Selene

Devlin and I had lived together for the past month and things were perfect. A little too perfect. I waited for the other shoe to drop. And it did.

For March it was unseasonably warm and the perfect day to get more clothes. His mother and I went shopping downtown while our men were at work. We were on Michigan Avenue when I spotted a woman I recognized. I wouldn’t have even noticed her if she wasn’t staring me down. A feeling of absolute dread ran through me. She may hate me, but I hadn’t been afraid of her before and I wasn’t now. I wondered how this was going to end up. Her eyes narrowed and her face hardened.

“Mrs. Jacobs, let’s go this way,” I said, turning to go across the street. I was tempted to tell Reggie that we needed to go. Then again, she could just be giving me a mean look. I tightened the belt on my spring pea coat and straightened my spine.

“Why when the store we need is right there?” she asked. Before I could change her mind the woman, whose name I couldn’t remember, approached.

“You’re a dead woman. You ruined my life and I’m going to make sure you pay for it.”

“Excuse me, but who are you?” I asked her with a shit load of condescension. I didn’t remember her name, just her bitchy face.

“Bitch, you’re the whore who stole Devlin, cost me my job, and had the nerve to still be alive.”

“Excuse me?” I got closer to her, thinking I’d like to mop the floor with her.

“I read about what happened at the school where you worked. Oh well, it’s a good thing I come from a wealthy family. Ken was so grateful I was able to get him out on bail.” She tapped my nose like she was being sweetly playful, and I wanted to kill her. Before I could punch her, Reggie came in between us.

“If you don’t want to disappear, I suggest you walk away right now,” Reggie told her.

“Fine, I always get my way.” I rolled my eyes as she walked away. “And I will in time.” I should have nudged Reggie’s giant ass to the side and punched her in the face. It was too late now, and my mood had definitely been ruined.

“I don’t feel like shopping anymore.” I rubbed my nose. In the cold it got irritated easily and that bitch putting her nasty gloved hand on me only made it worse.

“I agree. With Matthews out, it’s not safe until we know where he is,” Reggie uttered. Mrs. Jacobs grabbed my hand and we walked to the car which Drake, the guy I saw in the garage the first time, was driving.

Once we were in, I felt rage warm over me and I started to shake. “I just want to go home please.”

My phone rang, and unsteadily I pulled it from my coat pocket. I breathed a sigh of relief to see it was Devlin. “Hey, babe. Are you okay?” I could hear the worry in his voice. He knew something was wrong.

“Yes, we’re on our way to the house. How did you find out so fast?”

“The police called to warn me he’d been let out on bail, and I told them I would tell you. They called you anyway?” he asked. He was pissed. I guess he wanted to break the news to me himself.

“Nope. I ran into…” I started to say but he cut me off.

“That bastard came near you?” he roared. I could hear him slam his hand down on his desk.

“Dev, it wasn’t him. That broad from the museum did. She claimed she bailed him out. She wants me dead.”

“Miss Kennedy? Why? Does she know him?” he asked rapidly, not bothering to take a breath.

I looked out the window, trying to keep from crying. I wanted him to be here holding me right now. Why had I become so needy and dependent on Devlin? And why didn’t it bother me like it should have? “She read about the case and decided it would be payback for losing her job. She’s hoping he gets me this time.” His mom squeezed my hand. I choked up a little at her kindness. I brought all this trouble into their world, yet they still supported me. They shouldn’t want their son anywhere this kind of mess.

“Go back to the condo. I’ll be on my way, but first I need the police. I love you, Selene. I won’t let them come near you again.”

“I love you, too.” I hung up the phone and tucked it in my pocket before I called him back. It drove me nuts to be away from him. He had to work, and I thought hanging out with his mom today would have been fun.

The condo wasn’t too far, so it wasn’t long before we got there. We went through the parking garage to keep the chances of an attack to a minimum.

I took off my coat and hung it in the closet. Mrs. Jacobs did the same with hers. I had an eerie feeling this wasn’t the end of it. My nose felt irritated still. Goodness, I could feel a headache coming on.

Reggie cleared the apartment and Dev’s mom and I went into the kitchen to make some coffee. I reached for the coffee mugs and felt the room spin, dropping the mug onto the floor. Hearing it shatter, his mom hurried to my side. “You need to calm down, Selene,” she said, helping me to a chair after seeing that I was lightheaded. “Sit there. I’ll clean this up.” She patted my shoulder, then swept up the broken ceramic.

I considered all the things that had already happened and what could still if I stayed. Ken wasn’t going to stop and now he had help. I felt like I was in an untenable situation.

“I should just leave. If I’m gone he’ll leave Devlin alone,” I muttered to myself, feeling hopeless and sad. I didn’t want to leave him, but I also wanted him to be safe.

“The hell you are,” Devlin roared. Stunned, I turned to see him standing in the kitchen looking down at me. “Mom, Dad is waiting at the elevator to take you home. Thank you for everything, but it seems I was right about what would happen.”