by Nikki Rose
“We opted for a joint bachelor/bachelorette party instead of separate ones for that very reason.” She explained.
“I get that. And, I totally respected that. Eddie was so sweet. He knew my bridesmaids were disappointed so he treated us all to a girl’s weekend at the spa. He splurged on all the best treatments with no expenses spared.”
“Wow, I’m still not seeing the problem here.”
“Just wait,” I warned. “Now, Eddie was very busy with his work so we only really got to see each other on the weekend unless there was a special occasion. The spa trip meant I’d have to go nearly two whole weeks without seeing him until our wedding day. He said it would make seeing me walk down the aisle more special but by Sunday morning, I was ready to leave the spa to see him.”
“I skipped the day at the pool and left after brunch. Eddie had said he was going to be working at his apartment all weekend to make up for the time he’d be missing for our honeymoon so I knew he’d be home. His doorman knew me so he let me up...”
“Oh no, I see where this is going.”
“And I should have but I didn’t. I walked into his apartment ready to surprise him—and boy was he surprised—we all were. Me, him, and the girl who was naked, straddling him in his favorite recliner right there in the living room.”
“Oh no.” Stephanie gasped and Theo cursed under his breath.
“I was mortified. I turned around and ran out. Eddie caught me in the downstairs lobby and tried to explain. The sad part is... if he’d apologized, said it was just a stupid mistake after a drunken night out with the guys or something like that, I probably would have forgiven him and gone on with the wedding as hard as it would have been. But, he didn’t...”
“Addy. Addy, wait.” Eddie grabbed my arm and pulled me back to stop me from storming out the door of the lobby. “Please let me explain.”
“I think that was pretty self-explanatory.” I threw my arms out in a dramatic gesture.
“It’s not what you think.” He lowered his voice to a whisper as he looked around at the other people starting to stare. “Let’s go somewhere and talk.”
I let out a loud sigh as I gave in. “Fine. Where?”
“Let’s go get a cup of coffee.”
We sat at the coffee shop in a back table where we wouldn’t be overheard.
“You said you wanted to explain. So, explain.” I crossed my arms and leaned back in my seat. A part of me hoped and prayed he’d say something—anything that might make what I’d seen make sense. Something that would mean my life wasn’t really crumbling down around me.
“I don’t love her. It’s just sex.”
“That’s supposed to make me feel better?”
“Addy, I know you haven’t dated much before me and you probably don’t understand how men think and that’s okay. I like your inexperience—I find it endearing. But I should have known it would cause a problem or two over time.”
His patronizing tone made me want to scream but I sat waiting for him to get to the point.
“Men are not wired to be monogamous like women are. It’s just not in our nature.”
“Oh?” It’s all I could get out. I couldn’t believe he had the nerve to go with that sort of defense.
“There are two types of women. The kind a man marries, and the kind he fucks for fun on the side. It’s nothing serious. It just helps keep a man from getting bored.”
“Nothing serious?”
“No of course not. I love you. You’re going to be my wife—the one I spend my life with, have kids with.”
“Wait, you think we’re still getting married after this?”
“Of course, we are. This has nothing to do with us.”
“This has everything to do with us,” I yelled and stood from my seat which made a loud screeching sound across the floor.
“Adaline. Sit down. You’re making a scene.”
“A scene? I’m making a scene? No, this would be a scene.” I tossed my iced coffee in his face before storming out the door leaving him stunned and dripping.
“Oh my god. You go girl.” Stephanie clapped her hands together and laughed. “I wish it had been hot coffee for that ass.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at her enthusiasm. It was the first time I’d ever let myself find the humor in the horrific story of me and Eddie.
“So, you moved here for a fresh start?” Theo looked less enthusiastic.
“Partly. Eddie and I had already made plans to move here after we got married. I already had a job lined up. With his dad being the mayor, the whole town knew about the break-up. I got tired of the pitied looks and everyone asking how I was holding up. I wanted to go somewhere where I could just get lost in the crowd.”
“So, did he move to the city too?” Stephanie raised her brow.
“Yeah, but I made sure to find an apartment on the opposite side of the city from where we planned to move. He’d never be caught dead slumming it on this side of town.”
“Oh, trust me, he’d be dead if he tried.” Theo’s jaw ticked with restrained anger. “That bastard didn’t deserve you.”
“Thanks.” I forced a smile. “But that’s the past and I’m ready to look forward to new adventures here in the city.”
“Well, we are happy to be your guides. Aren’t we, baby?” Stephanie nudged Theo’s arm and he smiled at me and nodded.
“Thanks. Now, enough about my sad story. Let’s have some fun.”
“I think we’re going to need another drink.” Stephanie grinned at Theo and he took our glasses back to the bar.
CHAPTER 5
Addy
Blue and red lights flashed on the dim street. My eyes ached but I wasn’t sure if it was from the police lights or crying. Maybe both.
A young female cop spoke to me but I couldn’t hear her. Her mouth was moving but I couldn’t hear the words. I kept going back to that moment—the glint from the street light reflecting off the steel blade as the masked figure slid it across the man’s throat. That terrible gurgling sound he made as the blood poured from his neck was still fresh in my mind. It was all seared into my brain like a scar that would never fade.
“Miss? Are you alright?” The cop’s gentle touch jolted me from the nightmare taking over my thoughts.
“Yeah, sorry.” I struggled to focus on her.
“I think I’ve got everything I need for now. Is there someone I can call to pick you up?”
Is there anyone she can call? Tears stung my eyes and a lump formed in my throat until it was hard to swallow. It was a simple question for most but not for me. Not anymore.
I used to have family, friends, and a fiancé. Now I had nothing. It was just me alone in this big city. There was no one to call. No one to depend on but myself.
I couldn’t call my parents. Even though I knew they’d drive here in a heartbeat if I needed them, I didn’t want to need them after only one week in the city. They’d try to drag me back home. I could have called Theo and Stephanie but something said this one night out was too early to call for something like this.
“Miss? Miss?” the cop shook my arm and I registered the worry in her voice.
A firm hand on my shoulder made me jump. “It’s okay. Let’s get you somewhere you can sit down for a minute.”
I turned to see a middle-aged man in a paramedic’s uniform. His nice smile and soft eyes helped put me at ease. I wrung my hands to tame their shaking. When had it become so cold?
My whole body trembled as they led me to sit on the back of the ambulance. The paramedic wrapped me in a blanket and studied me. They looked at me as if I were a cornered animal—frightened, scared, and unpredictable.
I sat alone for several minutes as the blanket’s warmth seeped into my bones. The trembling finally subsided, but I pulled the rough fabric tighter around my body to let its warmth comfort me.
“Ms. Cole?” the deep rumbling voice made me jump. I looked up to see a handsome, clean-shaven young officer standing in front of me.
> “It’s Addy.”
“Okay Addy, I’m Detective Stevenson. I’d like to take your statement if you don’t mind.”
“Oh, the lady cop—Officer Andrews—I think. She already got my statement.”
“I understand that, but I want to be thorough and make sure we get a good account of what happened.”
I had no desire to continue reliving the events of the evening but I went over the same painful description of events for Detective Stevenson.
“I was walking down the street to catch a cab...” I started.
“Alone?”
“Yes.”
“It seems strange for a pretty young girl like yourself to be walking alone this late at night.” He tilted his head, studying me but I wasn’t sure what it was he hoped to find.
“I’d just left the bar. We were watching people sing karaoke.”
“We?”
“Yeah, me and a couple I’d recently met since moving here.”
“And, where are they?”
“We live in separate directions. They tried to walk me home but it was out of their way. I told them I’d be fine.”
“I see.” He scribbled in his notepad but didn’t say more so I continued.
He took notes the whole time, glancing up at me to study my face every so often. The blanket slipped from my shoulder and I shivered. He placed his arm around me and pulled the blanket back over my shoulders. My eyes met his and he held my gaze for a moment. Realizing I was staring, I turned my eyes to my hands.
“Thank you.”
“No problem.” I glanced up at him and he smiled at me. “Is there someone I can call to come get you? Family or a boyfriend perhaps?”
Tears stung my eyes and I just shook my head. I thought I’d been handling my situation well enough but during the interviews, I realized just how alone I really was.
Detective Stevenson gave me a comforting smile and squeezed my shoulder. “Why don’t I give you a ride home?”
“It’s okay, I can catch a cab.” I stood up. I was just ready to get out of here and put the horrible night behind me.
“Please, I insist.” He stood with me.
“Okay, thank you.”
His hand settled on the middle of my back as he guided me to his car. He opened the passenger side door and let me in. I was just pulling my leg into the car when another detective rushed over to us.
“Stevenson! Stevenson, hold up.”
My detective escort turned to the policeman running toward us.
“What’s going on, Carter?”
“Boss recognized the knife used. It matches the description from a string of murders they think is connected back to an underground organization in the city. It’s been a big thing for years. The one description was all they had until now. Perp must have dropped it when the girl disturbed him.”
“Okay, and you stopped me for that, why?” Detective Stevenson sounded annoyed by the man who was clearly his inferior.
“Well, he saw the girl. Boss says we need to take her to a safe house for the night.”
“I’ll take her.”
“Roger that.” The young rookie turned away.
Detective Stevenson sighed and looked down at me. “Guess we got a change of plans.”
Panic hit me as we drove down our small city streets. “Am I going to have to go into witness protection?” I finally forced myself to ask what I already feared.
“Not sure yet. We need to take this one step at a time.”
“So where are we going?”
“There’s a safe house not too far from here. We’ll stay there tonight and, in the morning, we’ll head back to the station to get you to look through mugshots and sit with a sketch artist to try to get an I.D. on the killer.”
“I didn’t see his face.”
“That’s okay. There still might be something you can remember that will help us. It’s worth a shot.”
I nodded and sat back in the seat as he drove. My mind reeled. I needed time to process all this.
I had no idea if I was really in danger. I didn't get a good look at him with his black mask on. We drove for at least half an hour before turning off the main road and heading down a wooded dirt road.
“How far is this place?” I looked out the window trying to find some sign of where we were but I was completely turned around in the dark.
“It won’t be long now.”
“Okay.”
Trees passed us on either side with no sign of any civilization. Finally, we reached a small clearing. There was an old farmhouse beside a stream. The fence was half existent and the barn looked like it had seen better days. It was creepy in the dark and I didn’t want to stay there.
“You can’t be serious.”
“This is the safe house. What’s wrong?” He put the car in park and looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“This looks like something out of a scary movie. I’m not staying here.” I crossed my arms and looked at him.
“This is a safe house. It’s out of the way and doesn’t look like the kind of place we’d use as a safe house which is part of the reason it works.”
I sighed. He had a point. I definitely wouldn’t think to look there if I was trying to find someone who was trying to be safe.
I hadn’t been allowed to go home for the night. Apparently, this guy was someone they’d been looking for, for a long time. He was dangerous—that much I knew from personal experience. I fidgeted with a stray chocolate brown curl as Detective Stevenson unlocked the door.
We walked inside and he flipped on the light. “Here we are. It’s not much but you’ll be safe here.”
I looked around to see a small living room, kitchen and dining area in the rustic exposed wood cabin. Even with the lights on, it was dim but cozy.
“The bedroom’s through there. And the second door is the bathroom. Officer Andrews is going to be bringing you a few items you may need for the night and we’ll work on getting some of your things if you have to stay any longer.” He turned toward the door.
“You’re leaving?” Panic coursed through me at the thought of being alone in a strange place after everything I’d seen.
“There will be someone to keep watch. You’ll be safe.” He smiled reassuringly.
“Could you maybe, I don’t know—I just—”
“I’ll stay here tonight to keep an eye on things.”
My whole body sagged with relief. “Thank you.”
He walked into the living room and started the gas fireplace. “Can I make you some tea?”
“Tea sounds nice, thank you.”
Detective Stevenson walked across the open cabin to the kitchen and I leaned against the counter to watch him. “I used to come out here when I was a kid. I loved going on those fishing trips with my dad.”
“A fishing trip sounds like a much better reason to be out in the middle of nowhere than witnessing a murder and hiding from the killer.”
He nodded and busied himself with making the tea in silence. My mind wandered in the quiet and I saw myself walking down that dim street just before I got to the alley. If I had been a few minutes later none of this would be happening. The loud screech of the kettle made me jump.
“You’ll be fine. You know that, right? We’ll keep you safe.”
I flashed him a quick smile as he handed me my tea. “I know. Thank you, Detective Stevenson?”
“You’re welcome. And please, call me Daniel.”
“Okay, Daniel.” I smiled and he ushered me to the couch.
“See. Now that’s better.”
I made myself comfortable on the couch and sipped my tea before asking the gnawing questions that raced through my mind. “How long will I have to stay here?”
“Just tonight. Tomorrow we’ll figure things out. Either you’ll go home or witness protection.”
The blood drained from my face at the thought of having to disappear into witness protection.
“Whoa, you okay?” He scooted closer t
o me on the couch and his hand covered mine on my leg. “You look really pale.”
“Witness protection. Like, I’ll have to disappear?”
He squeezed my hand softly. “Just until we catch this guy. Do you have a lot of family and friends who will wonder where you went?”
“Not really.”
“No one at all? Friends, parents, siblings, coworkers? No one?” He raised his brow and I hated that it was true.
“My family is several states away. They know I’m starting a new life on my own here. I’m an artist so I mostly keep to myself and I sell my work online. I was supposed to start a job at a spa in the city but they’d just assume I’m a no-show. So, no—no one.”
“Well, that makes things simpler. You won’t be able to sell your art until this is over. People can’t be able to track you in any way. You need to disappear completely.”
“No art?” I gasped.
“You can still make art. You just can’t sell it until you come out of hiding. Just think of all the pieces you can make. You’ll have a whole stock of things to sell once you’re back.”
“I guess. But, what will I do for money?”
“Let’s just take this one step at a time, okay?” I liked his warm smile. It offered me the slightest bit of comfort in this horrible situation. Perhaps I was just that desperate for human contact, but his hand on mine sent warmth flowing through me.
“Thank you. For everything.”
A knock on the door made us both jump. Daniel pulled out his sidearm and moved to the door quietly. “Who’s there?”
“Officer Andrews.”
He cracked the door open just enough to peek out. His body relaxed and he opened it to let the lady cop from earlier come in with a large paper bag.
“Hello again Ms. Cole, I’ve brought you a few things for the night. How are you holding up?”
“I’m hanging in there.” I forced a smile and took the offered bag from her hands.
She turned her attention back to Daniel. “Would you like me to stay with her tonight?”
“No,” he said a little too quickly and she raised her brow. He steadied his voice and tried again. “I’ll stay and keep guard tonight.”
“Yes, sir. Well, I’ll be on my way unless there’s anything else?”