Little Black Book(65)

I talked on the phone with Kyle a few times, and he made me feel better. I was glad to know he was having a blast and making friends at the program. At least he was happy. I just wasn’t sure his happiness would remain once Sebastian dropped me like a bad habit.

I was approved for financial aid and got signed up for some online classes, which was a good step in the right direction, but I needed to start job searching again.

I continued to put in applications to places within walking distance, as I waited to hear back from one them. If I had a job, maybe this whole situation wouldn’t be so bad.

No matter how many times I told myself this, I knew that was a lie. Job or no job, I would still miss Sebastian. It was going to hurt badly when things were officially done between the two of us.

I was coming out of a jewelry store around the corner from my condo, when I spotted Mr. Martin sitting in the car across the street, waiting. Looking both ways, I ran across the street and was a few feet away from the car, when I saw Sebastian coming from a large unmarked building.

He was wearing a black suit, fit to perfection, and a pair of dark aviator glasses. He looked so sexy I almost fell to my knees and begged him not to leave me. I closed my eyes and thought about the way he’d touched me—the things he did to my body.

When I opened my eyes again, he was standing frozen next to the car, with his shades off and his hand holding onto the handle. He was staring at me, an angry expression on his face.

I held up my hand and sent him an awkward smile. It was a stupid thing to do, but I was so happy to see him, I didn’t want to hide it. I was done hiding the way I felt.

He continued to stare for a while longer, until he slipped his shades back into place, and disappeared into the car.

I stood there in total shock as the car pulled away from the curb and disappeared into the traffic.

My heart ached. It was just too much. I barely held back the tears on the walk back to the condo, breaking down as soon as I stepped off the elevator.

Spending the night alone, I ate ice cream and watched old movies. There was a brief debate on whether or not to call Trish, but I didn’t feel like explaining the condo or anything else. It was better if she stayed in the dark about my life, especially because it involved her boss.

I stared down at my cell phone, willing him to text or call, but there was nothing. I fell asleep on the couch with my phone in my hand, an empty ice cream carton on the table, puffy eyes, and the TV on.



The sound of gunshots woke me and I sat straight up in bed. It was a horrible sound. It hurt my ears and made a strange ache twist in my stomach. I gripped my sheets with sweaty palms and that’s when I heard the firm footfalls on the hardwood outside my bedroom. Whoever it was, they were running. The sounds of them running down the stairs and out the back door, echoed in my room.

Kyle’s loud crying sounded from his nursery and filled the deadly silence of the night. I was too afraid to get up, but once his cries got louder, I tiptoed to my bedroom door. Pulling the door open slowly so it didn’t squeak, I tried to listen for any strange sounds.

The area outside my room was pitch-black. On silent feet, I ran across the hall to Kyle’s nursery, but my eyes glanced into my parent’s room and I froze. Terror was a punch to my chest, when lying there on the floor, in the light shining from their bathroom, was my father. He was in a puddle of blood, and his eyes were wide open, staring back at me. He wasn’t moving, he wasn’t breathing.

In shock, I turned away from Kyle’s room and started toward my dad. It was then I saw my mother’s body. I gasped when I saw her killer still standing above her.

My eyes dropped to my mother’s lifeless body and I made an involuntary move toward her, but her killer jumped to his feet and I froze, not taking another step.

The intruder’s breathing became louder, and mine seemed to stop completely. The stranger’s eyes connected with mine. Time stopped as we stared at each other. Fear laced his expression and it confused me.

The harsh sound of his panting filled the room. It looked like he was debating his next move. His eyes moved to the door behind me. Shifting on his feet, the light caught something in his hand. It was my mother’s locket, which had pictures of me and Kyle inside. It wasn’t worth much, which made it strange that the guy was taking it, but then I looked around the room and saw their TV was missing.

The killer left my mother, necklace in hand, and ran toward me. I stopped breathing and dropped to my knees. Just when he got close to me and I was sure he was going to kill me too, he ran past me and down the stairs. The back door slammed. And then, even though I could hear Kyle crying, it was eerily silent.