Twenty Four

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Grace made herself get out of bed and check the door. She was almost to it when she saw the knob move from side to side. She stood frozen in place looking at the button in the center of the doorknob, frantically trying to remember which direction meant it was locked. The sound of it being jostled echoed in her head. Knowing she had no choice, she ran the last five feet and grabbed the knob, turning it to assure herself it was secured.

To her surprise, the doorknob rotated in her hand and opened, revealing a kitchen she used to know as a child. Her mother was there just as she remembered her. She was arranging some rolls on a platter and her partner, Karen, was stirring something on the stove. Suddenly, Karen began to yell. Grace slowly turned to find that the target of her anger was Donny.

"Start putting these trays in the van! How many times do I have to tell you?"

Donny was leaning in the doorway with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. He was wearing a pair of tight swim trunks, his feet were bare and he was quite tan. He didn't make an effort to move when Karen yelled at him, instead, he seemed intent on staring at something across the room. Grace followed his vision and immediately saw that her mother was the subject of his interest.

"Donny! I mean it!" Karen shouted as she looked over at Grace and shrugged with an exasperated expression. A buzzer caught Karen's attention, "Oh, the cheese sticks, I don't want them to burn."

Grace opened her eyes to a dark room. Her alarm was sounding, filling the space around her with an annoying, high pitched ring. "Ugh," she groaned as she reached over and grabbed her travel clock to turn it off. What a strange dream she thought as she sat up and stretched. She busied herself getting dressed, folding up her bedding, and checking each room one last time. Now, she was ready to get on the road.

Glad she only had to make her exit, since she had carried the boxes and suitcases down the night before, she breathed a sigh of relief. Still, she had her arms full as she managed to open the front door without dropping anything. She stepped out and reached back to close it, when something caught her attention.

The yellow mailing envelope was taped just a little lower than eye level. Her name was neatly written on the front in black ink. She let everything in her arms fall as certainty came crashing at her from too many angles. Grabbing just her purse and leaving the rest of her belongings where they dropped, Grace took the envelope off the door and went back inside. She closed and locked it, letting herself slide down until she was sitting on the floor.

With both a sense of determination and apprehension, she opened the envelope. Queasiness hit her as the necklace she knew was there cascaded into her hand. She sat on the floor for a long time, emotions flooding her senses until she felt nothing at all. Reaching into the envelope she pulled out a scrap of note paper and read the neatly printed message.

"I hope you're smarter than Laura, Grace. Wear this for me soon. Love'

She closed her eyes tight as tears leaked out and slowly rolled down her cheeks. She knew one thing, she had to get back home. She struggled with wanting to call Michael, but she knew he wouldn't be able to help her until she got there. She remembered the reflection of the man watching her from across the street yesterday. That was him, she thought as a shiver ran through her. She was terrified to leave the apartment and go to her car in the parking garage. It was just after 5:00 am and no one would be around. What if he was waiting for her? She had no one to help. All she knew, was that she had to get back to Agate Cove. She forced herself to get up and leave.

By the time she was sitting in her car, Grace was so amped up she couldn't get the key in the ignition. Finally, convincing herself that she was, for the time being safe, she got the car started and headed towards home.

~~~~~

He had always known he was special, even if his family didn't. He saw the way women looked at him, the way they flirted while pretending not to. He enjoyed playing cat and mouse with Grace. Watching her walk faster and look around as if he were right behind her but of course, he wasn't, not yet. He watched as all the color left her face. The fear and anxiety were wearing her down. Yes, she would be even better than her mother.

Kate wasn't supposed to fall off the trail like that. She shouldn't have struggled with him. He knew she wanted to do it, a guy can always tell these things. She looked so surprised when he had tried to kiss her. He couldn't believe she had pushed him away. When he grabbed her by the shoulders, she slapped him. That's when he got so angry. He should have stabbed her like he had the neighbor's cat when it scratched him, but then, her scream as she fell to her death had made him feel better. He looked down at her body sprawled out on the sand for several minutes before he followed the path to where she lay. He gave her a long, sensual kiss good-bye and took the necklace so he could remember everything about that day. Kate would always be his first love.

There had been others after her, pretty little blondes, but not as beautiful as Kate. He found he had an appetite for control. He liked it when they struggled. Their tears aroused him, and their screams were music to his ears. None of them compared to Kate, although he may have continued that way forever had he not seen the Christmas card Laura sent to his mother. At first, he thought he was hallucinating. It was Kate all over again. He'd waited and searched a very long time for that kind of arousal. He knew then what he had to do, but Laura ruined it. She left him no choice but to stop her before she went to the police. Her husband had been collateral damage or a bonus, he thought amusing himself.

Laura had been such a bitch that afternoon when she found him in her office. He had just wanted to have something of hers until he could get her alone, but he got impatient. He should have waited. Finding the necklace in her desk drawer had been a stroke of luck. Then she came back to her office before he could make his exit. He tried to explain to her that he had loved her mother. He knew if he could just make her understand that he loved her too, then she'd want to be with him. Laura wouldn't let him explain. She yelled at him to get out and said she was going to report him to the police. He would have taken her right then, but there were too many people around. When she called campus security he had to run. He hated being put on the defensive. At least he had gotten the necklace back. What a waste. He had really wanted some time with her.

Grace would be different. She would make up for her mother and sister's bad behavior. He had a plan this time and he was going to stick to it. He wouldn't let himself become so impatient. Right now he was enjoying getting her primed and watching her wear down. After he finished with Grace, he'd still have Laura's three girls. They'd be grown up soon enough. Until then, there would be plenty of pretty little distractions to keep him busy.


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