by BJ Hyman
Charlie’s jaw worked back and forth as she considered Kellie’s face. She looked over at Craig and took in the strain in his eyes and the set of his shoulders. There was no mistaking the fear they both exhibited. She relented even with her doubts. “If I spend this money and you all are shitting me, I’m getting every penny back. You hear me? Even if I have to take it out of your hide.” She pointed at them each in turn.
Kellie snatched the cordless phone for the store from where it sat on the edge of the work table and shoved it at Charlie. “Bill me.”
She took the phone with a sigh. “Google a company for me.” Kellie pulled a card from her pocket and shoved it at Charlie. “What? You keep random security company business cards now?”
“No. Someone left this at the salon the other day. They’re local.” Charlie dialed the number.
◆◆◆
When Charlie and Kellie arrived at her apartment to meet with the security installer, she found that all her belongings had been returned and were in their proper places…as if it had never happened. “Now, what is this?” Charlie put her hands on her hips.
Kellie walked through the apartment checking all the other rooms as Charlie went through her bedroom to see if it all was, indeed, there with nothing missing.
The fact that everything was where it should be caused Charlie two entirely separate feelings: unease that someone could know it so intimately as to return it all spotlessly (if it wasn’t her friends or family) and more resolve that it should be someone she knows.
The hard rap on the door made her jump half out of her skin. She met Kellie in the small hallway near the apartment door. Kellie’s eyes were round and wide and there was a tension around her mouth. It looked like the sound had spooked her as well. Charlie gave her a sour smile before peeking through the peephole. A tightly muscled man in a security installer uniform stood waiting while looking at his clipboard on the other side of the door. He wore a baseball style cap with the company logo on it and the left breast pocket of his shirt had a tag that said “Kyle.” He was shorter than six feet, tanned as if it were summer, with light brown hair flipping this way and that out from under the cap. His body was very lean. He didn’t take up much space, but he looked like he could pack a punch. His face looked friendly enough even with him concentrating on his clipboard.
Charlie opened the door and he smiled broadly. “Ms. Charlie Ray?”
“That’d be me and I can guess that you’re Kyle.” She reached out to shake his hand. He took it with a strong grip.
“That’d be me. Now that we both know who we are, I figure you know why I’m here. You need a bit of security, huh?” He stepped into the apartment and smiled at Kellie. “Hello, there. Sorry I didn’t see you at first. I’m Kyle.” He reached out and shook her hand.
Kellie gave Charlie a quick subtle look that only sisters can understand as he’s cute. “I’m Kellie. It’s not my apartment.”
“Good to know. I’ll direct all my talk to Ms. Ray.” He touched the brim of his hat toward Charlie.
Kellie was quick to speak up. “Oh, I wasn’t telling you that so that you’d not talk to me. I just wanted you to know that I’m here for moral support for my sister, but I don’t live here.”
They stood there awkwardly for a moment before he turned to Charlie. “So, you must be pretty worried about something to pay the extortion of same day service. I figure you want me to get started. What level of security do you want?”
“Whatever you need to do to alert me when someone enters the apartment without my code to stop the alarm system. I’m not that familiar with what all is out there, but I know that I want the police alerted if someone comes in.” She crossed her arms over her chest and nodded at Kellie. “Don’t you think that would be enough?”
Kellie said, “What about changing the locks too? And maybe something to wake you up, if someone has come in. Something that blares loudly?”
Kyle made notes on his clipboard as he listened to them. He tapped his pen to the board thoughtfully. “I can do that. What is the reason you need a security system? Do you mind telling me? It would help me to know if there is anything else I might recommend.”
Charlie felt anxious about revealing an inordinate amount to a stranger, even if he probably had to pass background checks to work for the company. There were already excessive worries about who it was that was doing it. She just wanted to make it all stop. She figured the shortest, if not the most honest, explanation to be the best option. “I just broke up with someone and I’m afraid he’s going to come in on me while I sleep.” Her eyes drifted over to Kellie to see her response. She nodded at her once in understanding.
“Well, I think you’ve made some good choices, if that’s your fear. Let’s take a quick look at all the rooms so I can count all the windows and entrances. I also need to see your bedroom so that I can assess where to install the alert in there. Do you want a panic button anywhere? Somewhere localized?”
“In the bedroom. That would be wonderful!” Charlie sighed with the relief the idea brought.
“Okay. After making my estimate, I’ll go down to the truck to get all the supplies I’ll need to fill your order and bring them back up. Give me the grand tour.” He gestured for her to lead the way.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Illumination
After Kyle had installed the system, he told Charlie several times, “It doesn’t work, if you don’t use it.” Kellie joked that he should have that made up on t-shirts and give them to all his clients to help them remember. They had practiced the code several times and Charlie’s panic button. When he left, she felt a thousand times better than she had in days. She felt safe. She felt secure. The feeling was so overwhelming that she almost hugged him. He gave her another good, firm handshake and closed the door.
She and Kellie had immediately practiced setting the systems over and over so that they were both proficient enough to feel like they could do it in a panic. Charlie’s gratitude to her sister for talking her into the system was so great that she told her to stay for dinner and they ordered in from an expensive delivery service, so they could practice letting someone in without setting off the alarm.
By the time Kellie left, Charlie felt indestructible.
That feeling faded once she was completely alone.
She called Eli and talked for an hour. He kept offering to come over, but she refused. She knew she had to fight the fear and stay without needing someone else as a security blanket. Knowing everyone was just a call away helped.
After checking ten times that the system was armed, she finally slipped beneath the covers. Before long, sleep came.
◆◆◆
In the early light of the morning, she silenced her alarm. Before she even got out of bed, she was searching her body for markings. She kicked back the covers and did a quick inspection.
Nothing.
She decided she’d check her back and neck in the bathroom mirror before her shower as long as nothing else was wrong in the apartment. Her initial search of the room just from the bed revealed nothing was amiss but she didn’t trust it. Putting her feet on the floor, she slowly got up and began to look in earnest. She searched her dresser, her nightstand, her closet and everything was in its place, as far as she could tell.
Even though there had never been anything off in the rest of the apartment, she did a thorough inspection of everything and anything that she could think of. It was all perfect.
When she returned to her room, she got down on the floor and looked under the bed. No monsters.
Not this time.
She actually started whistling as she began to get ready for work. All was well in the world.
◆◆◆
Dean pulled his hoodie closer over his face as he watched Charlie descend the steps from her apartment building. There was a lift in her step and her posture was relaxed. He knew, just by looking at her, that she was happier than she had been in days.
He used to make her happy. The
re was a time when all she needed was to look at him and her face would be flooded with such joy. It was like watching a sunrise. It filled all the places inside of him to bursting. The feeling that look gave him was almost too much for him to contain. It felt like he could explode from it.
But that was a long time ago now.
Things changed.
It wasn’t his fault. But then again, it was.
There had been a death. He lost his sister and it was soul crushing. It was unexpected. Marla was killed in an automobile accident. It wasn’t instant. She was rushed to the hospital and was alive long enough to urgently whisper one word that destroyed his entire family.
“Baby.”
She had found out she was pregnant and was rushing to tell her husband when a distracted driver plowed into her. The bastard had been changing the music on his phone that was bluetoothed into the speaker system of his Tahoe. Could he not bear to listen to one more second of whatever stupid song that caused him to take the life of a young woman and her child? It was just one short moment in a long life of listening to music. Dean often wondered what song or artist was so repugnant that his sister died for it.
The senselessness of it was one of the reasons Dean couldn’t overcome her death. Then to find out there was more loss than just Marla, but her unborn child as well? That just kicked it into lose your mind with grief territory and that’s just what they did. The whole family.
She was just 28. She and her husband, Mark, had been married only two years.
At first, Charlie had understood. Dean thought that she still did, to an extent. But his descent into soul-sucking depression…it just lasted too long. She begged him to get help. He took pills. He talked to a therapist. Nothing worked.
His moods affected her tremendously and he could see he was slowly eating every bit of joy from her. She left him to save herself. He knew that. It didn’t make anything any better for him. But he did understand it. She was under such pressure from everyone around her too. They could see the descent of them both into the pit.
It’s like that adage about putting a life jacket on yourself before you can save someone else. If you don’t, you risk both of you dying. It might not have been physical death, but it certainly was a death to their quality of life. Their little house that they had rented had become a tomb containing not only Marla and her baby’s memory, but any happiness that Dean and Charlie could have had. It all perished in the darkness.
◆◆◆
Craig shifted in his chair and stretched. He’d had a few late nights recently and was feeling the effects. But last night was a good night’s sleep. It just didn’t feel like it was enough. Sometimes he wished he had Charlie’s ability to sleep through anything.
On second thought… He chuckled. Who needs people parading around in your apartment at night that you know nothing about?
Starting his day as usual, he powered up the laptop and checked their orders on Etsy and responded to any social media requests. After finishing, he read the news online and found an article about a body that had been found in the local woods. It appeared that the killer had planned to bury her, but something stopped him. The details were still sketchy. He wondered how much information they had gathered yet. They rarely showed all their cards this early in the game with a murder. The article stated that they tentatively had an identification. No motive as of yet. The cause of death was listed as exsanguination. She bled to death.
Charlie appeared from the back looking more herself than she had in days. “Craig,” she called out. “You feeling good today?”
He ran a hand over his face before standing to meet her. “Yeah. A bit worn down, but good. You certainly look like you feel better. Security system did the trick?”
She leaned on the counter with a look of glee on her face. “Nothing. Peace and serenity. I finally feel safe again. I’m so glad that Kellie made me do it.”
Craig nodded at her. “I was just reading a story about the body of a young woman that was found in the woods nearby. Looks like someone murdered her out there and was going to bury her. You just can’t be too careful. You never know who’s dangerous in this world.”
Charlie put a hand over her mouth. “Was it someone we know?”
He tipped his head over at the laptop. “Doesn’t say. I guess we’ll find out once they have a firm identity and her family is notified.”
“This world is just getting worse and worse.” She shook her arms and squared her shoulders. “I’m not going to let that take away how I feel. It’s awful but I’m not going to dwell on it. Did you get the paint I needed yesterday? The red for that order?”
“It’s in the back under the bench. I got some new drop cloths too. We got some paint on the floor from seepage the other day. I tried to clean it up but it’s going to take a bit more work.”
“Thanks.” She started to walk toward the back. Looking over her shoulder she asked, “What do you want to listen to today? Classic rock? Instrumental? Movie soundtracks?”
“Surprise me. I’d like to see what music a woman who’s conquered her fears would pick.”
Her smile was sardonic. “Ha ha. I might pick some death metal. Would you still like me to surprise you?”
“You’d never pick death metal. Korn scares you.”
She threw her hands up as she walked away. “You’re right. You’re always right. You know me too well.”
I know you better than you know. He smiled and went back to the laptop to start making sold tags for the items that had been bought online overnight. Soon, Joni Mitchell’s Cactus Tree floated through the store from the speakers. When he could see her pulling out the drop cloth, he called out to her. “Hidden meanings?”
“Maybe.” She laughed as she continued to work.
◆◆◆
Charlie met Eli at Beast + Bottle uptown for lunch. They had this pear and fig salad that was to die for and Charlie couldn’t resist. Eli had a half-portion steak with a wine reduction sauce over cheese risotto. They sat al fresco since the weather was mild despite being the middle of October. There were still a few leaves changing colors on the trees along the sidewalk and the restaurant didn’t skimp on their own landscaping. It was a lovely setting and Charlie was feeling refreshed. She leaned back in the wrought iron chair with a smile at the Autumn sky.
Eli kept smiling at her because he could see the change. This was the Charlie he had come to know, and, frankly, to love. He knew she wasn’t ready for full-fledged love back, but he was willing to wait. He gazed at her profile while she took another bite and looked up at the autumn sky. Out of the corner of his eye, movement drew his attention. Just across the street, a man stood on the corner. Irritation settled into Eli’s stomach like a rock. “You’ve got to be kidding me. Is he stalking you now?”
Charlie looked at him, startled. “What? Who?” Her head telescoped around until she saw who had drawn Eli’s attention. Dean was leaning against a light pole watching them from about one hundred yards away. His body seemed relaxed, as if he’d been there a while and had no intention of moving on any time soon. Eli threw down his napkin beside his plate and began to stand. She reached up and tugged him back down. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“I’m going to talk to him. I don’t hear one word about him and now, all the sudden, he’s everywhere. I’m gonna tell him to get the hell out of here and to stop following you.” He started up again, but her hand stopped him again.
“Please, don’t do that. He’s not following me. I promise. I’m sure that he was just in the area and caught sight of us. It’s a free city. He has the right to linger on any street corner that he wants to. Please, let it go.”
With a clenched jaw, Eli glared at Dean but sat still. He flicked his eyes at Charlie. “Why are you letting this go on?”
“Because nothing is going on. Besides, who am I sitting with…trying to enjoy my lunch with?” She patted his fisted hand on the table. The tension did not ease. He snatched his napkin back from the tab
le and forcefully put it back in his lap. After stabbing a bite of steak, he chewed it as if he were eating a shoe. “So. Our lunch will be ruined now? It’s so good to know that one thing can completely destroy the lovely meal we were having together.” She glanced back to the corner and Dean was nowhere to be found. Eli’s mood cast a wide shadow. “If we’re going to be like this anyway: How do you know what he looks like?”
Eli’s eyes shifted quickly to her face and then away. He systematically wiped his lips with his napkin. One word came out like a bullet. “Facebook.” He forcefully stabbed another bite of meat and shoved it in his mouth.
