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Chapter Fifteen

Maya is snoring on the bed next to me, an episode of The Office plays on the TV. It's always been our comfort show. I get out of bed, and decide to bring the, now empty, plate into the kitchen. Maya got hungry and once confirming with me I wasn't going to eat the plate of Chicken Alfredo on the dresser, inhaled it like a vacuum. I open the door slowly and carefully trying not to wake her. How is she still able to sleep? She slept half the day. I chuckle to myself. I walk towards the kitchen, seeing a light from the living room. I expect to see AJ passed out on the couch with the TV on or something. As I approach the living room, I'm shocked to learn that no only is AJ still awake, but he appears to be talking to someone on his laptop. He notices me almost instantly. I hear him mumble, "Keep me posted." And then he closes his laptop, before I could see the face on the screen.

    AJ stands up and crosses the living room towards me. He grabs the plate out of my hand. "Hey, how was it?" He says softly, looking at my face somberly. "What?" I say, eyes jumping back to the now closed laptop. Who was he talking to? "The Chicken Alfredo? I see you ate it. That's good." I turn back to face him. "I didn't eat it, Maya did." I state, emotionless. "Oh." He says as his shoulders drop, "Well.. at least it didn't go to waste I guess. I'll take this to the kitchen for you." I nod, contemplating my next move.

    I follow him to the kitchen, "Who were you just talking to?" I blurt out. "Ryan, he thinks he found a lead on who is stalking you, and knows where they are." He turns to face me and I just slowly nod. "So, when are we going to get this guy? Who is it?" I rush out. "WE are not going anywhere. Ryan and I are going to check out the lead, and if we catch your stalker, I'll tell you everything once he's in custody." I scoff, "So, you're leaving us alone. Because that worked out SO well for Blue!" "Car, we're going to get him back. It's too dangerous for you to go with us. I need to keep you safe." AJ says gently. Keep me safe? HE ALREADY KNOWS WHERE I AM. I don't put my thoughts into words. Actually, this could be good. I could easily sneak out with just Maya here. I take a deep breath before I speak again. "You're right At, we'll wait here." "Thank you for trusting me gorgeous." He says while placing a soft kiss on my forehead. "Oh, and take this. Just in case." He walks behind me and pulls a pistol from his duffle bag and hands it to me. "Remember what I taught you?" I nod as I clear the chamber and check the safety. "Good girl." He states and gives me another kiss on the forehead, pulling me in for a tight hug. "I'll be back soon." He whispers. I nod against his chest.

    AJ hugs me a little longer before side stepping me, and heading into the living room. He pulls some more stuff out of his duffle. Another pistol, an extra magazine, a bullet proof vest, and some other items. Is that a grenade? He zips up his duffle, and heads towards the door. He stops to give me one more kiss on the forehead, "Be back soon gorgeous." He says, and then he's out the door, and driving down the road like a bat out of hell. It's after he's gone that I let the worry seep into my bones. Please come back to me safely.

    I decide to go back to the room and check on Maya. She's still sound asleep. I walk over to pick my phone up off the floor, and sink down to the ground, leaning against the side of the bed for support. I unlock my phone and stare at the texts between Unknown and myself. It's in that moment my heart sinks. He said he would take AJ out of the equation. "It's a trap." I say out loud, just above a whisper. I try to call AJ and it immediately goes to voicemail. I try again, Pick up. Pick up!, nothing. FUCK! I decide I only have one option. I go back to my text thread with Unknown.

Me: You better not fucking hurt him!

Unknown: I already told you Sweetie, no harm will come to your precious pup.

Me: You know who I'm talking about right now. But you better not fucking hurt Blue either!

Unknown: Oh, you mean your other puppy. Your Golden Retriever, AJ. Relax, I just sent him on a wild goose chase to buy you some time to sneak out. You're welcome.

Me: Oh, so I should be thanking you? Not going to happen. Where are we doing this?

Moments later, Unknown sends an address and I pull it up on google maps. It's a 20 minute drive.

Me: And how exactly am I supposed to get there? I have no car, and I'm pretty sure you don't want me calling an Uber.

Unknown: Smart girl, let's leave a poor innocent Uber driver out of this. There's a car in the garage, keys are on the hook near the garage door. Come to me Sweetie, but remember, leave your phone.

    I stand up and put my phone on the dresser. I turn to look at Maya, contemplating if I should leave her alone or not. If you do what he says, he won't hurt her. He'll be with you. You'll know she's safe. Plus, she would want you to go get Blue. I contemplate waking her up and telling her where I am going. I decide against it, he could be watching right now. That, and she would INSIST on going with me. I decide to go grab a big butcher knife from the kitchen and put it on the night stand. Just in case. Who cares if he is watching. As I am about to leave, I notice her apple watch. Take it, she can track it! It'll be easier to hide too. I make sure I block her from view of the window. I go to remove the watch carefully. She snorts and stirs a little and I freeze.

    Moments later, she's snoring again, and I manage to successfully take the watch off of her. I can't exactly walk in with the watch on my wrist. He will notice immediately. I shove the watch carefully in my bra. "I'll be back soon" I whisper, and then head towards the garage. I grab the keys off the hook, and take a deep breath. Let's do this. I open the door and see a blacked out mustang. I may be driving to my possible death, but at least I'll be driving in style.