4. Brynne

Chapter 4

Brynne

" H ow'd your date go?" I asked McKenna as she refilled the napkin container at table four.

"Like absolute shit. Guy was a total sleazebag. You know, you really gotta go buy a new phone charger. I can't keep waiting to tell you things," McKenna replied.

"My phone has been dead for less than twelve hours," I pointed out. I'd forgotten my charger at Chase's house, and there was no way in hell I was going back for it.

She plopped the top back on the dispenser. "Twelve hours too long."

"I'll buy a new one after work." With what little tip money I made today. I was paying the motel by the day, so after today's expenses, I'd barely have enough for four more days. Magically overnight, my tire had replaced itself with a spare, and I had the slightest feeling I knew who'd fixed it. Whether I was right or not, I still wasn't going to take him up on his offer. I'd find a way to get by until I could rent somewhere, without that asshole's offer .

"Why don't you just go now?" McKenna asked, walking around the end of the bar to sidle up next to me.

I gave her a confused look. "Because I'm working?"

She shrugged, her mouth working on a piece of gum. "I won't tell on ya."

It was only thirty minutes before my shift was supposed to end, but… "I need the money."

"I'll clock you out in half an hour," she offered.

My eyes turned to slits as my skepticism set in. "Why?"

Her jaw moved as she likely debated telling me what she was thinking. I knew that look too well, being her best friend and all. "Because you look dead as a ghost and I know it's been a rough couple of days for you."

Rough was an understatement.

But half an hour more of sleep tonight would do me well. That was, if I even could sleep. The thought that anyone could get into my room at any moment didn't make a girl dream very easily.

"Okay, fine." I reached behind my back to untie my waist apron. "I owe you one."

She waved me off. "Don't worry about it. What are best friends for?"

Pulling the light blue apron off, I rolled it up into a ball and walked through the swinging doors to shove it in my locker. Marv didn't have any security cameras in the diner, so he wouldn't know I was leaving. The cook didn't know anything about our schedules, so for all he knew when he barely glanced up at me, I was supposed to be off anyway.

I offered him a closed-lip smile and headed out the back door. It slammed shut behind me, leaving me in the dark alley behind the restaurant with nothing but the blinking orange light to illuminate the wet pavement. It'd rained earlier, but now a chilly fog clung to the air, instantly cooling my exposed legs.

Every time the dying bulb flickered out, the narrow alley was cast in complete darkness. I kept my sights on the end as I walked in the direction of the street, where my car was still parked since the other night. Now that the tire was fixed, I'd drive it to the corner store, and grab a charger for my phone and a bottle of vodka to help me sleep. Once I was back at the motel, I'd figure out a way to barricade the door just in case someone did decide to break in—again.

I moved my gaze down to my white sneakers just as I narrowly missed a puddle, but when I looked forward again, I froze.

Standing at the end of the alley, blocking my only exit, stood a man in a cowboy hat, wearing the same skeleton mask as the night before.

Instantly, my body hummed as fear took over. He was just trying to scare me. He wouldn't actually?—

He began moving, stalking toward me like a wolf stalked its prey, and I was the little helpless sheep with nowhere to go but straight into the hound's mouth. I took a step back, my sock instantly soaking through as my foot landed in the puddle. But I didn't care about that right now—not when I was about to be this man's victim.

"My coworker knows I'm out here," I called out, taking another step back.

He closed in on me, causing me to scramble backwards. A hand shot out, wrapping around my neck. I didn't have time to fight as he shoved me up against the wall and covered my mouth with a gloved hand.

Gloves . He was wearing gloves ? He didn't want his fingerprints on me, which meant he was here to?—

"Twenty-four hours is up, Darlin'." His voice was like spoiled honey, bitter and sweet at the same time, blissfully grating against my ears.

I tried to keep my breathing calm as he wrapped his hand tighter around my neck, still allowing me to breathe. Little clouds of white puffed out from my nose, evaporating between us.

"You only have one good choice here," he said. In the flickering light, his eyes were as dark as the alley behind him. "You want to tell me what your decision is?"

I nodded behind his hand, and he slowly eased up on the pressure. I swallowed, sucking in air. "I'm not going with you," I bit out.

His head cocked to the side slightly as he studied me. "That your final answer?"

I had a feeling that if I said yes, I'd end up a missing person or dead on the street. But something about him almost comforted me, like maybe he wouldn't actually kill me. I was playing with my life, and yet, I wanted to see how this ended.

"Yes."

His eyes held mine before they trailed down my cheek to my neck, where his hand was still carefully wrapped around the column. Slowly, he removed it, trailing a finger down my uniform. I kept my gaze on him, silently daring him to touch me inappropriately. As if he hadn't just had his hand around my fucking neck.

The tip of his finger swept over to my name tag still pinned to my button-up. "You can find out a lot about a person with just their name." His hungry eyes roamed further down, catching on my skirt. "Like where they live, where they work."

His attention moved back to my face, lingering on my parted lips. "What school they went to or who their friends are." He leaned closer, and the increase in my puffy breaths was all the indication he needed that he was succeeding in his plan of scaring me into submission. "I will always find you, Darlin'."

A finger came up to coast along the edge of my jaw, trailing up my chin to my bottom lip. He tugged down on it. "You think you're safe, that your perfect little world will go back to the way it was before you found out your little boyfriend was sleeping with half of Whiskey Ridge."

His finger let my lip pop back up, and he glided it down my chin again to trace the column of my throat. "And you're too scared to realize you have no choice but to accept my offer."

"I'm not scared," I said, finally speaking up.

The pad of his finger stopped right on my pulse point. "Your racing heart says otherwise."

I silently cursed my body for betraying me.

"I'll be generous and give you another day to decide." He dropped his hand, turning to walk away. The man stopped a few feet from me, looking over his shoulder. "But if I have to come find you again, I won't play nice."

He stared at me for a moment longer, letting his words set in, before the flickering light showed him leaving the alley. I stayed with my back against the wall until rain started falling, soaking me where I stood.

A crack of thunder had me hurrying to my car out front. Once I was inside, I locked the doors and tried to scan my surroundings through the pelting rain.

But even without clear visibility, I knew he was out there watching.

And there was only one way to get him to leave me alone.