Chapter 5

“Lawson” my voice lowers in warning, as I put force into that one word, agitation spreading through me at having been spied on while I myself was trying to spy

“A couple people may have remarked that you’ve been there practically every day this week” he throws out the hand not steering, palm up, the universal sign for ‘what’s the big deal?’

“Mmm” To ask for specific names would do no good. One, it would show too much interest, and two, I hadn’t really made it a point to get to know anyone well enough to know their names. I still don’t regret that decision, though, having a name to go with my own personal mole would have been a smidge helpful

“It’s a small town, people like to talk.” he offers, voice spewing neutrality, with its neither apologetic nor defensive tone

Following his lead, I toss out my own “Gotcha” as I stare straight ahead, effectively putting an end to the conversation, determining to be more observant when it came to him.

Letting out a soft breath, my face draws in as I try to concentrate on where he’s taking us. I was familiar with the way he had been going until he took a right where he should have taken a left at a 4-way stop

From then on, I memorize every road name we pass. And in case that fails; every landmark, tree and any distinguishable thing we passed also went into the memory banks, so that I could get here again on my own 

Driving through what, up until now, I had thought was a restricted path, Lawson puts us right on the skirts of the cliff with the bench. Thankful that I’m only a couple miles out from the mansion now, instead of ten, I quickly grab my bag from the spot by my feet and shove the door open

Not one to owe anyone, I hop out, my hair hitting me in the face as I turn back quickly, “Thanks, just let me know what I owe you” I reach into my bag, feeling around for the wallet while I keep my eyes fixed on Lawson. Finding it, I wave it around with a raised brow

“Nothing. It was my pleasure” one side of his mouth slides up as he delivers the next zinger, “Your delightful company is payment enough” with a wink he leans over, muscles pulled taut to shut the door…in my face

Alriiighty, then. What I really don’t need is him sticking around to keep tabs on me. An idea forming, I take a seat on the bench. Appearing to settle in, I keep my face straight ahead, acting like I’m just so immersed in nature that I can’t be bothered to notice his presence  anymore, hoping he’ll get bored with my inactivity and leave soon. After holding that pose for what felt like forever for someone who needed to move, the little patience I started this ruse with is gone. There’d be no way to accomplish my night’s mission with Laughing Lawson as a babysitter and he certainly had been keen on kicking me out, so what was the holdup? Walking over to his door, I rap the window with my knuckles twice. 

Rolling it down, Lawson leans out with his elbow propped on the door, “Help ya with something?” his slow drawl is back with exaggeration, eyes alight with that mocking humor that has me unconsciously taking a step closer

“That’s what I was going to ask you” Getting ahold of myself, I fold my arms across my chest and take a discreet step backwards, hoping he hadn’t noticed. Foot tapping, I wait for an answer.

“Nope. But thanks for checking” he finger guns me with a clicking sound and a wide smile as he rolls the window back up

Honestly. Ugh. Unsure of how long he was going to keep this game up, I was certain of one thing, I really didn’t have time for it

Taking my chances, I abandon the facade of the bench of thought and start the hike to the mansion. Diligent about listening for any sounds that indicated Lawson was following, I even went so far as to double back several times, hoping to catch him in the act. Each time I greeted air when I sprang out of nowhere did leave me feeling slightly foolish, but better to feel dumb than to get caught.

Sweaty, tired and irritated by the time I reach the mansion, I’m just glad to have finally made it, because at this point I’m not even sure how I did. I roll my eyes at myself, I’m pretty sure I was walking in circles for about 20 minutes at one point. A leisurely walk it was not. There was a tree branch I somehow missed and even though the forest ground is covered in a soft plushy blanket of green, hurtling towards it face first still hurts. Gingerly touching my cheek where it had slammed into the ground, I know it’ll leave a mark, it’s already pulsing. 

I check my watch and find myself reluctantly grateful for all the delays, even the part about not being able to drive anywhere on my own so I could leave when I had wanted to from Earl’s. With it being a little after seven pm, the sun is starting to go down, working to my advantage for getting around certain security measures. Giving myself one last pep talk, I hoist the bag up my back and creep around the outskirts. When scoping the place out the other day, I had noticed it was outfitted with more than a decent level of security. There were a couple of guards at the front entrance that day, though they seemed to be gone now, which left just the three different cameras. The ones by the front and back door and the one hidden in a tree to the left of the mansion. 

I was doing research on how far outside of the camera’s range you would have to be to not get caught, when I had stumbled onto a slightly illegal trick. Not that that concerned me. Apparently, you can point an LED, infrared laser pointer at the camera and if you hit the lens, it distorts the camera. Obviously I didn’t have one of those on hand, which meant I had to buy one. I made sure to get the one that went the longest distance. Thank goodness for Prime shipping, am I right? Setup under a different name, of course.

Pulling that out now, I don the black ski mask and jacket I had also jammed into my trusty bag of tricks. Skulking around gives me a feeling of exhilaration. Careful to not make any noise, I search until I find a good position to hit the lens with certainty, but not be spotted trying to do so. It’s harder than you’d think. And I wasn’t 100 percent sure, but at this point, it would have to do. I make myself wait another 30 minutes to give the sky time to darken just a smidge more. My plan starts with the camera on the tree first. It’s focused on the driveway and thank god it’s one of those big ass ones, considering this has to be done right the first go round. After that, I’ll move to the front porch. Game on.