Hearth of Heart: A Chicago Franchise Fanfiction [Mature]

Chapter 12

For the past three days, there have been a letter delivered to my doorstep everyday. They all say the same thing.

Pretty girl is going to pay.

They all came in a white envelope, no return address. At first, I thought someone had sent it to the wrong address. But there's no return address.

The second time, a peculiar coincidence.

Third time ? No way the person who's supposed to get this haven't told the sender yet that they have the wrong address.

I grabbed the envelope in front of my front door and ran back to the car, fear gripping me tightly. I shoved the third envelope along with the other two in the dashboard drawer, where I kept them, then scrambled to get my phone.

Without hesitation this time, I dialed a number. I've been contemplating calling him since yesterday.

He picked up on the second ring. "Dawson," Antonio said.

"Hey, it's Luella. I need to talk to you," I said point-blank.

"Uh, I'm at the precinct," Antonio answered.

"Perfect. Can I meet you there ?" I asked.

"District 21. You know where it is ?" Antonio asked.

"I do." I confirmed.

"Coffee shop right across. Are you okay ?" Antonio was alert now, switching into detective mode when he heard my nervous tone.

"For now. I'll be there in 10 minutes," I said before hanging up.

I drove as fast as I can, and arrived there earlier. It crossed my mind on the way that all this could have a perfectly reasonable explanation, and I'd end up embarrassing myself by overreacting. But I decided that I don't care. Better safe than sorry.
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But Antonio was already waiting for me with two cups of coffee, one of which he handed to me when I sat down across him.

"It's good to see you," Antonio said. Every single time I see him, he invades my senses. Dark and dangerous.

He pointed to the coffee cup he bought for me. "I don't know how you take it, so it's just plain black," He informed me, his eyes watching as I fidgeted with the coffee cup.

"It's perfect, thank you," I said as I sipped my coffee. "It's lovely to see you, but I did came for a reason," I pulled out the envelopes from my bag, laying it down on the table.

Antonio immediately stood up straighter. "What is this ?"

"I've been finding them on my doorstep, one each day for the past three days. At first I thought it was a coincidence. But three ? I can't believe that," I told him, my hand shaking a little bit.

Antonio said nothing, but pulled out a latex glove from the inner pocket of his jacket.
Uh oh. I've seen enough crime and cop shows to know that they only do that when they don't want to compromise the evidence. He picked the envelopes up, then leaned in to me.

"You need to come with me to the precinct, now. Stay calm, act normal, okay ?" He instructed me, and when he leaned back, he was smiling casually.

He got up and I followed him. When we walked out of the coffee shop, Antonio hid the envelopes in his pocket and slung a hand over my shoulder.
"Could someone be watching ?" I whispered through a fake smile. Antonio feels warm and protective around me, leaning his head close.

"Could be," he admitted. I have to admit, too, that to other people, right now we just look like any other normal couple, out together on a warm day.