Page 1 of Insidious Monsters
one
Spending my Saturday night crouched in the bushes opposite a cozy bistro, doing surveillance on my best friend, was a shitty way to start the weekend.
But here I was, and I wasn’t alone.
Archie crouched beside me, binoculars pressed to his face like a second pair of eyes.
I rubbed my hands together to get the circulation going. Damn, it was cold. I should have brought gloves. Maybe if I’d known we’d be here for almost an hour I would have.
The bushes rustled, and I looked down to see a dark wet nose sniffing about. This was the third dog to investigate our hiding place.
I parted the bushes to glare up at the owner. “Hey, move it. This one’s taken.”
The man staggered back, yanking on the dog’s leash. “Perverts.” He stalked off.
He had a point—this was creepy, and overstepping, and if Nandi every found out that we’d spied on her like this, she’d be livid.
But Archie, sweet, totally-in-love-with-Nandi Archie, had made a compelling case against Nandi dating this guy, his lack of social media accounts being one of them. But Nandi had been adamant that Toby Keller was a sweet guy. She’d met him several times at the coffee shop when he’d come in with his elderly mother. But his mother had recently passed away, allowing Toby to finally ask Nandi out on a date.
It sounded sweet to me, but Archie wasn’t convinced, and if doing surveillance prevented him from gate crashing Nandi’s date, then so be it.
Yeah, I was doing Nandi a favor, that was all. Totally acceptable and one hundred percent not spying on her.
“You want the goggles?” Archie held out the binoculars.
I made to take them and then checked myself, shame coloring my cheeks. “No. I’m good.”
“You sure?” He frowned.
“I don’t need them. Last I checked she was having fun.” I raised my brows pointedly. “Enjoying her date. Which she did not invite us along to.”
Archie huffed and turned back to his viewing. “Look at him feeding her off his plate. It could be drugged.”
“The food onhisplate could be drugged? Listen to yourself. Archie, this is ridiculous. We should go. If Nandi finds out we did this, she’s gonna be pissed.”
“He has zero social media footprint,” Archie reminded me. “Have you any idea how fucking creepy that is.”
“Or maybe he just likes his privacy.”
“Most serial killers do.”
Oh, God. I grabbed the binoculars from his hand, forcing him to look at me. “This isn’t about the guy’s social media presence, it’s about him dating Nandi. You’re in love with her, and seeing her with other people bothers you.”
He set his jaw mulishly. “Does not.”
“Puh-lease, last time she went on a date you spent the whole evening pacing. How many tubs of noodles did you go through that night?”
“Three.” He looked sheepish. “Look, I’m not denying I worry about her, and yeah, I got a little jealous, but this time is different. There is something seriously off with this guy and you wouldn’t be here with me if you didn’t feel it too.”
Okay, the whole no social media accounts and no footprint at all was super weird. Nandi explained it as him not having time, what with a sick mother and all. But that didn’t sit right with me. Surely being stuck indoors as a carer would mean social media was a lifeline.
There weren’t even any photos of the guy online. I’d run a background check that brought up the minimal information to show me that he existed, but that was all. It was almost too…neat. Not even an unpaid debt, or late payment on the credit report file. In fact, the only credit he had was for a house he’d rented a while back. Nothing since then.
Which Nandi had once again explained as him moving in with his mother to care for her, but still…The guy was almost a ghost.
I guess the fact he was good-looking helped his case. I tried to visualize his face, which I’d seen through the binoculars a few minutes ago, but came up blank.
My spine tingled and my gut trembled. “Archie, what color hair does Toby have?”
