Read Online Night Vision by Ellen Hart - Free Book Online

Kasimir?”
    Joanna rubbed the back of her neck. “How much do you know about the legal problems I had back in 1989?”
    â€œNothing at all.”
    She gave a resigned nod. “That’s good—it’s the way it should be. What happened to me was pre-O.J., so in that respect, I suppose I got lucky. After the Simpson trial, celebrity trials became everybody’s favorite pastime.” She swirled the ice in her glass. “The fact is, I was stalked by a man for a number of months. After he attacked me in a motel room in Beverly Hills, he was arrested. It’s a long story and I won’t bore you with the details. The case went to court early in 1990. The man’s name was Gordon Luberman.

    â€œWe were about a week into the trial when his lawyer came to mine with an offer. Gordon said he’d plead guilty to one count of felony assault and two counts of sexual battery, and he’d serve the sentences consecutively and also submit to anger management therapy if I’d consent to two things. First, he wanted the carrying a concealed weapon charge dropped. Second, he wanted the details of the case sealed. If I agreed, he’d said he’d plead guilty and serve the full eight years. I was desperate to get the trial over. I had no assurance that I’d win. Back then, there was no stalking law in California. Gordon had never committed a crime before—at least, not one that he was ever charged with. The ADA in charge of my case said there was a less than fifty-fifty chance we’d get a conviction, but with a jury you never knew for sure until the verdict came down. He said that he’d continue to try the case if that’s what I wanted, but that this was a good deal and I should think about taking it. I just wanted Gordon gone, Mr. Nolan, so I agreed.”
    â€œI assume,” said Nolan, flipping the notebook to a clean page, “that he’s out by now.”
    â€œHe was released in 1998. I hired a man to do surveillance on him for a couple of years. The last I heard he’d moved back to Winneconne, Wisconsin, was living with his mother, and leading a basically normal life. Before I left my home in Idaho to come here, I called directory assistance for Winneconne, then asked for ‘Luberman. ’ He’s not there anymore, Mr. Nolan.” She took several sips of scotch to fortify herself. “That means he could be anywhere.”
    â€œDo you have some reason to think he’s targeting you again?” asked Nolan.
    She pressed her lips together to stop them from trembling. “He used to send me flowers all the time—a dozen red roses. Not the big American beauties, but small tea roses. The day before I left to come here, I received a bouquet of roses. They were pink, but I know they were from him.”
    â€œAnd you know this how?”
    â€œI just feel it, okay? I can’t explain it any other way. But the sense is very strong. I received another dozen pink roses here at the loft today.
It’s his calling card, Mr. Nolan. Both notes talked about how much he loved me. They even had the same tone as the old notes. Mocking. Menacing.
    â€œI want you to find him and follow him. If he thinks he can start up a relationship with me again—if he’s stalking me—I need to know. I need something firm—some proof—that I can take to the police. I absolutely refuse to let him define my life again. I spent months afraid to leave my house. It got so bad that, at one point, I even considered suicide. After the trial, I swore I’d never let that happen to me again. That’s why you’ve got to get on this right away. We have to stop him. He’s cunning, Mr. Nolan. And he’s dangerous.”
    Jane had heard bits and pieces of this before, but most of it was new. Joanna never seemed to want to revisit that time in her life. She’d talked to Cordelia about it in much greater detail. Jane had already