by Ivy Smoak
Chapter 28
Saturday
I woke up panting. I dreamed it was the vigilante pushing me up against the wall in the alley. I imagined it was his thumb tracing my cheek. What's wrong with me? My stomach seemed to churn. I threw my hand over my mouth and ran out of my room toward the bathroom. I was just able to open the stall door when I started to throw up all the alcohol I had consumed last night.
Shit. I melted down onto the floor in front of the toilet and wiped my mouth off with a wad of toilet paper. Last night was a blur. When I closed my eyes, all I could picture was the vigilante. My mind wasn't focused on the person who had attacked me at all. I was consumed by images of the vigilante. I had been paralyzed by fear. But not fear of him. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I wasn't scared of him at all. I was intrigued by him. And apparently I enjoyed fantasizing about him while I slept. I placed my hand on my forehead. This was probably the worst headache I had ever had. I'm never going to drink again.
I should have been terrified. I should have been calling Mr. Crawford, telling him I had been attacked. But I didn't feel like I needed to. I wasn't in danger if the vigilante was looking out for me, if he was watching me. A chill ran down my spine. Was that why it felt like I was being watched? Had it been the vigilante watching me the whole time? And the attacker could have just been a coincidence. There was crime in New York City. He didn't say that Don had sent him. It could have been a random attack.
The only thing I was sure about was the fact that I needed to see the vigilante again. I needed to thank him. I needed to figure out how he knew my name. There were a million questions I wanted answered. And it wasn't just for the project, it was because I honestly wanted to know who was hiding behind that mask.
I flushed the toilet and walked over to the sink. I had covered the cut on my jaw with a huge Band-Aid. For the life of me, I didn't understand why he had cut me there. He could have ended my life with one swipe across my throat. It was as if he wanted something from me. The thought made me shiver.
It was a random attack. I took a deep breath. I refused to leave this city. This was going to be my new home, and I was determined to keep it that way. That meant getting into better shape. I nodded at my reflection in the mirror. It was time to fully become Sadie Davis. And Sadie Davis was independent and strong. I can do this.