Trudie drew her legs up and pointed for Annie to sit beside her. “You told me that she had pneumonia, and that was because of the chemo?”
“Right. The chemo weakened her immune system,” Annie explained, sliding off the arm and sitting on the cushion. She tucked her bare feet under Trudie’s blanket.
Trudie straightened her legs enough so that their toes touched. It felt perfectly natural, sharing a blanket together. “I don’t mean this to sound selfish, but in a strange way, I have your mother to thank for your helping me through my pneumonia.”
Annie laughed. “Yeah, I guess you do. And I have your mother to thank. If she hadn’t called me on the way to Europe, I would probably never have known. And as weird as it may sound, I’m having a good time.”
“Oh yeah, I’m sure it was a lot of fun looking at my snot, jabbing a needle in my butt, and carrying me around like a rag doll.”
“Well, two out of three were fun. Especially your butt.”
Trudie kicked at her, connecting with her thigh. “No fair. When do I get to see your butt?”
“When I’m sick as a dog and don’t give a shit what anybody sees on my body.”
“Well, I hope I never see it then, because I don’t want you to be sick.”
“Ah, that’s sweet, thanks,” Annie blushed. “So, uh, I was wondering. Did they ever catch the guy, you know, who they thought was stalking you?”
“No, they never did. He just sort of evaporated up in smoke after Leigh was killed.”
“No leads. No forensics, nothing? No contact at all since then?”
“Nothing. It’s a cold case now, which makes me sad because Leigh deserved better.”
“I have to say this, and I don’t want you to get mad, okay?”
“Ohh-kay,” Trudie hedged.
Annie leaned forward and interlaced her fingers. “I think the reason the stalker hasn’t surfaced again is because it was Leigh he was after.”
“Actually, that’s the same theory the police have. But the crazy stuff he sent was all addressed to me.”
Annie nodded. “And how did Leigh react to it?”
“She was positively furious about it. As a military police officer, well, you probably already know this, but she carried a Beretta M9. She wanted me to carry a pistol, too, so I got a gun permit, bought a Glock 42, and learned to shoot it at the firing range.
Annie carried the same weapon as Leigh, and as an MP, they were allowed to carry their weapons while off duty, but Annie preferred not to because she freelanced as a security guard. So she got a permit for her own personal SIG Sauer P228 and wore it on her side when freelancing.
“Did she use it the night of the attack?”
“No, there was no time. She was attacked from behind, and—” Trudie started shaking violently.
“Oh, God!” Annie quickly moved closer and grabbed Trudie, pulling her into her arms. “Trudie, I’m so sorry.” Without intending to, Annie had opened a door to Trudie’s memories that tore fresh wounds in her heart. “I’m so sorry,” Annie repeated, rocking Trudie in her arms.
The emotions and tears were too much, and Trudie began coughing again. Annie grabbed the tissue box, and Trudie pulled out several tissues.
“Do you want some cough syrup?” Annie asked.
Wiping her tears away, Trudie shook her head. “Not right now. If it gets worse I will.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yes, thank you. I just wasn’t prepared to see that again, you know?”
“I’m so sorry. It is my fault. You weren’t ready.”
“I’ll never be ready, but I think maybe I’d like to tell you what happened.”
“You don’t have to put yourself through that, Trudie.”
Trudie touched Annie’s cheek with the palm of her hand, then looked away. “We were just leaving the hotel after a long night of book signing. It was a cowboy-themed party, so we were in our cowboy outfits. We were walking hand-in-hand, heading to a restaurant nearby, when I heard someone running. I just figured they were trying to catch the trolley car or something. I was looking away from Leigh when I heard her scream. Oh, God, her scream…” Trudie began trembling again.
“Trudie, look at me,” Annie insisted, putting her hand on Trudie’s shoulder.
Trudie, with tears streaming done her pale face, turned and looked at Annie questioningly.
“Stay here, with me. Don’t put yourself in that moment. Look at it from here, okay?”
Trudie nodded and cautiously took a breath. “I’ll try.”
“What did you do when you heard her scream?” Don’t be a cop, be her friend.
“Someone hit me on the head, and I fell to the ground. I was pretty dazed for a minute, but then I heard her scream again and saw him…”
“Trudie, breathe. Stay in control and breathe,” Annie encouraged.
Trudie creased her eyebrows and inhaled sharply, her eyes glistening with tears yet to fall. “I… I sat there for a moment. It was like I was moving in slow motion, held down in quicksand. Oh, God. I watched him drive that knife into Leigh again and again.” Trudie’s hands were trembling so bad that Annie enclosed them with her own. “I finally came to my senses and jumped up, but he shoved me away.”
Hesitantly, Annie asked, “What happened next?”
Trudie held Annie’s eyes as she said, “I stomped my boot heel into his foot as hard as I could.” Trudie’s demeanor changed as she sat up and proudly stated, “I broke his mother-fucking foot!”
Annie had tears in her eyes as she clapped her hands together. “God, that was brilliant.”
“Leigh taught me self-defense.” Trudie looked away again. “But it wasn’t enough to save her. She bled out in my arms.” She looked at her hands, turning them over, then back again, as if she were seeing Leigh’s blood still on them. “I cried for help. I screamed, I cursed, I pleaded and bargained, but Leigh wouldn’t listen to me. Why wouldn’t she listen?”
Annie was at a loss for words. “I don’t know, baby.”
Trudie didn’t hear her. She had left the room and was back on the street, begging Leigh to stay with her.
“Trudie? Trudie, what happened next?” Annie asked, bringing her out of the terror.
“Um, Noella came running up and started screaming for help. She… she tried to pull me away, but I wouldn’t let Leigh go. I thought if I held her tight, I could save her from sheer will.”
“But you couldn’t, could you?” Annie asked quietly.
“No… she lifted her hand to my cheek and smiled, then her eyes looked off in the distance, and her hand fell to the ground.” Trudie buried her head in Annie’s arms and sobbed until she fell asleep, still crying in Annie’s arms. Annie held her close, wishing that she could take her pain away. Wishing that she could turn back time for her. Annie fell asleep wishing Trudie could love her as she had Leigh.
*
Trudie sat up, her eyes puffy and swollen, her nose stopped up, and her face creased from lying on Annie’s shirt. She looked at Annie, her head against the side of the couch, still asleep. Trudie’s eyes caressed every inch of Annie’s face. So strong, so peaceful. So much life yet to live. She leaned in and gently kissed her on the cheek.
Annie stirred and opened her eyes.
“You’re still here,” Trudie whispered.
“I wouldn’t want to be any place else,” Annie declared.
Trudie put her small hand on Annie’s cheek and looked into her eyes.
“Trudie, we can’t do this.”
“I know, because of the pneumonia. I’m sorry, that was selfish of me.”
“No, pneumonia isn’t contagious,” Annie clarified.
“Then what is it? Oh, you mean Leigh. That’s what I wanted to tell you. I had a dream just now, and Leigh left me a message on my letter.”
Annie shook her head. “Your letter? I don’t understand?”
Trudie took her hand and said, “Come with me.” She led Annie down the hallway to the office, coughing all the
way. “Damn this cough,” she said as she sat down at the laptop and pulled up her Word doc. “I wrote this on Monday. Read it.”
Annie leaned over Trudie’s shoulder and read the letter on the screen. The last paragraph she read out loud. “I want to live again, but I don’t know how to let you go, and I don’t know how to stop being afraid all the time. I don’t know how to love again.”
Annie straightened and looked at Trudie. “I’m not sure—”
Trudie got up from the chair and took Annie’s hand. “I know this is going to sound crazy, but Leigh was here just now, and she gave me her blessing. In my dream, she sat right here and typed on that keyboard.” Trudie’s eyes welled up and she caught them with her tissue before they could spill over. “Damn it.”
“It’s okay, baby. Tell me what she said.”
“She said that I do know how to love again, and that you are the one to help me.”
Annie’s eyes brimmed with grateful tears. Thank you, Leigh. I promise to protect her, to comfort her, to love her. Annie pulled Trudie into her arms and held her close. “You know, I wasn’t looking for love when I met you.”
Trudie raised her head and captured her eyes. “And now?”
“And now I don’t have to. And you don’t have to let Leigh go, not ever.” She reached down and picked Trudie up. “Let’s get you in bed and covered up. You’re still recuperating, you know, and it’s time for your medicine. I think that you should probably take some cough syrup, too.”
Trudie wrapped her arms around Annie’s neck and asked, “You like carrying me around, don’t you?”
“Yeah, I kinda do. You’re light as a feather, and besides, it makes me feel strong and protective.”
“And I like how I feel in your arms. Would you stay with me even if I fall asleep?”
“Sure. I love watching the way your lips shudder when you snore, and the dimples in your cheeks when you smack your lips actually turn me on.”
Trudie smacked her on the arm. “You were watching me sleep. Wait, I do not snore.”
“Everyone snores. Even the cat snores.”
“Oh, does she ever.”
The doorbell rang, and Annie changed course and walked to the door. It was Noella.
“What is she doing back so soon?” Trudie wondered. “She’s supposed to be in California until the end of the week.”
“Yeah, well she’s not going to be happy seeing me holding you,” Annie said as she started to set Trudie down.
“I don’t care. I’m happy right where I’m at.”
“All right, my princess, but don’t say that I didn’t warn you.”
Annie held her as Trudie unlocked all the safeguards and opened the door.
Noella’s jaw dropped open. “What the hell?” she asked accusingly. “I’m gone for a few days and suddenly you’re an invalid?”
“She has pneumonia, remember?” Annie reminded her.
“Oh, my God. Has it gotten so bad that you can’t walk, Trudie?” Noella jibed.
“No, actually, it’s gotten so good that I don’t want to walk anymore,” Trudie quipped. “Noella, why are you back early?”
Noella frowned and looked at Annie. “Could you put her down, please? I need to talk with her… alone.”
Annie saw the worry behind Noella’s frown and set Trudie on her feet. “I’ll just be in the bathroom.”
Trudie shook her head and rubbed Annie’s arm. “You can use my office if you’d like, Annie.”
“Okay thanks.”
Trudie watched as Annie strolled down the hall. Noella watched, too.
As soon as Annie closed the door behind her, Noella turned to Trudie and asked, “Seriously, what is going on with you two?”
“Love. I’m in love with her, Noella.”
“And she loves you?”
“Well, we haven’t said it aloud to each other yet, but yes, I believe that she does.”
“How is that possible? You just met her last week.”
Trudie smiled. “Love at first sight requires only a second.”
“Oh, please. There’s no such thing,” Noella stated, though it was a complete fabrication. She had fallen in love with Trudie the moment she walked into her office that first time, when Trudie was twenty-eight. She had a paperback in her hands and a smile on her face. Noella, who had been thirty at the time, and a struggling publicists, took one look at her and signed her to a contract. “And how dare she take advantage of you in your weakened state.”
“I’ll have you know that she turned me down. Which I’m glad that she did. I’d feel terrible if she came down with pneumonia, too, even though she says it’s not contagious.”
“Why not? That way you two could be sick in bed together.”
Trudie laughed. “Half of that happened anyway.” Trudie enjoyed the shocked look on Noella’s face. “Listen, why are you here?”
Noella’s demeanor changed as her face melted into worry, and her shoulders slouched. She interlaced her fingers, wringing her hands. Something was very wrong.
Trudie took a step closer. “God, Noella, what’s wrong?”
Noella’s eyes met Trudie’s and Trudie knew instantly. “Oh, my God.” She took a step back. “He’s back, isn’t he?”
“Yes. My assistant called me about it. She said there was a letter with cut out blocks of alphabet used as the message. I told her to take it to the police.”
Trembling, Trudi asked, “What did the message say?”
Noella looked down the hallway. “Do you want me to kill another one to prove my love, again?”
“Oh, my God!”
“I’ve called your parents and as soon as they make port, they’ll catch the next plane back.”
Trudie’s face flushed red with anger. “No. You had no right to do that, Noella,” she said, then marched over to the coffee table in the living room and picked up the wireless phone. Noella started to say something, but Trudie put her hand up to stop her. “What were you thinking? I don’t want my parents anywhere near me with that lunatic out there.”
“I apologize. I thought I was doing the right thing.” Noella never considered that she was stepping over the line by calling Trudie’s parents. It was her duty to protect and comfort Trudie, and in this case, that meant making sure Trudie was surrounded by her loved ones.
Trudie sat down on the couch and waited for the ring to be answered. “Mom? Hello?”
“I’m here, honey. Are you all right? Noella told us that you had gotten some threatening fan letters again. Your father will make arrangements to come home as soon as we make port. They won’t bring in a helicopter unless there’s been an illness on the ship, or that kind of thing.”
“Mom, listen. Noella had no right to tell you about that, and I’m very unhappy with her right now,” Trudie said as she glared at Noella. “I do not want you and Dad flying home because of a few fan letters. I get that kind of stuff all the time. I’m perfectly safe here with Lucy and Annie.”
“Annie?”
“Yes, and thank you for calling her. She has been a Godsend,” Trudie emphasized.
“Annie called and told us that it was pneumonia. Are you still running a temp? Coughing, runny nose, wheezing?” Louise asked in rapid succession. She missed not being able to stay and care for her daughter when she needed her most. It didn’t matter that Trudie was thirty-three and certainly capable of taking care of herself. She would always feel that way.
“No, not running a temperature, but yes, still have the cough, runny nose and wheezing. But it’s gotten ninety-percent better, thanks to Annie.”
“You really like her, don’t you, honey?”
“How did you know?”
“I’m your mother, I know everything. The second I saw you two together at the book signing, I knew. And I’m very happy for you.”
“Thanks, Mom. So you’ll stay on your vacation and not worry about me?”
“I’ll always worry about you, sweetheart, but yes, we’ll stay on the cruise. Call me th
ough, anytime, okay?”
“I promise, Mom. Give my love to Dad.”
Trudie clicked off and put the phone back on the table. She looked at Noella triumphantly.
Noella walked over and sat down beside her. “And if the stalker comes after Annie, like he did Leigh?”
Chapter Eleven
What’s taking so long? Annie opened the door a crack and called down the hallway, “Uh, hello? Can I come out yet?”
“Yes, we’re finished,” Noella stated loudly.
Annie walked into the living room with a smile on her face, but that was quickly replaced with confusion when she didn’t see Trudie. “What’s going on? Where’s Trudie?”
“She’s in her room. You might want to sit down, Annie.”
“No. I don’t want to sit down,” Annie snapped, ice cold fingers running down her spine. “I want to know what’s going on. Is Trudie all right? It’s not the pneumonia, is it?”
“No, nothing like that.”
“Then just tell me, damn it.”
“Look, I take no pleasure in—”
“The hell you don’t, Noella. You come back to town and all of a sudden Trudie barricades herself in her room? You have two seconds to tell me what’s going on, or I will break down that bedroom door and ask Trudie myself.”
“She wants you gone, damn it! She never wants to see you again. There, happy now? Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.”
“Bullshit!” Annie ran the short distance to Trudie’s bedroom and knocked hard on the door. “Trudie? Trudie!”
Inside her bedroom, Trudie was leaning against the door and jumped when Annie knocked on it. Her heart racing a mile a minute, her eyes blurring from a river of tears, Trudie tried to say something, but choked on her words.
“Why, Trudie?” Annie pleaded. “I don’t understand.”
Because I love you. “Please, just go away,” Trudie sobbed, sliding down the door until she was sitting on the floor. “I don’t want to see you again.”
“Annie, you need to leave now, or I’m calling the police,” Noella threatened.
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