Psycho Love

18

As I make my way down Adelaide Street in the middle of Brisbane City, I can't help but let my mind wonder to how crazy these past 3 days have been. In 3 days, my life has turned from being a pretty boring life that consisted of work, gym and being at home, to helping a gang find a file full of incriminating documents about them and other dangerous criminals, that my dead father hid. Not to mention HE is back in the picture. 

Why does it feel like my life has become some shitty spy movie?

I wonder if my life will ever go back to normal now... Was my life ever normal though? I am pretty sure having your father work for a dangerous gang isn't normal. Your loved ones being murdered definitely isn't normal and being kidnapped and tormented isn't normal. I guess I just want my life to go back to being... boring. Boring was ok. 

I stop and stare at my reflection in a shop window and realise that I look exhausted. I haven't slept great in 5 years, but it has definitely been worse these past few days. The nightmares are worse than they have ever been. I need to find to get HIM out of my life. I can't keep living in fear of when HE will show up again. HE is making me paranoid, and I just know that it is all just a part of his game. HE wants me to be scared and paranoid. HE loves to see me in my most fragile state. 

I have to hurry up and get to the bank. I wonder if Caden will be mad that I left the penthouse without telling anyone where I was going. Oops. Oh well. What is he going to do? Ground me. 

As I turn to continue my walk to the bank, I notice a woman across the street is watching me.  She is talking on her phone, acting like she is oblivious to the world around her but every few seconds she turns and stares at me. She is wearing denim jeans, with an ordinary black t-shirt and combat boots. Nothing stands out about this woman except for her incredibly shiny black hair that is tied up into a messy bun. She isn't being obvious and doesn't necessarily stand out in the crowded street, but when you have been kidnapped by a psychotic murderer, you learn to observe everyone around you, just in case. 

I should probably test my theory before jumping to conclusions. I quickly plan out a route that will help me figure out if this woman is following me or if I am, in fact, going crazy. Let's be honest Ember, you are past crazy at this point, I remind myself. 

Instead of continuing on to the bank I cross the busy road, so I am now on the same side as the woman and keep walking up Adelaide Street until I come to the next street called 'Edward Street'. I make a left, passing cafes and restaurants as I walk. As I pass by one of the cafes, I make a big show of squealing about how cute this stranger's dog is, "Do you mind if i pat him? He is just so gorgeous." 

"Course not darling." The elderly woman answers, in a strong Australian accent. I lean down and give the white Maltese dog a scratch behind its ear and giggle about how fluffy he is, while discreetly waiting to see if the woman comes around the corner. Sure enough, just as I am about to get up and make my way back to the bank, feeling stupid for being so paranoid, she comes around the corner with a small bounce in her step like she is trying to slow down after running. Damn it! I hate it when I am right sometimes. Now I have to figure out who this strange woman is and why she is following me, when all I wanted was some time to clear my head and find that damn file. Quickly standing, and thanking the elderly woman, I speed walk down Edward Street and duck in to the first alley I can find. I don't have a plan about how to do this, and I am trying to not think about all the ways surprising someone that is following me could end as I press myself closer to the wall behind a dumpster. 

"Damn it! I think I lost her." the woman speaks into her phone that is still pressed to the side of her face. "He is going to be pissed when I tell him." Who is she talking about? Could it be my stalker? Caden? If not either of them, then who else could it be? "No, I think he will kill me and ask questions later. You know how he can get," the woman continues, "fuck this! I am coming back. See you in 5." I listen carefully as she turns on her heels and goes to start walking back the way she came. That is when I make my move, jumping up from my crouched position I lunge at her, and in one movement wrap my arms around her neck and start dragging her back into the alley. Instead of moving back she swings her left arm back and around so fast that I almost don't register it happening. Before I know it, she has a fistful of my hair and is yanking my head back. My grip around her neck breaks and I stumble back. She takes this opportunity to grab my right arm that is still around her neck and force it down while twisting it until i feel like it is about to pop out of its socket. My free hand goes up to up where her hand is entangled in my brown curls. I let out a loud growl. Fucking hell this hurts!  She bends my arm so that it is now pressed into my back and pulls it up, threatening to break it. I let go of her hand that has my hair and instead grab on to my right wrist, pushing down so that she can't break my arm. Using as much strength as I can muster, I stamp on her foot and use this split second to jam my elbow into her cheek bone causing her to shout out in pain and release my hair. I use my right arm to put her in a head lock, forcing her head to face the floor and I knee her in the ribs. Once. Twice. Then I shove her backwards against the wall, pulling zander's knife from the waistband of my shorts and pointing it at her. 

"Fucking bitch!" The woman curses at me. 

"Who the fuck are you?" I pant, gesturing roughly with the knife. 

The woman doesn't answer, instead she raises her hands up in a show of surrender and gestures to her phone that is now on the ground to my left. Warily, I pick up the phone and unlock it. The phone shows the last number that was called, and I raise my eyebrows at her questioningly. 

"Go on already." She spits out. I hesitantly press the last number and pull the phone up to my ear. After the first ring I hear a man's voice. 

"Any update Trinity?" Caden's voice speaks into my ear. 

"You fucking bastard!" I shout into the phone. 

Caden doesn't even sound surprised when he replies, "Hey there princess, I see you met Trinity." 

"Why the hell is this bitch following me, Caden?" 

"No need to be angry princess, she is just keeping an eye on you. There are still people out there that are after you, remember? I figured you were going to do something stupid, like leave the penthouse without telling anyone where you were going. Seems like I was right." He sounds amused at how angry I am. The nerve of this guy. 

"I am a big girl. I can take care of myself, and if you don't believe me just ask Trinity how her ribs are holding up." I can't help but smile at that. I am not a child, and I have been looking out for myself for a long time now. 

"Now, now ember. Don't be mad at me," I can hear the smirk on his face over the phone, "I am just keeping up my end of the deal. You find me the file and I protect you from anyone out there that has bad intentions towards you. Don't think of her as a babysitter, think of her more as your own personal bodyguard."

"Well, I just kicked my "bodyguard's" ass." Trinity snorts from her position on the ground. She has now scooted back so that she is leaning against the wall and her hands are pressed to her side, holding her possibly broken ribs. Caden lets out a small chuckle, "Trust me, Trinity has dealt with worse. Now, why don't you tell me what you are doing?"

Should I tell him that I have a promising lead on the file? Maybe I should just keep it to myself for now, but if he is going to keep sending people to "guard" me then he will end up finding out anyway. I roll my eyes and answer him, "I think I have a lead on the file. I found a file labelled 'HOLY GRAIL', Monty Python and the Holy Grail was dad's favourite movie, and inside was the address of a bank and the name 'Arthur King', as in King Arthur from the movie." I pause, waiting for Caden to say something but he doesn't. "I think dad put the file into a safety deposit box under the name Arthur King." I state plainly as I conceal the knife in the waistband of my shorts again. 

"What are you waiting around for then? Go get that file." Caden urges and hangs up before I can say anything else.  I hurl the phone at the wall in a fit of anger, and it smashes on contact. Trinity jumps out of the way of the phone, which hits the wall incredibly close to her head, and scowls at me. "Are you fucking serious? That was a new phone," she shouts, but I am not listening. I can't believe Caden had a tail on me this whole time. 

I start walking back up the alley way not bothering to wait for her, "Are you coming or what?"