The Hunter's Angel

Enjoy the Silence

"Oh my god Layla, that's insane. You quite literally have the worst luck."

Kat's words of dismay rang true in my head as we sat in a booth at the dimly lit cafe. I still struggled to make sense of how the hell my night went from clubbing to witnessing a murder.

Once I settled in the cafe, I managed to convince the manager to let me borrow their phone, dialing Kat to break the news.

She came rushing in through the doors ten minutes later, Liam in tow, both of their faces drawn tight with concern. I managed to fill them in on what went down, though I conveniently left out the part where I found Mr. Bad Guy, Hunter, to be disconcertingly attractive.

"Are you gonna go file a report?" asked Liam, sitting next to Kat across the booth.

Kat let out a laugh of disbelief. "Of course she is, why would that even be a question?"

Obviously I wasn't going to let a crime go unreported, whether or not the man carrying it out happened to be insanely hot.

I just couldn't shake the feeling that there was more behind what I saw, something that ran deeper than a ruthless act of violence. I wasn't sure if it was the way Hunter was interrogating the man, or the fact that he let me go freely without harming a hair on my head, but something seemed off about the whole situation.

On top of that, he still had my phone, and I couldn't escape the sinking awareness that even if I went to the authorities, Hunter wouldn't leave me alone.

"Layla, you're going to the police. Right?" repeated Kat, uncertainty lining her voice.

I let out a deep sigh, glancing at her bewildered expression. "Of course I am," I started, "I'm not gonna let the guy go unpunished. But I can't help the feeling that there's something more, that something else is going on."

Kat and Liam shared a puzzled stare.

"Can I just have a little time to cool down," I continued, "kinda process what just happened? I promise I'll head over to the station first thing in the morning."

Kat's eyebrows dropped down in perplexity. "But-"

"Sure hun," Liam interrupted, shooting Kat a look that said drop it. "Take as much time as you need. In the meantime, do you wanna stay at my place or Kat's, just until you figure everything out?"

Kat nodded in agreement, fully on board with Liam's offer.

God, my friends truly were amazing. Half the people I knew in high school wouldn't have even come to pick me up.

Despite their generous suggestion, I really felt like I needed some time alone to gather my bearings. I felt more comfortable at my place, and I wasn't going to let some ambiguous "criminal" uproot my life completely.

I gave them a grateful smile. "You guys are honestly the best. Seriously, I mean it."

"But," I proceeded, "I'm not gonna let some asshole keep me from my own home. I think I'm just gonna go back to my place and crash, and try to piece all this crap together in the morning. I'll probably head over to the store tomorrow as well, seeing as I'm in need of a new phone."

"Are you sure, Layla?" Kat inquired, concern still visible in her honey-colored eyes.

"Absolutely," I assured, "don't worry about me, babe. I'm as tough as nails," I joked with a wink.

She smiled softly. "You shouldn't always have to be."

I cast my eyes downward, her comment hitting a little too close to home.