Learn To Love Again

Chapter 18

The ground was still wet when I left for work the next day. The sun barely peeked through the blanket of clouds covering the sky.

It was a fairly slow day at the office, and I spent most of the time sorting through files at my desk. When I was up to date with paperwork and had already finished with all the appointments, I decided to lock up for the day. It was an hour or so earlier than usual so I decided to visit Monique and see how she was doing.

As I pulled up to her house, I noticed Erika's car parked in the driveway. I parked behind it and walked up to the house. The door was open so I continued inside.

I found Erika sprawled on the sofa in the living room.

"Hey, what's up?" I said.

"Nothing much."

Monique then entered the room carrying two large bags of potato chips.

"Hey," she said with a smile when she saw me.

"Hi."

She tossed one bag of chip at Erika then tossed the other at me. I caught it and dropped myself into a loveseat next to the sofa.

"I'll go get another," Monique said, before disappearing into the kitchen. When she returned with another bag of chips, she sat on the sofa beside Erika.

"Did Anna tell you she was in jail?" Erika asked Monique between bites of chips.

Monique gasped. "What?!" She said, giving me a shocked look. "What happened?"

I let Erika tell her the story, but jumped in every now and again with a correction.

"That's insane!" Monique said when Erika stopped speaking. "I hope they keep Malcolm locked up forever."

"Actually, he's already out," I said. "But the police are watching him so I should be fine."

"I didn't know Malcolm was that crazy," Monique said. "I'll ask my mother to find out something about him from her friend."

"Enough about Malcolm," Erika said. "So, there's this handsome detective that brings her yogurt."

"Really? Is it the same detective that arrested her? I didn't know he was handsome."

I cringed. "We are not having this conversation."

"Stop denying it," Erika said teasingly. "You know he's gorgeous."

"Whatever. Where's Dane?" I asked Monique, in an attempt to change the subject.

"At work," she replied. She then reached between the cushions of the sofa and pulled out the TV remote. Using it, she turned on the television and started flipping through the channels. When she got to TVJ, she stopped for a while as a reporter was giving a summary of the weather news.

"Also," the reporter was saying, "Hurricane Oliver has reached category four and should reach the country in less than two weeks. If it continues in this way, it should be in Western parishes by June 28." She continued by giving safety tips and guidelines for preparing for the hurricane.

"June 28?" Erika said disbelievingly. "It's already the 15th. I didn't realize it was that close."

"At least we have two weeks to prepare," I said. "But category 4, though?"

"Could've been worse," Monique said.

I shrugged. "I guess."

I looked out the window directly in front of me and realized how dark it was outside.

"I'm going to get going," I said. "I'll see you guys tomorrow, okay?" I rose from the sofa.

Erika glanced at her watch, then rose also. "Me too. I'll call you when I get home, Monique."

Monique nodded, and Erika and I left the house. She followed me out the driveway and down the road, but we separated shortly afterwards.

Traffic was heavy on my way home, which was predictable considering that I was traveling from Catherine Hall (where Monique lived) to Bogue Village.

When I finally got home, it was already past 10pm. I parked in the garage and walked up to the front door.

I fished into my purse for my keys, and, when I found the correct one, inserted it into the lock, then turned it. It wouldn't spin inside the lock. A bit surprised, I removed the key and turned the doorknob. The door was already open.

I thought back to that morning when I'd left the house. I could've sworn I'd locked the door.

I pushed the door open and stepped inside, flipping the light switch by the door as I did so. I breathed a sigh of relief as I realized the living room was just as I'd left it. I then checked the other rooms on the rest of the storey and was relieved to find that they were also the same.

Maybe I just forgot to lock the door, I thought. No need to be paranoid.

I climbed the stairs and headed to the bathroom to take a shower. Before going to the bathroom, however, I stopped in the bedroom and was going through a drawer for pajamas when something caught the corner of my eye. I flipped on the light and turned toward the bed.

My heart did a back flip and a piercing scream escaped my lips as I saw Malcolm sitting on the edge of my bed.

For a moment I couldn't speak. "How did you get in here?" I finally said, trying to control my voice. I scanned the room for a potential weapon but couldn't find anything within my reach.

"Through the door," he said calmly.

"Why are you here?" I started to move slowly toward the door.

"You lied to me, you tricked me, and then you got me locked up. Why did you do that? Are you trying to make me upset?"

"What are you talking about?" I asked, moving a few inches closer to the door.

"Don't play dumb with me, Anna," he said, his voice calm and chilling. "And if I were you, I'd stand still and stop moving toward that door." He pulled something from behind him and my heart stop beating for a millisecond as my eyes landed on the long, glistening blade of a combat knife.

________________________________________________________________________

A/N:

Sorry I took so long to update. I've just been very busy. Hope you liked the chap, and the next one will be up later.

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★It's Carmen. Love y'all. ★