I loved them too much and even had them on when Atlanta was hellfire itself.
Grabbing a washcloth and an old knife from the kitchen, I knelt next to the stains and started scrubbing at them.
Today was one of the lucky days and they came off easily, making me think that at least something worked.
I tried to ignore the nagging at the back of my mind, but the feeling of having forgotten something, or not having seen something, didn’t leave until I sat back on my heels after cleaning. The floor was shining again, now all I had to clean would be the nightstand…
Only there were no stains. I checked and rechecked, knowing that usually there were splatters, too.
Only this time, I couldn’t find any at all, and that caused the hairs on the back of my neck to rise.
Dim
I was eager to get back to Maddie. Nine months of being away had been hell, and I’d seen the worst of humanity during that time.
There was a difference between being a soldier and being a killer, and some guys I’d served with in the desert definitely had been the latter. They enjoyed it too much when bullets pierced skin and bones, and just the thought made me sick.
Damn, I couldn’t wait to see a beaming Maddie again. She was an easy-going, always happy person, and I envied her.
Always had, just like I’d always loved her from the moment I knew what love was. However, having been friend-zoned more than anyone could care for, I’d been always too afraid to ask.
That would change now.
I climbed the stairs to her apartment, small rooms making me nauseous, and stopped in front of her door. There was a gift basket standing there with her favorite beauty products, some sweets and a book with a rather raunchy cover.
I picked it up, trying to find a card, but there was none.
I rang the doorbell, waiting, and when Maddie opened, her face split into the wide smile I’d missed so much.
Damn, how much I wished I could kiss her.
“This stood in front of your door. I figured I’ll bring it inside,” I explained, nodding toward the basket in my hand while hopping slightly on one foot to keep my bag from sliding off my shoulder.
“Wait…” She arched a brow. “This isn’t from you?”
I shook my head and she finally let me step inside. I didn’t know what was going on, but the way she’d paled gave me reason to be concerned. “Tell me what’s going on.”
Maddie shrugged, then took the basket and carried it over to her kitchen counter. “We’ll find out in a bit, I guess.”
She unpacked the whole thing until eventually finding a small, folded note I’d not seen because it had been hidden under some sweets.
“For everything you did for me, do to me. Thank you,” she read out, but I heard the way her voice cracked.
“I’m guessing you know whom that is from?”
She licked her lips. “My stalker.” Then, after a brief pause, “Wow, that felt weird. I mean, saying it out loud for the first time.”
I tilted up her chin. “What do you mean?”
I watched how she hesitated, then she pulled me out of the kitchen and nodded me to sit. “I… I think I might have a stalker. I get the weirdest messages sometimes, and a weird feeling of being watched. And a while back I had sweets lying in front of my door from Grocery’s, the store up the street. You know how I sometimes get deliveries just because I’m too lazy to shop. I’m on their list. I didn’t think about it, but combined with the feeling…”
I pushed back to my feet. “Do you think someone was in here, too?”
Maybe it was that the moment I heard the word ‘stalker’ my mind went to the worst, but I couldn’t help but think that those guys sometimes escalated before their victims even knew that. “No, I don’t think so…”
For a moment I waited while she thought, then I cleared my throat. “There’s a fire escape in front of your apartment. Bedroom, right?”
I hadn’t been in there very much because…well, best friends didn’t have to go in there if she had an apartment.
“Yes,” she replied.
“Let me see.”
I followed her, noticing the way her entire body trembled.
The windows were old and while they seemed to be securely locked, I wasn’t sure if you couldn’t after all open them from the outside—and close them the same way after leaving again.
Chances also were he’d come in through the door. The building was better than a lot around here, but when it came to security, I didn’t think it was up to standard.
“Is there anything that you found weird or noticed missing since you thought you have a stalker?” I was still looking at the window and then went back to the front door, hearing her soft footfall follow me.
“No, I don’t think so. What could he have taken that I could be missing?”
There were a lot of things, I was sure, but did I really want to frighten her?
When I didn’t answer, she seemed to draw her own conclusions. “Underwear? Pictures?”
I nodded, silent.
She vanished while I looked around. I didn’t think we’d even notice it if he’d moved something because he’d be trying to go unnoticed as much as possible.
“I… I am missing underwear. Very… Uhm…”
She blushed crimson.
“Yes?”
She closed her eyes. “I have special underwear that I brought a few months back after seeing it. Sexy underwear. Like…very sexy. And it’s gone. I know exactly where I put it, but…”
I swallowed down all jealousy I was feeling at her buying that type of underwear. After all, you didn’t do that without someone special in mind, but that wasn’t important now.
“Maybe you misplaced it,” I suggested, but she shook her head and I realized there was more.
“I… I had a dream last night. I was having a sexy dream. Very sexy, and the guy was whispering to me about how he fucked
