Spies Like Us II

Wilson pulled into the exact same spot he had taken on Baker Street the night before. Remy Hadley sat in the passenger seat trying to keep still after being admonished by the driver for the worst case of back seat driving he had ever encountered.

"So this neighbor, do you remember what kind of car he had?" Remy exited the Lexus not quite sure where they were going to start.

Wilson followed suit, scanning the cars along the opposite curb. He waited for traffic to clear before crossing the street. "We're a bit early. The guy said he had gotten home around - well he never said what time, but it must have been about five thirty-ish. That's usually what time House gets home."

Remy followed him to where he surmised the neighbor's car had been parked. "Did you see which way the guy approached from?"

Wilson stopped walking and looked toward the general area where things had transpired. He was taking the time to remember all the details - things that didn't seem important at the time.

"I was standing outside of House's car. It was a little ahead of where I parked." His mind's eye replayed the events again. Did he even see the guy? His back was turned, looking into House's car. A reflection in the window? "He came from behind the vehicle."

Remy walked toward the first apartment complex that had steps beyond where they were standing. "We could start by looking at mailboxes."

"He said he had been getting his mail."

"Well, that'll narrow it down a bit. There are only a few buildings where the mailboxes are near enough to a door that you could see the street."

"We may not have to do much detective work then."

"It's too cold to just stand here and wait. I'm going to see if there are any names on the call box that indicate a gender."

Wilson looked at his watch. Only five fifteen. "This is insane. We're waiting around for someone that might not come to find out something that might not have happened."

"Fine, then you stand around and wait for the mystery neighbor while I go check out House's apartment. Maybe he went in and came back out before whatever-" Remy was a little frustrated by Wilson's inability to commit and focus on the task at hand. "Maybe I'll find a clue."

"Okay," Wilson said hesitantly.

Remy was happy to leave him behind. She needed some time away from the negative vibe he was giving off. She wasn't really expecting to find anything in the apartment.

On approaching the stoop, she noted House's next door neighbor was home. His neighbor might be able to provide some interesting insights. The door opened against its chain lock almost immediately as she knocked.

"Hey, sorry to bother you." She stopped speaking abruptly as the neighbor peered round the door which was ajar.

"What can I do for you?"

Remy floundered a bit. "Uh, my friend…well, he's actually my boss, lives across the hall. He got into some trouble last night, and I was wondering if you saw or heard anything."

"I know nothing." She slammed the door shut, an audible clunk of the deadbolt followed.

"Nice to chat with you."

When her back was turned as she opened House's door with the hidden key, the neighbor called out through her door. "I've called the police."

"Good," Remy shouted back. "Maybe they'll do something for a change."

"I warned you," the muffled voice called out again.

Thirteen opened the door, walked in and turned to face the neighbor's door. Just by that simple action of looking out her peephole to see what the intruder did next, Remy knew that she was a relatively nosey neighbor. "I'm betting you didn't call the cops now, just like you didn't call anyone last night when a guy got hit by a car right outside your front window." She slammed House's door shut.