Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

Lakelynn

I take the bus to work, as I do every day. But today, my heart beats faster and my legs jostle with anxiety.

I peer around for the millionth time. I don’t see him, but I can feel him. He’s watching me. Always.

It has me craving more: a touch, a caress, a sweet affirmation of love. Anything to bring us closer.

The nearest bus stop to my job is still half a block away. I get off and walk.

I can see him now. He saunters several steps behind me with a white mask, black jeans, and a hoodie. Whenever I stop, he stops.

I wonder if he’d run.

I turn around and take a step toward him. He subtly shakes his head. A smile forms on my lips. Before, when I couldn’t see him, his presence was like a shadow. But after seeing him, exchanging a few words...it’s like...he’s kind of a friend now. It’s kind of fun.

He taps the back of his wrist with a gloved finger.

Crap. I’m going to be late if I don’t quit messing around.

With a roll of my eyes, I turn around and continue toward work. He no longer feels the need to hide from me, it seems, but he keeps his distance.

Is it thrilling to him? Is that why he watches me?

Now that I know he’s around, will he get bored of me and leave? I don’t want that. I like having him around.

Sirens wail in the distance. I don’t realize they’re coming from the bar until I reach the back door and yank it open. A police officer stands in my path.

Confused, I glance around.

Where did he go?

“Miss, you can’t come in here,” the cop says.

“Uh.” I swallow to wet my dry throat. “What’s happening? I’m supposed to clock in.”

“And you are?”

“Lakelynn Albright. I’m a waitress here.” I spot Kathy and wave to get her attention. “She knows me.”

Kathy makes a beeline toward me. She grabs my arm and pulls me back outside. “Let’s talk out here.”

The door closes behind us, leaving us alone.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

Lowering her voice, Kathy says, “Keith is dead. The cook found him an hour ago. It’s bad, Lakelynn. Oh, my God. If they find out what I said yesterday about him…”

“Breathe.” I pat her hand that’s still gripping my arm tightly. “We were the only ones in the lounge when you said that stuff, and I’m not going to say anything about it. I know you didn’t kill him.”

But I have an idea who did.

I peer around again for my stalker.

Did he really kill someone? For me?

Kathy pulls me closer. “Thank you, but there’s something else. Tammy told the police you were the last to leave.”

“Ms. Albright?”

Kathy and I whirl around. The cop from earlier is standing at the door.

“We’d like to ask you a few questions, if you don’t mind,” he says.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

I share a look with Kathy. She offers me a sympathetic smile.

Taking a deep breath, I separate from her and face him. “Sure.”

He motions me inside. I hold my head high as I walk into the building. My mind races. What do I do? I know what’s considered right, lawfully, but to me, it feels wrong. Things are not always as black and white as they seem.

My stalker was protecting me. He’ll go to jail for attacking an asshole who tried to rape me. That’s not right. Just as it wasn’t right when they tried to punish Ty when he did the same thing.

“This way, ma’am.” The police officer closes the door and walks past me.

I follow. We weave through the small crowd of cops and my coworkers in the main room. Toward the back, close to Keith’s office, he addresses a man in a suit.

“Sir, this is her.” He steps aside.

“Thank you, officer. I’ll take it from here.” He waits for the cop to leave, then turns to me. “Ms. Albright, I’m Detective Cander. Can you walk me through what you did last night?”

From the corner of my eye, I see Tammy leaving. She gives me a snotty-ass smirk on her way. I never understood her distain of me, but it’s been there since I started working here. It’s obvious she threw me under the bus on purpose.

Bitch.

Trying my best to seem unbothered and keep to the truth as much as possible, I say, “I helped clean up the tables after my shift and went straight home.”

“Can anyone corroborate your story?”

“No. I live alone, and the doorman at my apartment was off-duty when I got home.”

“Someone mentioned you were the last to leave. Is that true?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t really look for anyone when I left.”

Detective Cander studies me. “Do you have a boyfriend who would get angry about you working here?”

I scoff. “No.”

“Why do you say it like that?”

“I haven’t dated in years.”

“Is there a reason for that?” He presses.

Narrow my eyes, I snarl, “Isn’t that kind of personal? What does that have to do with whatever is going on here?”

“Your boss was found murdered in his office.” Detective Cander taps on his phone before shoving it in my face. “And this was written on the wall behind him.”

My eyes widen as I jerk back. The image on the screen looks like a horror movie prank. Blood is smeared into words.

Don’t touch what’s mine .

Wetness pools between my thighs. I don’t date because no one catches my attention the way my stalker or Ty do. They are always the object of my imagination when I need to get off.

Like now. Seeing what my stalker wrote on the wall behind Keith’s dead body is making me want to run to a confined space and pleasure myself.

He called me his. He did this for me. He saved me. His obsession. I bite down the smile forcing its way onto my face.

“Would you care to answer the question, or would you rather go downtown?” Detective Cander asks.

Hiding away my desires, I lift my chin and make direct eye contact with the detective. “Why do you think that has anything to do with me? Like I said, I don’t date. Why? Because I’m uncomfortable being intimate with others. The last I saw of Keith, he was perfectly fine. He drank a bit, watched us work, and then went back to his office. I did my job, helped the others close up, and left. I didn’t even speak to him. You can ask the others. Now, can I go, or do I need a lawyer?”

He studies me for a moment. He must not see beneath my fa?ade of partial lies, because he eventually hands me a card.

“Call me if you remember anything else.”

“Sure.” I take the card and stroll out the way I came in.

The moment the door closes behind me, I release a deep breath. The last time I was questioned about a murder flashes in my mind. It’s been several years, but the relief is the same.

I pause, wondering if it could be Ty. He went missing after Mr. and Mrs. Rylee’s deaths. I never knew what happened to him. I assumed he went to jail at some point, but could never find anything about him.

Could it be him?

I sigh. It’s just wishful thinking. The chances are slim to none.

Shaking my head, I search for my stalker. He’s definitely the culprit, whoever he is, but I don’t want to turn him in. I want to thank him for saving me.

I leave the crime scene and meander down the street. I’ll have to start looking for another job tomorrow morning, as I have no idea what will happen with the bar. And I honestly don’t want to find out. I won’t be back.

I doubt my stalker has gone far. He rarely does. I peer down every alley I pass. When I see a dark figure, I’m yanked into the alleyway before I can process it’s him.

He presses me against the brick wall and crowds my front. “Looking for me?”

This close, I can make out the black vein lines and slightly darker sections of the white mask. The only opening where I can see beneath the mask is the eye slants.

His blue eyes are captivating. They’re also familiar. A hint of thrill makes my heart beat faster.

“Do I know you?” I ask breathlessly.

He moves closer; his thigh rubs my sensitive core through my panties, hiking up my skirt. I grip his shoulders to keep from melting into him. A fantasy of him taking me in this alley, right here, right now, plays in my mind. And after he protected me and wrote those possessive words in such a dark and carnal way, I’d sell my soul to the devil to make it come true.

His warm breath tickles my ear as his lips brush my earlobe. “Do you want to?”

My breath hitches. The ache between my legs grows. I lick my lips. The deep, husky tone of his voice has me shuddering with desire.

“Yes.”

My phone rings. I mentally curse, jerking me out of my trance. Masked man steps away with a chuckle. I dig my phone out of my pocket. My friend, Lena’s, name fills the screen.

She has great timing .

I’ve never been so annoyed to answer her call.

“Hi, Lena.”

“Hey! How are you?” she greets me cheerfully. “It’s been forever since we caught up.”

I smile despite my dissatisfaction with her interruption. Lena and I met when I was eighteen. We worked together as waitresses and hit it off immediately. Our schedules haven’t matched up for the last few weeks, so we haven’t spoken in a while.

“I’m fine.” I glance around for my stalker, but he’s already gone.

I sigh as my shoulders slump. Deflated, I walk toward the bus stop.

“Just been busy with work. I haven’t seen Kieran in a while either.”

“He said as much. We were talking about getting together this Saturday. My boyfriend, Donnie, has a fight coming up, and I want you both to come. You can meet him and we can get drinks after.”

“I don’t know…” I say.

With my stalker and Ty on the forefront of my mind, I’m not sure I want to spend my weekend doing anything but digging up information on them. My desire to get closer to my sexy masked man of mystery has me itching to deepen our connection. I crave to feel what I felt with Ty once again. My stalker is the first one since him to bring it out in me.

“Please. I don’t want to go by myself. I miss you, and Kieran’s already said he won’t go if you don’t.” The pout in her tone has me smiling.

Maybe a few punches and a bit of blood could do the trick to ease the raging lust building inside me. And if not, at least it could give me a new outlet for the darkness that seems to haunt me everywhere I go.

Relenting, I say, “Text me the time and address.”

“Yay! You won’t regret it. We’ll have a blast. Love you! Talk soon.”

I hang up, rolling my eyes. She’s a trip, but I love her. I’m looking forward to spending time with my friends. It’s been a long time coming.

This weekend should be fun; I just hope it’s helpful. I really miss cutting, watching the blood flow from my wound, as if my internal pain is leaving my body metaphorically. Hopefully, seeing someone else bleed will be just as satisfying.

Who knows? I may discover a new hobby to distract me from stalking my stalker.