Hurricane

Reality

After I hung up with Kelly, I walked back into the kitchen where Denise was sitting looking at photos. "What is it D?" I walked closer and noticed she had a photo in her hand and was just staring. "Denise?"

Denise handed me the photo and I instantly felt my stomach turn into a knot. The picture was of Kelly and me standing in my garage the night I got back from Houston.

Alyssa knew who Kelly was. If she followed me back to Chicago she knew I was working at 51. It could very well mean everyone I loved in Chicago was in danger.

Denise handed me a couple more photos and I looked and saw they were of Matt, Gabby, Kelly, and I durning my first shift. I felt as if at any second I was going to be seeing my breakfast from that morning, again.

I set the photos down and pulled my phone back out and called Kelly. It felt like an eternity had passed before he finally answered.

"Hey Kat."

"Kelly..." I was trying to contain my emotions the best I could given the current situation. "She knows who you are."

"What? What do you mean Kat?"

"Alyssa. Some of the burnt photos are of you and me. There's also a couple of Matt and Gabby." I felt my hot tears slipping down my cheeks.

"Shh Kat. It's going to be okay. We will be okay."

I knew Kelly was trying to comfort me but it wasn't working at all. My anxiety was sky high. And here I thought going to Houston would keep him safe. "Kelly, she is crazy. We have no idea what she is fully capable of."

"Kat... baby listen please. It is all going to be okay. Houston PD or intelligence will catch her. Half the battle was finding out who was after you. Now they have a name and they will find her. Just try and relax."

"Kelly... just promise me you guys will watch out for each other?" If something happened to any of them I wouldn't forgive myself. This situation had nothing to do with Kelly, Matt or Gabby. They didn't deserve this.

"We will. I promise."

"Thank you."

"It is all going to be okay. This will be over before you know it."

"I hope you're right Kelly. I can't deal with all this stress and the anxiety it is giving me."

I didn't know what Alyssa's plan was. I didn't know if she was just trying to scare me. Or if she would actually hurt someone. I knew she was crazy, but I didn't know how crazy.

"It'll be over soon."

Oh how much I wish Kelly was right but something deep in my gut told me he was wrong. Very wrong...

***

I had been in Houston for the past 3 weeks and I was finally making my way back to Chicago. Both Houston PD and intelligence were looking for Alyssa, but it was like she had vanished.

They found proof she was in Chicago when that fire was set in my house but they soon lost her. She was crazy but she was also smart. Never used credit cards, always cash. Her cellphone was a prepaid and she changed her number every couple days.

Intelligence tried to track down where she printed the photos but soon found she did them on her own printer. Which she had due to being a photographer so that wasn't any help.

Then there was her juvenile file that was sealed since she was under 18. Tony was trying to get a judge to unseal it but it was hard since all the evidence we had was circumstantial. 

Denise tried to distract me with helping her plan and set up Scotty's birthday party. I tried to enjoy myself but it was hard. I did enjoy watching my godson celebrate and he was definitely one of the reasons I missed Houston.

But now I could see the Chicago skyline coming into view as I made my way home. I had drove all night so I could be home when Kelly got back from shift. We had talked, texted, and facetimed as much as possible while I was gone but I was so ready to be back in his arms.

I tried to push Alyssa out of my mind but it was hard. I had to trust everyone was doing their part to find her and get her the help she so desperately needs.

***

I pulled onto my street and head towards my home. I noticed that Kelly, Matt and Gabby were not home from shift yet. I pulled my car into my driveway and opened my garage. Once I pulled into the garage, I just sat in my car and tried to steady my breathing.

Being back home was amazing but also terrifying. Not knowing where Alyssa was or what her plans were made me want to drink. Made me want to escape this hell of a reality.

I looked into my rearview mirror and spotted Kelly, Matt, and Gabby pulling in from work. I hadn't told Kelly I was coming home because it was a last minute decision and I wanted to surprise him.

I steadied my breathing before exiting my car to walk down my driveway. "Kelly!" I shouted his name as I made it passed my garage doors.

It was like it was in slow motion as I watched Kelly turn around and dropped his bag before running across the street to pick me up and hug me. I felt my feet hit the ground after he had gotten done with spinning me around. He then leaned down and kissed me.

Our lips parted and our foreheads rested against one another. "When did you get back?"

"not even 5 minutes ago." Both of us were smiling.

Kelly embraced me in another bone crushing hug and placed a kiss to the side of my head. "I missed you."

I rested my head against his chest and listened to the comforting sound of his heartbeat. "I missed you too."

Once we finally let go of one another we noticed Matt and Gabby had also walked over. I said hello and gave them each a hug. "Glad to see you're back."

"I'm happy to be home. Want to get back to normal for a bit."

"Yeah now maybe Kelly will be in a better mood." Gabby said in a teasing voice.

I saw Kelly throw her a death glare and I couldn't help but laugh which then turned into yawn. "You want to go lay down baby?"

"Yes that would be great. I drove all night."

"Alright." Kelly placed another kiss to the side of my head.

I said goodbye to Matt and Gabby while Kelly went and grabbed his duffel that he had dropped when he saw me. Kelly came back over and we headed inside to get some much needed sleep.