The Woman Who Watches Us

By Amanda Riley

When Rachel Bixby moved to the small town of Pine Haven, Kansas, she believed she was far enough away from her ex-husband that she and her daughter could get a fresh start and no one would ever find them. Everything was going according to plan until a strange woman began showing up everywhere they went. Rachel immediately worries this woman is connected to her ex-husband, but the woman refuses to speak, so Rachel gets no answers. When kidnappings begin happening, including the kidnapping of her own daughter, Rachel begins to find clues that point to this woman having no connection to her ex-husband at all. It seems the lady that has been following Rachel has her own agenda, and it might not have anything to do with her ex.

 

Will Rachel find her daughter before it's too late? Is the strange woman even behind her daughter's disappearance? Or are the tangled web of answers to her questions leading much closer to home in a dark corner of her life that she did not even know existed?

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Amanda Riley
• Release date: Sep 12, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201692728

Amanda Riley

Amanda Riley resides in Oklahoma with her husband, two children, and rescue dog, Luna. Amanda has always enjoyed writing. While growing up, you could never find her without her notebook and a pen. She and her best friends liked writing fan fiction together, and she always took Creative Writing as an elective in school. Aside from stories and books, Amanda also enjoys writing poetry and song lyrics. Amanda is an avid reader. She loves numerous genres of books, but her favorite genre is suspense. In her free time, Amanda loves nothing more than to curl up with a good thriller. Some of her favorite authors include Ruth Ware, Rona Halsall, and A.J. Finn.

Book preview

Chapter One

Rachel Bixby was startled awake by the loud screeching of her alarm clock on the bedside table beside her bed. It had to be the most obnoxious sound that Rachel had ever heard in her life, but it was the only sound she found that could successfully wake her up after getting such a small amount of sleep. As seemed to be the norm these days, Rachel had only been asleep for about two hours before her alarm clock woke her up that morning.

Rachel sat up in her bed and begrudgingly forced herself to get out from underneath her soft, warm blankets. She gasped in shock as she placed her bare feet on the ice-cold, wooden floor. She hurried to stand up before she could talk herself out of it, stretching and yawning as she did. Rubbing her eyes sleepily, she padded reluctantly across the hall to the bathroom that she shared with her seven-year-old daughter and turned the light on.

Damn insomnia, she thought to herself as she looked in the mirror and noticed the black circles under her eyes. Maybe I do need to get some sleeping pills, she considered the idea as she got into the shower, turning the water temperature on as hot as she could stand it.

Rachel knew she couldn't continue on this way much longer, only getting a couple hours of sleep every night, but she really wanted medication to be a last resort. Addiction ran deep in her family, and after seeing what it had done to her own marriage and also to her mother's marriage; and then hearing from her grandmother and her mother what it had done to other relatives, she knew she had to be very careful with any kind of medication. She had her little girl who depended upon her and Rachel was determined to be someone in her life who would never let her down.

Rachel rushed through washing up in the shower and then drying off. She quickly went into her bedroom to pick out the scrubs that she would wear that day to work. She smiled when she spotted her favorite pair hanging up in her closet. They were black and had colorful autumn colored leaves printed all over them. She put them on and slipped on her socks and a pair of black Crocs.

She hurried as much as she could to blow dry and straighten her hair, but it was quite the hassle. Rachel had the type of hair commonly joked about as given to people to remind them that they can’t control everything in life. Her hair was thick, frizzy, tangled, and just hard to manage in general. People often complimented her on her hair, but Rachel found it to be more trouble than she thought it was worth. She often joked about shaving her head and wearing wigs to save her time, energy, and sanity.

Rachel put on her makeup at a speed her best friend always told her was unnatural. But Rachel still wore the same makeup she had worn every single day since she was sixteen years old. She could probably put her makeup on with her eyes closed and still manage to get it on flawlessly if she really wanted to. She put her makeup back into her cosmetic bag and put it back underneath the sink. Finally, after spritzing herself with some body spray, she left the bathroom and headed down the hall to wake up her daughter.

Emily? Rachel said softly as she entered her daughter’s bedroom.

Emily began to stir as Rachel opened the blinds to let some sunlight in through the window in an attempt to raise her sleepy little girl.

Wake up, sleepyhead. Rachel said, walking to Emily’s bed and gently caressing her daughter's long, dark brown hair.

Emily had been blessed with perfect hair. It was long and curly and full of life. Rachel was very thankful that Emily had not inherited her frizzy hair. But, still, Rachel couldn’t help feeling a twitch of envy every now and then that she didn’t have hair like Emily’s.

Emily opened up her big dark brown eyes and smiled an adorable, albeit sleepy smile at Rachel.

G'morning, Mama! she murmured.

Good morning, baby girl. Rachel said, picking her up and cuddling her in her arms.

These moments were one of Rachel’s favorite times out of the whole day. The rest of the morning would be a rushed, chaotic blur but for a few special, quiet moments time seemed to stand still and all was well in her world as she held her child in her arms.

Their special moment faded, and the rest of the busy morning proceeded before them. After rushing around to help Emily get ready for the day, making her some breakfast, and gathering both of their things while Emily ate, they were finally getting their coats on and were ready to leave the house.

The two of them stepped outside of their cozy, warm home into a crisp, autumn morning in Pine Haven, Kansas. It wasn't where they were from, or even anywhere near the town in which both of them had been born and raised. Daysdell, Texas was where both Rachel and Emily had been born and lived up until several months ago. They were a long way away from home, but in the few months they had been living in Pine Haven it had begun to feel like home to them.

Pine Haven was a very small town. There wasn't much in the town except for a local diner, a two-pump gas station, an old beauty salon, the town’s police department, a fire department, a post office, a car repair garage, a small second-hand store, a locally owned bank, the schools, a nursing home, a bunch of houses, and several churches. If you were looking for anything else, you had to drive twenty minutes away to the city of Destiny.

Though the small size of the town and desolate location away from civilization could possibly be viewed as a negative thing for many people, that was actually one of the perks of Pine Haven for Rachel. Nobody ever traveled through Pine Haven, or ever moved there, because most people had never even heard of it. It was as if the town wasn't even on the map for most of the world. And the people who did live in Pine Haven, aside from Rachel and Emily, had lived there for their whole lives so nobody knew who she really was or knew any of her family and friends from Daysdell.

More importantly to Rachel than any of those things was the fact that nobody in Pine Haven knew Jade Bixby, her ex-husband and Emily’s father. That would have been impossible in Daysdell, or anywhere in the state of Texas for that matter. The Bixby family was a prominent and well-respected part of society there and anyone who had lived there for any amount of time at all knew exactly who they were. And, because Rachel had married into the Bixby family, everyone there knew who she was as well.

Needless to say, it had been a huge relief for Rachel to be able to be someone who blended in as a wallflower now. She had always been more of an introvert and never enjoyed the spotlight that came with having the last name Bixby. Anywhere Rachel had gone in Texas, and especially in Daysdell, she had felt eyes on her, which had always unnerved her. So, it was a welcome change for Rachel in Pine Haven to be able to keep to herself and decide what she wanted people to know about them. It was easier to keep her skeletons in the closet under lock and key here.

Rachel originally thought that living here was going to help her start sleeping normally again at night and end her seemingly endless battle with insomnia, though that part had unfortunately not gone as planned. But she held onto hope, figuring that maybe she just hadn’t given herself enough time. It had only been a few months since they had moved here. After putting herself through so many years of trauma and devastation she could hardly expect herself to be over it and back to normal in a matter of just a few months.

Who’s that lady, Mama? Emily asked as Rachel was locking their front door.

The lock made a loud clicking noise, letting her know it had indeed locked. Satisfied that her home was safely secured for them Rachel turned around, holding her breath. The first thought that came to her mind was that they had been found by Jade or that it was someone whom he had sent to look for them. But the person that she saw standing at the corner of their street by the stop sign was not anyone she knew. In fact, she was certain she had never seen this person before. She knew that she would remember someone who looked as unique as this woman did. Anyone would.

Why is she just standing there watching us? Rachel wondered to herself.

I don't know, honey. Rachel said, taking Emily's hand and escorting her to the car.

Once Rachel saw that Emily was seated and had buckled her seatbelt, she got in the driver’s seat and locked the car doors. She glanced back out the car window over to the corner and noticed that the strange woman was still standing in the same spot beside the stop sign, continuing to observe them.

Rachel felt a shiver go up her spine as she buckled her seatbelt and reached down to turn the heater on. A quiet humming noise started, followed by a few loud thumps and then the heat kicked on.

The part that disturbed Rachel the most about the odd woman was that she was blatantly staring at them... watching them. She did not appear remotely concerned that they clearly caught her gawking at them. She didn't wave at them, she didn't smile at them, and she didn’t try to interact with them in any way. But she didn't look away either. She just continued watching them.

Why is she staring at us, Mama? Emily asked curiously.

I don't know, sweetie. I have no idea what she is doing. Rachel mumbled as she backed the car out of their driveway and into the road.

The heater had finally started to warm up now and blow warm air instead of cool air, for which Rachel was thankful. It felt wonderful to her freezing cold face, in particular her nose that had started to run from the cold air.

She began slowly inching their car towards the stop sign where the woman was standing. Rachel checked again to make sure all of their doors were locked as she stopped the car at the stop sign right beside the woman. Rachel looked hard at her, trying to figure out if maybe she actually did know her and just hadn’t recognized her from the distance.

The woman had frizzy, curly, bright red hair that just barely reached her shoulders. She looked to be in her early 50's. She was a short woman, dressed in jeans that looked like they belonged in an old 1980's movie and a baggy black sweater. She wore bright red rain boots and was carrying a matching bright red umbrella. There was a small, dark gray backpack hanging loosely on her back.

The woman did not try to speak to them, nor did she smile at them or appear to even move at all. She just stood there and continued watching them with those piercing blue eyes she had. Rachel’s heart began to beat a little faster.

She put her foot on the gas pedal and sped the car away from the stop sign, glancing in the rearview mirror as she did. The strange lady had turned around to face them and was watching them as they drove away. Rachel shuddered, feeling utterly creeped out and sped away as fast as she legally could towards the elementary school that Emily attended on the other side of town.

She isn't very friendly, is she? Emily asked suddenly.

What makes you say that, sweetie? Rachel asked, confused by Emily's random question.

Well, I waved at her and she didn't wave back. Emily said matter-of-factly.

Rachel gave a small chuckle, Maybe she just didn't see you wave at her, hon.

Um, Mama, she was looking right at me! Emily pointed out.

I don't know, love, but listen. Do me a favor, okay? When the bus drops you off at Shirley's house you be sure to go right inside and do not go back outside until I get there to pick you up. And make sure you lock the front door. Okay? Rachel said, glancing at her daughter in the rearview mirror.

Okay Mama, I promise. Emily responded with a nod.

Rachel pulled up to the side doors of the old elementary school building and parked the car.

Come give me a hug, baby girl. she said as she got out of the driver’s seat and stood outside of Emily's door, waiting for her to get out.

Emily grabbed her backpack and jumped out of the vehicle and into Rachel's arms giving her a big hug.

I love you Mama! Emily said into Rachel's hair.

I love you too, sweetie. Have a good day. I’ll see you at five. Rachel said, kissing Emily on the cheek.

She watched as Emily skipped up the sidewalk and disappeared inside the school’s double doors. In the sky above her some birds were flying overhead and singing songs together, while behind her she could hear some children laughing and playing on the playground. The sun was shining down on her, the warmth of it softly caressing her face.

While her surroundings felt peaceful enough, Rachel was too distracted to enjoy any of it. She felt the familiar pain of heartache in her chest as she thought about what Emily deserved. This was not even close to the life that she wanted for her daughter. Emily deserved so much more, so much better. She was such a wonderful little girl. It just didn't seem fair to Rachel that this was how things had turned out for them; especially for Emily.

She gulped the imaginary ball that had now lodged itself in her throat and tried to ignore the pain in her chest as she got back into her car and drove back across town to work. She was a CNA at the nursing home in town. She loved her job and everything about it. She had amazing coworkers, and she absolutely adored all of the residents in the home. But no matter how great her job was, Rachel desperately missed being able to stay home with Emily while Jade worked. But she knew that had to remain a thing of the past.

Rachel would never allow that to happen again even if it were an option. It was much too dangerous to depend on Jade anymore, or to allow him anywhere near her or Emily. And as far as Rachel was concerned, it was much too dangerous to depend on any man anymore. She wouldn’t even consider it after what they had gone through.

Rachel pulled into the parking lot of the nursing home and noticed that the same woman who had been standing at the stop sign by their house earlier that morning was now standing at the edge of the nursing home parking lot, near the road, watching her.

Who the hell is this woman?! Rachel wondered, feeling irritated.

Rachel quickly got out of her car and hurried inside of the building, making sure to avoid looking in the direction of the strange woman. Once she had clocked in, she looked for her best friend, Mindy Simmons. Mindy was also a CNA there and they worked the same schedule. They were around the same age and had hit it off from Rachel’s first day working there, which was abnormal because Rachel didn't usually allow people to get close to her that quickly. There was just something about Mindy though that made Rachel trust her. Maybe it was the fact that they both had previous marriages that ended in a nightmare. Or perhaps it was that they both had children from said previous marriages that were around the same age. But whatever the reason was, Rachel was grateful to have made a friend in her new town so quickly.

Rachel spotted Mindy flirting with one of the cooks in the kitchen and rolled her eyes to herself.

Where else would she be? Rachel thought to herself sarcastically, smirking.

That was one of the ways that the two of them differed in their personalities. After her marriage was over, Mindy became one of the biggest flirts Rachel had ever seen, thriving off of the attention that she got from the opposite sex. Meanwhile, after Rachel's marriage was over, she had sworn off men and love altogether. As far as Rachel was concerned, she would be happy to be single for the rest of her life and never have any attention from the opposite sex again.

Rachel went towards her friend and grabbed her hand. I need you. Rachel said matter-of-factly as she pulled her friend off with her towards the front doors of the facility.

Rach! I was talking to Zeke! Mindy objected in a whine.

I know, and this will only take a minute, then you can go finish talking to him. But I have a major problem. Rachel explained.

As they approached the front doors and headed outside, Rachel pointed at the lady who was still standing at the edge of the parking lot near the road. She was staring at Rachel.

Do you know who that woman is? Rachel asked Mindy, pointing discreetly at the woman.

Mindy looked over in the direction Rachel was pointing and spotted the lady. She squinted her eyes, staring at her for a few seconds trying to see if she recognized her and then shrugged her shoulders, looking back at Rachel.

I dunno, Rach. What does it matter? Mindy replied, popping a bubble with her gum she was chewing.

A car drove by, blaring rap music so loudly that Rachel had to wait for them to pass before she could respond. The car passed and Rachel turned back to look at Mindy.

Right, it wouldn't matter... if she hadn’t been standing outside my house this morning staring at me and Em when we left! And now she is at my place of employment staring at me again! Seems a little too ironic to be a coincidence to me! Rachel exclaimed dramatically.

Mindy's eyes widened in shock, What?! Are you serious?! And you don't know who she is? Mindy popped another bubble with her gum.

No clue! Rachel responded, shaking her head.

Did you say anything to her? Mindy asked with a raised eyebrow.

Well, no! Rachel said looking at Mindy as if she were insane.

Why not?! I would have demanded to know why the bitch was stalking me! Mindy retorted, popping yet another bubble.

Rachel bit her lower lip and looked down at the ground, crossing her arms over her chest again. She felt her cheeks flush in embarrassment. She didn’t want her friend to think that she hadn’t adequately protected her daughter.

I don't know... I guess I was scared. Jade gets out of prison soon. What if he sent her? Rachel asked quietly, holding back tears.

"That's it, I’m gonna go talk to her. I refuse to sit by and let you live your life afraid because of that narcissistic asshole!" Mindy proclaimed.

She took off across the parking lot towards the woman without giving Rachel a chance to say anything.

Mindy! Rachel hissed, but Mindy kept walking at high speed towards the lady, completely ignoring Rachel, gravel flying every which way from under her feet with each step she took.

Rachel felt lightheaded and she sat down on the bench that was on the front porch, watching her friend nervously.

The red-haired woman just continued standing there in her same spot of the parking lot, watching Mindy charging towards her. She didn't appear to be alarmed or to feel threatened by Mindy approaching her.

Mindy finally reached the woman and after a couple of seconds the woman turned away and began walking off.

Hey! I was talking to you! Mindy yelled after her.

The woman did not stop walking and she did not turn to look back at Mindy or Rachel even once.

Fine. But stay the hell away from my friend! You hear me?! Mindy shouted at her.

The lady just continued walking and ignoring Mindy, as if she did not have a care in the world. Mindy looked at her for a minute watching her walk away, then she shook her head and turned, jogging back across the parking lot towards Rachel.

What did you say to her? Did she say anything to you at all? Rachel asked anxiously as Mindy sat down beside her on the bench.

No, not a word! I don't think you have anything to worry about, girl. I think she is just not all there or something. All I said was 'Hey, you have been following my friend...' and she smiled and turned and walked off! Mindy explained.

Before Rachel could respond the head nurse, John, came out onto the front porch with them.

Ladies, good morning. I wasn't aware that you were paid to sit outside and chit chat. he said to them in a sarcastic tone.

Hi John! How are you this morning?! Mindy replied in her own sarcastic tone.

John frowned at her disapprovingly, I will be much better when my two main CNA's go inside and get to work! he said grumpily.

Alright, alright. Mindy said standing up to go in, stopping at the trash can on the porch beside the front doors and spitting her gum into it.

Sorry John. Rachel mumbled, avoiding eye contact with him as she and Mindy walked past him and headed inside the building.

Why do you cower to him? Mindy whispered.

Rachel could feel the tension building up inside of her and she braced herself when he angrily walked past her going back to the nurse's station, his keys clinking as he walked away. Rachel didn’t answer Mindy, or even breathe, until she heard the door to the nurse’s station shut.

I don't know. Rachel lied, heading off towards the hallway on the left to start her rounds.

But the truth was, Rachel knew all too well why she was apprehensive around John. John looked like her alcoholic stepdad, Tommy, and he shared similar mannerisms with her ex-husband, Jade. Jade and her stepdad were two of the scariest men she had ever known. To be like both of them made John seem like the scariest man in the world.

DURING HER LUNCH BREAK Rachel sat in the employee break room sipping a cup of coffee and pulled out her cell phone from her pocket. She noticed a notification saying that she had a missed call from her mother. Anxiety filled her with the feeling of impending doom. Her mother hardly ever called her unless it was bad news, or she needed something. Most of the conversations that they had were done via text messaging, and no conversation with her mother was ever pleasant.

Rachel stood up from her chair and tossed her cup in the nearby trash can by the doorway.

Hey hot stuff, where are you going? Mindy asked as she walked in carrying a tray from the cafeteria.

I need to go call my mom. She tried calling me. I will be back. Rachel replied tensely.

Uh-oh. I hope everything is okay! Mindy said, giving Rachel a sympathetic look.

Yeah, me too. Rachel mumbled before rushing outside to her car.

Hi Rachel! an elderly man called out as Rachel walked past where he was sitting on the bench on the front porch.

She turned and saw one of her favorite residents, an older man named Fred Johnstone.

Hi Fred! How are you? she asked with a smile, stopping on the porch to talk to him for a minute.

He was a lonely old man. His children and grandchildren rarely visited. She could not understand why they wouldn’t want to come and see him. Fred was one of the nicest people that Rachel had ever met in her life.

I’m good. Can’t complain. Are you off work already? Fred asked her with a kind smile.

No, I’m on lunch break. I’m just going to my car to call my mother. But I will be right back. Rachel answered.

Good, we don’t get too many good ones around here. Some of the CNAs here treat us like trash. But not you. You have a heart of gold! I hope you work here forever. He said with a smile before taking a sip of coffee from his mug.

Rachel felt touched by his kind words. Awe, thank you, Fred. I’ll come find you when I get off break.

I will look forward to it. He said with a nod of his head.

Rachel smiled at him and turned to head to her car. The further from Fred and the nursing home she got, the closer she got to her car where she would have to call her mother. The thought made her more than just a little bit nervous. She finally reached her vehicle, unlocked the driver’s side door, and got in.

Once inside her car, she pulled her phone out of her pocket again and reluctantly called her mother back, hoping she would pick up quickly and tell her it was nothing serious.

Rachel? I've been trying to call you! You should have answered! You know I don’t call unless there’s a reason. her mother’s voice snapped at her after the third ring.

I know Mom. But I'm at work. What's wrong? Rachel replied, wanting her to get to the point.

It's Tommy. He is in the hospital again. her mom answered with a dramatic sigh.

Rachel released the breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding and rolled her eyes. Why? Rachel asked, trying to pretend to care.

Tommy was her stepdad that her mother should have left years ago in Rachel's opinion. Her mom was crazy about Tommy though, no matter how many times he came home drunk and angry, no matter how many times he cheated on her, no matter how bad he hurt them, and no matter how many jobs he lost her mother always stayed by his side.

Rachel couldn't understand the attraction her mother clearly had with Tommy. Even she had left Jade, but her mother had been with Tommy since Rachel was ten years old. She would likely be with him until the bastard drank himself to death.

He had another car accident. He fell asleep driving. Luckily it isn't too serious, and nobody was seriously hurt, but he is in a lot of pain and he really gave me quite the scare. her mother