Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 75720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
“Do you recognize them?”
I took a breath, partially shocked at the fact that this was my life right now. I had spent one of the best nights of my entire life with Jake—friend, coworker, walking wet dream—and yet it was capped by the fact that someone was now following me. And for what? What did they plan on doing if the alarm hadn’t gone off?
“I don’t. That could be almost anyone.”
“Wait, see that? What are they holding?”
Jake brought the phone closer up to our faces. Sure enough, the person running away was holding something in their hands. “Another package?” I asked.
“Maybe…” Jake said. “But then why try to break in?”
“Unless it wasn’t a package and they had other plans with whatever was in there?” My thoughts crashed into a dozen different brick walls. I looked to the door again. Any second now, I expected the hinges to blow off the wall and the door to come crashing inward, whoever was behind this twisted shit standing there wearing a mask and holding a gun. When was this nightmare going to end?
Sirens sounded from down the street, cutting through the quiet of the early morning. Neighbors were likely just waking up, zombie-walking their way to their coffee makers and putting together lunches for their kids, the morning news playing in a dark living room and now police lights flashing through the blinds. Once again, I felt myself at the center of a very fucked-up kind of attention, and what was worse was that I’d brought Jake directly into the center of the storm. Just by staying over his for the night, I had put him in danger.
Maybe that’s a sign last night has to be the last…
The thought struck me like a dagger between my ribs. I yanked it out, focusing on the problem at hand instead.
Jake flipped the footage so that it showed his doorbell camera, and he scrubbed through that one with the same intensity. My mind reeled, unable to focus, barely registering a single thing that was on-screen.
Until a car drove past the camera. A beat-up Honda with a sun-damaged green paint job. This angle didn’t let me see the decal, but that didn’t matter—the entire license plate was in full view. I recognized those letters, having poked fun at Franky once for the plate spelling out BLLZ, which sounded very much like “balls,” and for someone deep in the closet, I thought that was a good touch from the universe.
And there it was. Franky and his balls driving down the street at a speed that must have been illegal, disappearing from view.
Except it wasn’t only the decal I couldn’t see. “Rewind it,” I told Jake, hoping against all hope… nothing. I couldn’t tell who was in the driver’s seat, even though I was sure that was Franky’s car.
“That’s him, isn’t it?” Jake asked, already reading my thoughts.
“I… it’s his car. I just can’t see him. But it has to be.”
A slash of anger crossed over Jake’s features. Pure and fiery, the kind of anger reserved only for someone who proved to be vile, the scummiest of scums. His brow furrowed, and his cheek flinched as he bit down on it, jaw tensed. It was so starkly different from the loving and sensual man I’d experienced for hours on end, his eyes as soft as silk even though his body proved to be as hard as diamonds.
“This ends today,” he said, just as the doorbell rang, the police announcing their presence loud enough for the entire block to hear.
“Huh?” I asked, following behind him, walking into the dark hall and feeling my mouth go instantly dry, imagining all kinds of horrors in the shadows. They were immediately banished once Jake flipped on the lights, washing away any fear of the unknown as we continued down the steps and toward the front door.
“I’m going to talk to him,” Jake said. “You’re giving me Franky’s information, and I’m going to speak to him.”
My mouth fell into a slant, my head cocked to the side. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“It’s the only idea I’ve got. I doubt the police can do anything without having an actual ID or proof that it was him trying to break in and not just driving through the neighborhood. So I’m going to confront him and ask him why the fuck he’s harassing my, eh, good friend.”
The pause before the title made me stumble a bit.
“Let’s just talk to the police and figure out what they say.” I crossed my arms, shaking my head. “I don’t want you getting involved in this. At all.”
“I think it’s a little late for that,” he said, hand on the doorknob. “But it’s going to be okay, alright? I promise you.” He reached out and rubbed my arm, his cool blue eyes swirling with confidence. I believed him, even though I wasn’t sure how the hell this would turn out alright. Not unless Franky was in handcuffs and behind bars by the end of the day. That’s the only outcome I could see as being a positive one; everything else left me living in a constant state of fear and anxiety.