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)
Where were they? Was the person watching me right this very moment? Could they see me and I couldn’t see them?
My spine shook like the tail of a rattlesnake. I clenched my fists and tried to keep myself from passing out.
“Jesus Christ.” Eric handed the phone back to Jake. He didn’t even take a second to put on his shoes, going straight to the door and throwing it open, walking out onto the deck even though I offered a couple of weak protests.
He came back in five minutes, concern magnified across his bearded face. I didn’t think I’d ever seen Eric this shaken up. He was always the stony and solid support for the group, having consoled me and Tristan through a variety of different problems and crises. He never cracked, his face never showing fear.
Until tonight.
“I didn’t see anyone or find any signs of anyone being around. It’s a big property, though…”
Jake was sitting at my side, an arm around my shoulders. He pressed his lips gently against the side of my head. It wasn’t really a kiss, more like a silent sign of comfort, a life raft thrown into the middle of these turbulent waters. I leaned into him, but instead of finding comfort, I turned icy-cold, my entire body turning into a taut wire ready to be snapped by the slightest movement.
This was my fault. Because of exactly this, of leaning on Jake and calling him my boyfriend. He’d be safe and sound in his own bed if he had never met me. If he’d never shown up at our workplace, if he’d never pulled into that Publix, if he’d never— I swallowed back a sob.
“Maybe Tristan can track this one?” Eric suggested. “Let me get him.”
“Wait, wait, we might have to wake everyone up.” I looked at the clock on the wall. It was already pushing close to one in the morning. “I don’t know if we can stay here. Not if this person can see us.”
“We don’t know that for sure,” Jake said. His grip around me grew tighter, which I was thankful for. It helped to keep me from feeling like I was unmoored and drifting out into dark and open waters.
“The message said ‘see,’ and it was all caps.”
Jake looked at me, but I could recognize the unchecked anxiety that rattled around in his skull. He chewed nervously on his bottom lip, nearly drawing blood, turning the skin around it white underneath the five-o’clock shadow that seemed to be growing darker by the minute. I closed my eyes and tried to wake myself up from this nightmare.
“We have to go,” I said, my eyes snapping open, the nightmare continuing on. “We can stay at the cabin I originally got us for the retreat. I think it’s still available. Let me check.” I went for my phone but remembered the message that sat inside it like a deadly viper curled up and waiting for the right moment to strike again. I put my phone back down on the couch.
“The Eagle Rock cabin? That’s like forty-five minutes from here. Once we wake everyone up and get going, it’ll almost be sunrise.” Eric cracks his knuckles. What he said next clearly took some work to get out. “And if this person really does have eyes on you, Noah, they’ll know if we leave tonight. I think we stay here and then regroup in the morning. I’ll sleep down here in the living room, just so I can wake up every now and then and keep an eye on things.”
“Want to do it in shifts?” Jake suggested. I looked to him, a slash of guilt and sadness cutting across my chest. This man, he was perfect in every way and didn’t ask for any of this—didn’t deserve any of this.
“I’ve got it,” Eric said, offering a somber smile. “But thank you, man.”
“Yeah, of course.”
“What about the police?” I asked, needing to stand up from the couch so I could begin pacing, trying in vain to burn off the excess anxiety that made my bones vibrate. “Shouldn’t I call them?”
Eric used to be a cop. He’d know.
“We can call them, make a report, and get it recorded. They could do a search around the property, although I doubt they’ll find anything. I think this person’s just trying to fuck with you, Noah. I’ve seen stalker cases like these, and they either end up with the stalker getting caught or burnt out. Usually, once they see law enforcement is getting more heavily involved, then they step back.”
There was the stone-faced and logic-spewing Eric I’d come to love. He cracked his knuckles and glanced at the door.
“Okay, let’s call them.” I went to grab my phone but froze as I leaned over the couch. “Actually, Jake, can you call them? I still don’t want to grab my phone.”