All Chapters of THE HOUSE KEEPER : Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

Zoe's POVThe spotlight was so bright that Zoe could not see the faces in the crowd. She could only see shapes. Dark shapes dressed in silk and satin, standing close together, whispering and breathing nervously.Two men held her arms behind her back. One of them smelled of cigars and cheap aftershave. His fingers were digging so hard into her elbow that she knew there would be bruises there in the morning.If there is a morning, a small voice whispered inside her head.She pushed the thought away.Across the ballroom, on the small raised platform, Diane Foster stood in her shining silver gown. She held a black remote in one hand and looked like a queen who had just received her crown.Julian stood beside her.His face was pale. His jaw was so tight that Zoe could see a muscle moving under his ear.He was looking at her.Only her.Nothing else in that beautiful, crowded room seemed to matter to him.I'm okay, Zoe wanted to shout. I'm okay. Don't do anything stupid.But her mouth was as

Zoe's POVThe coat room smelled of wet wool and old perfume.It was a narrow room with long rows of empty hangers moving gently in the dark. A single bare bulb hung from the ceiling, swinging from its cord and throwing moving shadows across the walls.Dalton pushed Zoe inside.The second man, the one who smelled of cigars, stayed near the door with his arms crossed."Sit," Dalton ordered.Zoe sat on an overturned crate.Her legs were shaking so badly that she had to press both palms against her knees."Take off the dress.""I'm not taking off the dress.""Then I'll cut it off."Zoe looked up at him.He held his pocketknife loosely in his hand, almost like a man holding a pen.But his eyes looked tired.There were dark circles under them, and a small red cut on his neck where he had clearly hurt himself while shaving in a hurry.Zoe had lived in eleven different homes.She knew what a tired man looked like."Can I ask you something?" she said."No.""Why does an FBI agent work for a wo

Zoe's POVThe wind on the roof was so loud that Zoe could barely hear her own heartbeat.It pulled at her torn green dress and whipped her hair across her face. The air tasted like rain and fear. She could feel Diane's arm pressed tightly across her upper chest. Her arm was thin and strong, but Zoe could feel it shaking.She's shaking.Zoe suddenly realized something.She's afraid.Diane Foster had built a criminal empire while sitting behind a teacup. She had killed a man and hidden the truth for eighteen months. She had smiled at Zoe across a silver tray as if she were a kind woman.And now she was afraid.Zoe knew that a frightened person holding a gun could be very dangerous."Let her go, Diane," Julian said.He stood about thirty feet away in the middle of the rooftop.His chest was rising and falling quickly. His tuxedo jacket was gone, and his white shirt was torn around the collar.His hands were open at his sides.He was not holding a weapon.His eyes never left Zoe's face."

Zoe's POVHospitals always smelled the same.Bleach. Cold coffee. And something else underneath it all that no cleaner could ever completely remove.Zoe sat on the edge of a narrow hospital bed in Room 412. She was wearing a paper gown while a young nurse with tired eyes carefully wrapped clean white gauze around her scraped palms."You're very lucky," the nurse said. "Another two inches and you might have needed surgery."Zoe looked down at her bandaged hands."I'm lucky in a lot of ways."It was three in the morning.Outside the window, the city lights glowed orange against the dark sky. Everything looked strangely quiet from that high up.Somewhere down the hallway, a machine beeped.A baby cried.A man in the waiting room was snoring loudly enough for Zoe to hear him through the door.Beside her bed, Julian slept in a chair.He had a bandage across his cheek where Diane's nails had scratched him. A paper cup of coffee rested in his hand, completely untouched.He had refused three

Zoe's POV"Turn left!" Elena whispered loudly. "No, left! The other left!""Lady," the taxi driver said, "there's only one left.""He's getting away!""I'm driving as fast as I can."Zoe sank lower in the back seat.A baseball cap covered most of her bandaged forehead. She leaned forward and looked through the small space between the front seats.Three cars ahead, a black town car moved slowly through the Queens traffic.It passed auto shops, laundromats, and small bakeries with hand-painted signs."I can't believe you talked me into this," Elena whispered."I didn't talk you into anything."Zoe kept her eyes on the black car."You were already in the taxi."Elena stared at her."You said, 'I'm going to follow that car.' I said, 'I'm not letting you do this alone.' And now I'm wearing a hat."Zoe looked at the hat."It's a nice hat.""It has a fish on it.""It's a very brave fish."Elena groaned and slid lower in her seat.Zoe smiled despite herself.It felt strange.Almost dizzy.She