Val looked to her right and left, watching what was going on. Nothing seemed out of place in this affluent community. People went about their everyday lives. With the door shut and windows closed, Julia’s house had an odd stillness to it. Val couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t right. She’d feel better once Julia answered the door.

She rang the bell and waited.

No answer.

She rang again, waited several more seconds, and then tried knocking. She was about to knock again when a woman’s voice made her jump. Startled, she turned around quickly and stared at the lady with the hat from next door.

“I’m Marnie Horvath, Julia’s neighbor. Are you a friend of hers?”

“I work with her,” Val said, her answer abrupt. She was worried about Julia and really didn’t care to be interrogated by her neighbor right now. But the more she looked at Marnie it became apparent that she was worried too. That’s why she was here.

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to bother you. It’s just that I’ve been trying to call Julia all day,” Marnie said.

“She was home today?” Val asked.

“I thought she was. I didn’t see her leave this morning. I usually do.”

In a matter of seconds Val’s worried feeling began to churn. Her chest tightened and a sinking unease ratcheted in the pit of her stomach. She immediately went around the side of the house and started looking in the windows. Something definitely wasn’t right. Where the hell was Julia? She wasn’t at work and she wasn’t at home. Marnie was at her side, trying to peer inside too.

“Last night the lights were on for a really long time. They were still on when I went to bed and that was after midnight. Julia’s never up that late,” Marnie said. “I wouldn’t be so concerned but she had an awful fight with her husband yesterday evening.”

“Her husband was here?” Val questioned quickly. Julia had mentioned a meeting with her lawyer but said nothing about her husband.

“Yes,” Marnie said. “They were loud. It was hard not to hear.”

Val peered through each window, putting her hand above her eyes to shield the glare on the glass. From what she could see, nothing seemed out of place in the house and nothing was amiss outside. That was, until she arrived at the back door, which was unlocked and easily swung open.

“That’s not like Julia to leave her door unlocked. The alarm system must be off too, otherwise we’d be hearing it right now,” Marnie said.

Val’s heart pounded and her legs felt rubbery as she cautiously stepped inside. Marnie followed her.

The two women walked through a utility room and entered the kitchen. Val called to Julia. Her voice echoed in the large room. There was no response.