouble with men or any man, at least that anyone noticed. Good family, no abuse suspected or reported, she did well in school, even kept her nose clean in college, as far as we can tell. Not known for partying and got top grades in every class. Casual dates, more often with groups, but she did see a few men during her college years and nothing unusual was noticed or reported.”
    “Well, then, my bet is that whatever she’s sensing, it feels male to her whether she’s conscious of that or not, and threatening, and she’s leery of taking chances. In this age of stalkers, and given the stats surrounding women who get murdered, I can’t say that I blame her much. If she does have shields, she’s probably keeping them up and especially