Page 31

Landon

The next morning, our workout goes smoothly. We’re all a bit anxious about the fact that the girls are on campus alone and nobody has eyes on Trevor since we are here. Thankfully, all of our ladies, Kelly now included, texted to say they either made it to class or were still curled up in bed.

We ran on the track and pumped out our stress with some hard rock and heavy metal blasting through the room. It was cathartic.

After much-needed showers, we are all laughing and tossing jokes like we didn’t have some jerkwad currently harassing the women in our lives.

Exiting the building, our laughter dies on our lips when we see said jerkwad leaning up against the bricks. He’s wearing basic workout wear and looks like he’s just been jogging. His longish dark hair is disheveled, temples dusted with sweat. He pulls out his earbuds and maliciously grins at us.

“Hey cockblocker. Couldn’t man up and come to me? Had to go whining to Coach?” he taunts, pushing off the wall with one foot.

“That’s not why I went to Coach. You know very well that you’ve extended your actions past just getting back at me.”

Trevor freezes a smidge, quickly masking his surprise at my accusations. He’s not sure how much I know. I huff a little under my breath at his audacity.

“Only claiming what’s rightfully mine. She’ll forget you, don’t worry. Does she spread her pretty legs wide for you every time you walk in the door? I bet she loves it when you fuck her back in the stacks. Fuck, watching her come with your hand covering her mouth the other night had me hard as fuck. She let you choke her and fuck that tight ass?” he taunts and licks his lip. “Such a good little whore.”

Every one of us is still as death. Jameson grabs my arm, holding me back, but I’ve had enough of this asshole. You don’t talk about my girl that way and walk away unscathed. I slam him against the wall with both hands and grab his shirt in my fist. My other fist rears back and Mason grabs it, yanking on me hard.

“This is what he wants, Landon! Don’t give it to him.”

I hold Trevor’s shirt tight, fire exploding in my veins, muscles taut and ready for a throw-down. Trevor leans his head back and smiles easily, happy with my outburst, and not the least bit worried about having his pretty face rearranged. It’s a bit eerie.

I slowly loosen my grip and step back. His hand is in his pocket, and I hear an unmistakable snickt . He smiles a little more deeply and my awareness kicks in, and I step back more not letting on that I heard it. Trevor rolls his gaze to Gabe.

“Did you tell that blonde bitch to stay out of my business, or do I need to tell her myself?”

Gabe starts forward, and I step in front of Gabe, not allowing him a step closer. I know what I just heard.

“Leave our girls alone,” Gabe grits through his teeth.

“Do not talk about them like that. If we continue to catch you harassing either of those two, or worse, you will not get off easy next time,” I warn, probably blowing the whistle that we’re aware of the stalking, but at this point, I don’t give a fuck.

“We’ll see.” Trevor slithers from the wall, slinking down the sidewalk away from campus like the snake we all know him now to be.

“Guys, he had a knife in his pocket,” I mutter, and they all inhale sharply. “He came looking for blood.”

“Fuck!” Gabe and Mason exclaim in unison. Gabe’s hands run through his wavy blonde hair. Jameson is still, his eyes staring after Trevor continuing his stroll.

“He’s not going to stop.” Jameson bites at his lip and faces us. “How the fuck are we going to keep those two safe and watch each other’s backs at the same time? Landon, he was prepared to stab either you or Gabe. He didn’t care which one he got, but he was gunning for it. This is bad, guys.”

“Shit, break can’t get here quick enough.” Mason sighs, kicking at the sidewalk with his hands on his hips.

“Two weeks away won’t make a difference for him. His obsession isn’t going away,” Jameson enunciates. He looks sure. Hell, he’s seen enough studies in his criminal psychology classes, I’m sure.

“If he’s connected to Kristy going AWOL, then it’s just a matter of time before he makes another big move. He’s biding his time.”

All of us look as sick as we feel over the possibilities ahead of us. We see it coming, and we’re on our own.

Kate

I push out the door of my last art class before break. We had an exam covering art techniques of pointillism, cubism, impressionism, abstract, you name it. We had to be able to identify certain artist’s works or be able to name an artist that excelled in certain styles. It wasn’t all that hard. I love art history. I tend to be drawn toward the wild strokes and striking colors of Van Goh and the captivating beauty of a Monet. Although I wouldn’t have the patience for it, Seurat’s tiny dots call to me.

I text Landon and let him know that I’m following a big group of kids to the lot, and that I’m on my way home. He’s not crazy about me walking back to my car without one of the guys, but he gets it. They can’t be everywhere at once, and I’m not really alone. When I get to my car, there’s a posy of black-eyed susans resting under my windshield wipers.

Landon knows they’re my favorite. I text Landon and thank him for them. I pick them up and smell them, enjoying the pretty yellow and the stark contrast of the seeded black center. One day, I will have these planted everywhere in my yard amongst purple coneflower and bushy sedums. They’ve looked gorgeous all fall long. I’m sad that they’ll be gone so soon. Our first hard freeze should be any day now.

Buzz.

Landon: I didn’t put those there. Get in your car and get home. I just walked into an exam and can’t get there yet. I’ll hurry. Love you.

Buzz.

Trevor: Pretty flowers for a pretty flower.

I look up at my surroundings and drop the flowers on the pavement. Hurrying into my car, I lock the doors and keep searching the rows of cars for his. He’s two rows over behind his wheel, smiling. My heart hammers, and I’m not sure what to do. If I get back out to head back to campus, there’s no group of students. If I leave now, he might follow. Can I lose him in traffic? Walking back to campus is not an option. I start the car and fly out of the parking lot as fast as possible without hurting anyone.

I call Jameson on my bluetooth, but he doesn’t answer. Damn it, he must be in class. I push the option for Sarah next. I know she’s free at the moment.

“Hey Kate? What’s up? How was your art exam?”

“It went fine. Sarah, I did something stupid. I walked to my car with a group of people and found flowers. I texted Landon before he walked into his exam and he said they’re not from him. Trevor texted immediately after. He was watching me from his car two rows over. I thought about running back to campus, but I would’ve been alone, so I started driving. I’m scared. I don’t know if he’s following me. Jameson isn’t answering, and I know Mason is in an exam with Landon. Gabe and Melissa both had different classes too,” I ramble, looking in the mirror for any sign of Trevor’s silver car. I can’t tell.

“Crap, Kate. Don’t pull over anywhere. Keep driving. I’m gonna try Jameson too. I’ll call right back.” She hangs up.

Beep Beep. Jameson is calling through.

“Kate? What is it? What’s wrong? You never call. Shit, why’s Sarah calling too? Kate, what’s going on?”

“I don’t know if he’s following me,” I choke out.

“You’re in your car? Who walked you to your car?” He growls his disdain with my choice. “Where are you now? Keep driving. Walk me through what happened.”

I rattle off the same details I just told Sarah, and he curses.

“Okay, do you see him now?”

I look up in my rearview mirror for what seems the millionth time.

“No, but I can’t be sure.”

“You can try the left turn trick. I want you to pick a block coming up. You’re going to turn left. I want you to make a left at every corner around that block until you are back where you are. Pay attention to any silver cars. If you’re being followed, it should be obvious by the second turn.”

“Okay.” I flip on my blinker for the next stop sign ahead. A blue car turns behind me. As I get further down the street, I see a silver car turn after a red truck. I suck in a deep breath.

“Is it him?”

“I can’t tell yet. I guess we’ll know soon.” I hold my breath, signaling left for the stop ahead.

“Hey, Kate, do me a favor.”

“Yeah?” I breathe out.

“That right there. Breathe. I don’t need you passing out at the wheel. Landon would have my ass if I let you get yourself into a wreck. I just got to my car. You were headed home right?”

“Yup.” I nervously laugh and make my turn. The blue car goes straight. The red truck goes straight. I hold my breath and wait. The silver car turns right, and I blow out a huge breath.

“It’s not him! The car didn’t follow!” I shout, the relief and adrenaline pumping through my veins.

“Good.” He sounds as relieved as I feel. “I’m still going to take the route toward your place. Text me when you get inside, and lock your door. I’ll be right behind you to make sure he’s not waiting there.”

“Thanks, Jameson.”

“You bet.”

“You know, you’re gonna make a great investigator or criminal profiler one day.”

“Thanks, hun. That’s the idea.”

“Talk to you soon.”

“Yup.”

I hang up. I turn my music on low for the rest of the drive to try to shake off my nerves. I pull into the apartment’s parking lot as close to our door as I can and scan the area. There’s another bouquet of yellow flowers on our welcome mat. I text Jameson.

“Okay, I’m coming in. I’ll watch tv until Landon gets home. Wait for me.” I wait about five more minutes until I see him pull into the lot. I get out and grab my leather tote from the passenger seat.

“I’m sure this will look interesting if he’s watching.”

He walks behind me to the door and grabs the flowers before coming inside.

“I don’t give a crap what he thinks,” I stutter on a shaky breath.

“You should’ve heard the shit he tried to bait Landon with after conditioning this morning.” He quirks a brow at me.

“If it was anything like the texts he sent the other night, I wouldn’t be surprised.”

He chews on his bottom lip, contemplating how much to share and decides against it. I’m sure Landon will share if there’s something I need to know.

“No matter. His behavior is escalating and we all need to be very careful. No more walking to your car without one of us, got it?”

“Got it.”

I walk to the kitchen and grab a beer for him and a soda for me. He plops onto the couch and happily accepts it while I stretch out in Landon’s chair. His sci-fi book is resting on the side table with his glasses open across it. Some nights I’ll catch him nodding off out here. I never get sick of seeing him all stretched out in lounge pants with his bare toes and chest reading in the soft light with his glasses.

Buzz.

Trevor: I see how it is. Spreading those legs wide for both of them now? Landon know? Dirty girl, apparently one cock isn’t enough for you, is it? Is he sharing you? Why won’t he share with me?

“ Him?” He motions with his fingers and takes a gulp of his beer. “Show me. After what he said this morning, not much will surprise me.”

I huff and hand it out toward him. He stands and grabs the phone. His eyebrows hitch up his forehead. He hands it back and strides back to plop again on the couch with a big manly hmpff.

“Not far from what I expected when I walked through the door. No worries, I messaged Landon to tell him I was coming inside and waiting for him.”

“Do you think he’s going to try something worse?”

Jameson looks toward me and regards my question silently. His silence says it all. I shudder, and he looks away, hating that he even had to entertain the idea.

“Kate, he’s a loose cannon. We think he’s dangerous now too. Between the shit he’s already pulled, the stalking, and now this morning we think he was carrying a knife when he came to bait Landon and Gabe...” He cuts off knowing he shared more than he’d meant to.

“A knife?!” I exclaim, horrified at the notion.

“Yeah...a knife... shit.”

Yeah, he didn’t mean to share that much with me.

“We didn’t physically see it, but Landon heard the mechanism deploy when he opened it in his pocket while he had Trevor up against the wall. He stepped back and kept Gabe at a distance when Trevor turned to try and rile Gabe up over Melissa.

My hands fly to my face in horror at the thought that either of them could’ve been stabbed in broad daylight right outside of a school building. Damn, damn, damn!

“ Jameson, I’m scared.”

He stands and comes to sit on the ottoman by me. A soothing hand reaches out and rubs my outer arm. Nothing weird, just comforting.

“I know. We all are. Today, he kind of made it clear that he doesn’t care who gets in his way. He’ll hurt anyone if it means he can get to you. We’re all targets now.”

“Do you think he hurt Kristy?”

“I’m not going to coddle you. You deserve the whole truth. Yeah. I really do.”