“Forever and ever,” Eric said as he gazed into Abby’s eyes.
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Now, enjoy the first 4 chapters of Witness (Witness, Book 1).
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Book Description for Witness
This is the first book in a 2-book series.
College student Courtney Hartford's worries are confined to doing well in school and having an active social life. That is, until she witnesses a murder.
And then recognizes the murderer.
His warning not to tell, coupled with his threat against her life and the life of her mother, pushes her to make a difficult decision--tell the police the truth, or let the people who are threatening her control her life.
Witness does not contain any profanity or sexual content.
Prologue
I finished wiping down the tables at the fast food restaurant where I worked—Patty Melt Burgers and Shakes—then turned to my manager, Steven. “All done with the tables. Anything else before I go home?”
“Thanks, Courtney. After you take out the trash you can leave.”
It wasn’t my favorite task, but someone had to do it, and everyone else had already left for the night. “Okay.” Eager to finish up and go home, I gathered the trash, then headed out the back of our store. The early spring air was chilly, but I didn’t mind. I loved this time of year. Especially when it meant there was only about a month left in the semester. This was my second semester at college, and though I was enjoying it, I’d found it to be more demanding than high school.
The dumpster was in the alley behind our store, and having done this chore countless times before, I walked with confidence. But this time something was different. A scuffling sound in the nearby alley floated on the air. Tossing the trash into the dumpster, I wondered what was going on. From where I stood I couldn’t see anything. Then I heard a distinct cry for help.
Fear rocketed up my spine and straight to my heart. The darkness seemed to close around me as my ears vibrated with the sounds of distress coming from the alley.
Terrified to face whatever was happening nearby alone, I ran back into Patty Melt Burgers and Shakes and yelled to Steven that someone needed help. Then I dashed back outside. Conflicted about my next move—what if I got hurt? What if I could have stopped someone else from getting hurt?—my mind screamed at me to do something.
You have to see what’s happening, Courtney. Go. Go now.
Another cry for help broke the silence, and though my heart pounded a warning, I raced in the direction of the sound.
Steven was slow to follow, and I reached the end of the alley well before he did. I turned the corner, and in the dim light I saw two men fighting. To be precise, one man was on the ground and the other man was pummeling him.
I came to a halt at the corner of the building that led to the alley, about twenty feet from the fighting men. I wasn’t sure what to do, so I looked in the direction of Patty Melt Burgers and Shakes to see where my manager was. Trotting towards me, he seemed to be moving as fast as he could, but he wasn’t exactly in tip-top shape.
Motioning frantically for him to hurry, I turned back to the fighting men. Worried that someone might get seriously hurt, I wanted them to stop, but just as I opened my mouth to yell at them, I saw something shiny grasped in the fist of the man on top. To my utter horror, he plunged it straight into the man on the ground, who let out a strangled cry.
On instinct, I screamed, “Nooo!”
The man with the knife lifted his head and looked right at me. And in the light from the streetlamp, I recognized him.
Chapter One
Six Days Earlier
“Come on, Courtney,” my friend Shelby said as we walked across the University campus, enjoying the warm Los Angeles sunshine. “It’ll be fun. I promise.”
I rolled my eyes. “That’s what you said the last time you dragged me out on a blind date.”
“Are you saying you didn’t have any fun?”
My eyebrows shot skyward. “Uh, Shelby. If you’ll recall, he threw up all over the table.”
She gave me her best There’s a reasonable explanation for that face. “He was just coming down with the flu. It’s not his fault it chose that very moment to manifest itself.”
“Uh-huh.” I didn’t know why she continuously felt the need to set me up. Okay, maybe I did. But just because I’d struck out in the love department so often was no reason for her to become my personal matchmaker, yet she persisted in digging up men for me to date. “Where do you know this guy from again?”
“He’s a friend of Jack’s.”
Jack was her kind-of boyfriend. Kind-of because she didn’t date anyone but him, although it was rumored he wasn’t so exclusive. She didn’t care though. She was crazy for Jack. I couldn’t say that I blamed her. Quarterback of our football team, devastatingly hot. Yeah, pretty much all of the girls were crazy for Jack.
“What’s his name?” It was pointless to argue. Shelby would harass me until I agreed.
“Tyler.”
“Tyler,” I echoed, then frowned. “Is he cute?”
“Duh, Courtney. Do you think I’d set you up with an ugly guy?”
I laughed. “You’d better not.”
“I wouldn’t do that to you. You’re my best friend.”
That was true. Shelby and I had met in the middle of my sophomore year of high school—I’d just moved in and she had immediately taken me under her wing. Ever since, we’d always had each other’s backs. Now college freshmen, we’d remained close. “Okay. I guess I could use a night out.”
Victory clear in her eyes, she smiled. “Yes you can.”
“Who is this guy?” Mom asked as I got ready for my date.
Though I was in college now, I still lived at home. What better way to afford tuition and still have money left for other things? My dad was out of the picture, and Mom did the best she could, but it was up to me to put myself through college. I was her only child, and although I was nineteen, she still saw me as her little girl.
“A friend of Shelby’s boyfriend.” I smiled to show her all was right with the world. “His name’s Tyler.”
“You’re not going to be home too late are you?”
Mom could be a worrier. Not that I blamed her, but it really put a crimp in my social life. Well, I hardly had a social life, but that was beside the point. Anyway, I knew I was all she had, so I usually cut her some slack. “No, Mom. I won’t be too late.”
“I’m sorry, Courtney. It’s just that I like to know you’re home safe before I go to sleep. And I have to get up early for work tomorrow.”
“Okay. I’ll keep that in mind.” Mom worked as a surgical nurse at one of the hospitals, although she was in the process of changing jobs. She was tired of the hustle and bustle of Los Angeles and had recently interviewed for a surgical nursing position at a hospital in Denver, Colorado—a place she’d spent many years while growing up, and where she still had family. Now that I was an adult, we’d agreed it was a good time to make a change, and I’d been socking away money like crazy in preparation to be on my own.
I laughed. “What are you going to do when you move away and can’t keep tabs on me?”
She smiled. “I think it’ll be different when we’re not under the same roof. For example, if we didn’t live in the same house, I wouldn’t even know you were going out and I could delude myself with the thought tha
t you were safe and sound.”
I nodded. “Yeah. I guess that makes sense.”
She patted my arm, then left me so I could finish getting ready.
Much to Shelby’s dismay, I didn’t like to wear make-up, so when it came to things like this date I had to take extra care to make sure I applied it correctly—looking like a clown certainly wouldn’t help my lackluster love life.
As I swept the eyeshadow across my lid, I smiled at my appearance. Not gorgeous by any stretch of the imagination, I thought I was pretty. My problem wasn’t my looks, it was my lack of confidence when it came to men. I would never go up to someone I didn’t know and strike up a conversation. Never. Luckily for me, Shelby had enough confidence for both of us—which is why she’d taken it upon herself to find me a boyfriend. Or at least enough dates to push me in the right direction.
Trouble was, I wasn’t sure I wanted a boyfriend. After all the heartache I’d seen Mom go through—first divorcing my dad when I was nine, and then running through a string of jerk boyfriends—I wasn’t eager to put my heart out there.
With a sigh, I finished applying my make-up, then squirted some perfume onto my wrists, which I then dabbed onto my neck.
“That’s as good as it gets,” I said to my reflection before turning away from the mirror, slinging my purse over my shoulder, and heading out of my room and down the stairs.
“You look beautiful, Courtney,” Mom said when I found her in the kitchen.
“Thanks.”
A short time later the doorbell rang.
“They’re here,” I said, stating the obvious.
Mom looked at me expectantly.
“You don’t need to meet him,” I said quickly, wanting to make this as painless as possible.
Her expression remained neutral, but I could tell she was disappointed.
To make up for it, I smiled and said, “I won’t be home too late, and then I’ll tell you all about it.”
She pursed her lips, like she knew I was only placating her. “All right. Have a good time.”
I nodded, then walked to the door, wondering what Tyler looked like.
Only one way to find out.
A sense of excitement swept over me as I reached for the doorknob. The evening held all kinds of possibilities, and I knew despite my trepidation with avoiding a relationship, deep inside I wanted to find love as much as the next girl.
Chapter Two
“Courtney!” Shelby said with a grin as I opened the door.
“Hi.” My gaze slid right over her and Jack to the face of my date, Tyler, and I silently catalogued his assets: Dark blonde hair, brown eyes, taller than me—although that wasn’t saying much. I guessed he was about six feet. I could tell because Jack was just over six feet, and Tyler was an inch or two shorter than him.
“This is Tyler,” Shelby said, drawing my attention to her before my gaze boomeranged back to Tyler.
“Hi,” he said, and when he smiled, his straight white teeth seemed to gleam.
“Hey.” My innate shyness took over, and I couldn’t think of anything else to say.
“Ready to get going?” Jack asked as he looked at each of us.
“Yeah,” I said, finding at least one thing to say. “I’m ready.”
The four of us trooped down the walkway and out to Jack’s car. Tyler sat in back with me, keeping a wedge of space between us. I didn’t know what the plans were for the night, but when we pulled up to a popular roller skating rink, I smiled.
“I hope you don’t think this is lame,” Jack said as he looked in his rear view mirror.
“Nah,” Tyler said, then he glanced at me.
“I love to roller skate,” I said with a smile. I hadn’t been roller skating in a long time, and I hoped I wouldn’t crash into anybody. But I really did like it.
A short time later the four of us had skates on our feet as we stood on the smooth floor. Jack and Shelby immediately raced off, their fingers intertwined. I peeked at Tyler out of the corner of my eye, wondering what to do next, but he didn’t seem any more certain than me.
After a pause, I decided to take the initiative. “Let’s go.” Then I headed out to join the throng. A moment later Tyler followed me. The floor was thick with other skaters and I had to pay close attention to what I was doing to make sure I didn’t run into anybody.
We made several circuits around the floor, and I found myself gaining confidence. Evidently I became over-confident, because when I looked around to see where my friends were, I crashed right into someone, and we both fell to the floor. Skaters flew past us, and I was mortified.
“Are you okay?” the man asked, his gray eyes narrowed in appraisal.
“Yeah, I think so.” My funny bone vibrated from the impact with the hard floor, but other than that, I was all right.
“Here.” He stood, then reached his hand out to me. “Let me help you up.”
“Thanks.” I looked at him and let him pull me up, thinking he was probably a few years older than me. Then I noticed his dark brown hair and perfect layer of stubble. Multiple tattoos curled around his biceps, giving him a dangerous edge. This guy’s really cute. I glanced towards the soft seats on the perimeter of the rink. “I think I’m going to sit down for a minute.”
He nodded, and when I moved off of the floor and to a seat, he followed me. Not sure why he was coming, but pleased that he was, I asked, “Are you okay?”
He laughed. “Yeah. I’m fine.”
“Sorry I ran into you.”
“It’s okay.” He smiled. “It’s not like it hasn’t happened before.”
“So you come here often?” That sounds like a lame pick-up line, Courtney. A blush rose on my cheeks.
He laughed. “Sometimes I help my mom out and babysit my little brother. He likes to come here.”
“Oh.” Sounds like a nice guy.
“What’s your name?”
“Courtney.”
He nodded as his smile grew. “I’m Dylan.” He paused. “I haven’t seen you here before.”
Is he saying he would have noticed me if I had been here? The rosiness on my cheeks deepened. “I haven’t come here in a long time.”
“Do you go to the University?”
I nodded, pleased he didn’t think I was still in high school. “What about you?”
“Not right now.” He said it as if it was in his future plans. “What’s your number? Maybe we can meet up here sometime.” He chuckled. “Or, you know, go out sometime?”
Flattered, and more than a little thrilled, I gave him my phone number, then he gave me his.
“There you are, Courtney,” Shelby said as she skated up beside me with Jack and Tyler right behind her.
I turned to her, almost surprised to see her.
Her gaze went to Dylan, then to me. “We’re getting some pizza.”
“Oh.” I looked at Dylan with a half-smile. “Again, sorry for running into you.”
He laughed, but didn’t say anything, and I skated off with my friends.
While the guys ordered pizza, Shelby dragged me to the bathroom. “Who was that?”
The look on her face—one of disbelief and intense interest—made me laugh. “Someone I ran into. Literally.” Then I told her what had happened.
“Clever move, Courtney.”
“I didn’t do it on purpose.”
One eyebrow arched. “Still.”
I shook my head as I laughed, then we went to find the guys.
Chapter Three
That night as I lay in bed, I thought about Dylan and wondered if I’d ever see him again. Was he actually interested in going out with me, or was he just being nice?
When he texted me two days later and asked if I wanted to go bowling with him that evening, I had an answer to my question. Excited to hear from him, I accepted without a second thought. He asked if I wanted to meet him there or if I wanted him to pick me up. Since Mom’s car was in the shop and she needed to borrow mine to go to work, I asked him to come a
nd get me.
When he arrived at my house, I was beyond thrilled that I was going on a date Shelby hadn’t set up. It’s not that I hadn’t gone on dates that she wasn’t involved in, but it had been a while. I’d been busy with school and my job, so I hadn’t exactly been actively on the social circuit.
“Hey,” Dylan said when I opened the door.
“Hi.” I stepped onto the porch and locked the front door behind me, then turned to him. “Thanks for picking me up. My mom’s using my car.”
“No problem.” He led me out to his car, an older compact.
We both got in, and a moment later we were on our way. When we arrived at the bowling alley, it wasn’t too busy and we were able to get a lane right away.
“I’m not very good at this,” I said as I laced up my bowling shoes.
“That’s okay. We’re just here to have a good time.”
“No. I mean I’ve only gone bowling, like, once. In my life. And that was a long time ago.”
He laughed. “Oh, so what you’re really saying is, you suck.”
I nodded, a grin on my face. “Most likely.”
“Good. Then maybe I’ll win for a change.”
I stood and went to the return to pick up a ball, then looked at him. “‘For a change’? How often do you go?”
“I take my little brother bowling sometimes. You know—” He glanced away, before meeting my gaze. “To keep him out of trouble.”
I took several steps toward the lane, then swung my arm back and released the ball. It immediately went into the gutter. I turned to Dylan with a frown.
Obviously trying to keep from laughing, he said, “You weren’t joking.”
My lips pushed together in a feigned pout as I shook my head. My second attempt made it nearly to the pins, but rolled into the gutter before it reached them.
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