“You good friends, would you say?”
“Not real good friends, no. Saw her around pretty often, I guess. Like, I’d go to get the mail and she’d be picking hers up, too, and I’d say hi. You know, so I knew her that well, well enough to say ‘hi’ to when I bumped into her, but not any better than that. Seems strange, doesn’t it, I mean, us living in the same complex for so many years and not knowing each other any better than that. Doesn’t that seem strange?”
“I suppose so, ma’am. Maybe a little strange.”
“She was always standoffish, though. Nice, though, I mean, I don’t have anything to say against her, but she wouldn’t look you in the eyes when she was talking to you, and never went to any of the complex parties. You know I never saw her at any of the barbeques or potlucks or anything like that? Like I said, standoffish. Kept to herself, I guess. Or shy. She always seemed a little shy.”
“She seeing anybody?”
“Like a boyfriend, you mean?”
“Yes, ma’am, that’s right.”
“No, I don’t think so. Like I said, maybe she was shy. I remember, because she was a cute little thing, always dressed well, you know? Always looked real put together. Not flashy, like, but just real clean and well-dressed. Cute clothes, always stylish. I remember wondering why she didn’t go out more, cute thing like that. Well, or anyway I never saw her with anyone, never had any real visitors, just the milkman, the meter man, people like that. You notice that sort of a thing when you live near somebody, or anyway I do. Not that I was snooping.”
“No, ma’am.”
“It’s just you sort of know who’s seeing somebody, and who isn’t, living in a small complex like this. I can always tell when someone goes up and down the stairs, it comes right into my apartment. The gal who’d had the apartment before her was real bad about that. People coming and going at all hours, moving furniture around, sounded like. So I’d know if she was seeing someone, and she wasn’t. Like I said, standoffish.”
“Yes, ma’am. Well, she’s not going to make any friends now.”
“Damn shame. Cute little thing like that. I hope you find whoever did it.”
“Yes, ma’am, so do we.”