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through the floor to ceiling pale pink curtains I’d installed in January. I must have forgotten to turn the light off in my haste to meet with Brad.
    When I opened the car door and slowly stood up, a flash of pain shot through my left knee. I’d been tense through the drive home, and I felt it. I pulled an umbrella from behind the driver’s seat and used it as a cane, distributing my weight off the injured joint while I hurried inside.
    I climbed the back staircase and knocked on the door of Effie’s apartment. I heard Rocky bark on the other side of the door.
    “That was a short dinner,” Effie said when she opened the door. She wore an oversized Batman sweatshirt and bright yellow leggings. Her feet were in fuzzy slippers shaped like bear paws. 
    “I wasn’t feeling well and had to leave early. Was Rocky any trouble?”
    “Nope. We spent a couple of hours at White Rock Lake. He made friends with a Chihuahua. We came back here and he played with my bear feet. He’s pretty pooped right now.” She looked over her right shoulder to where Rocky laid on his stomach with his feet thrust out behind him like a frog. He opened his eyes and lifted his head slightly. Effie picked up a leash from a white bookcase and clipped it onto his collar. Rocky stood up and padded over to me. She handed off the leash.
    “Where are you two staying tonight?”
    I felt my face tense. “Who two?”
    “You and Rocky. You’re not going to sleep in your apartment, are you? I don’t think it would be a good idea with the paint fumes.”
    “What fumes? What paint?”
    “You had the apartment painted, right? There was a guy in there earlier. I haven’t noticed any fumes but it’s probably not dry yet.”
    My hand closed tightly around my keys, the sharp, jagged edges cutting into my palm. Rocky pulled me toward the door, winding the leash around my left leg. My hands shook as I reached down the length of the leash to straighten it out.
    “Effie, what did this man look like?”
    “I couldn’t tell. He was wearing a mask.”
    “What kind of mask?”
    “Paint mask,” she answered in the tone of a college student who thinks she’s talking to an idiot. “But he had a black knit hat on, and safety glasses, so I guess I didn’t see very much of him. Why?”
    “When did he leave?”
    “About half an hour ago. He hurried out of here pretty fast too.”
    I didn’t like it. Half an hour ago I’d been at the restaurant with Brad. If someone had been in my apartment, they’d arrived after I left. My early return would have been unexpected. There was only one person who knew I would be out to dinner, the person who had surprised me with an invitation. Things were starting to add up, but I didn’t like the sum.
    “Thanks for watching him.” I said goodnight, picked Rocky up, and walked to the front of the building to check my mail and the status of the rent box. Carlos, a retired mechanic who lived in the unit next to mine, stood in front of the building, smoking. The tip of his cigarette pierced the night like a fat firefly. He nodded when I approached and I nodded back. The rent box was still padlocked shut. I scanned the street in front of the building. Across the street, a car idled next to the curb. The only evidence that the engine was running was the soft cloud of exhaust that floated from behind the car. I couldn’t be sure, but it looked like the same sedan that had followed me home.
    I turned around, slowly climbed the stairs, and unlocked my unit. The scent of oil paint hit me. I choked back a cough and leaned in. The rug was pulled back from the far corner, exposing half of the unfinished hardwood floor. Paint trays and rollers were scattered around the room, as if the project had been abandoned unexpectedly.
    I descended the back stairs, carrying Rocky under my arm. I ducked out the back door, crossed the parking lot, and let myself out the padlocked gate that served as too little deterrent to keeping our property