Page 18 of Vipers & Roses

I think now is an excellent time to contact her again to see if something happened to her. Did Lyons touch her, too? Until this moment, I thought I was alone; now, I have a greater reason to eliminate him from the face of this earth. But I have to be careful because once he’s dead, I don’t want to leave a trail for the police to follow back to me.

Once out of the shower, I quickly dry myself and slip on faded blue shorts, pink sneakers, and a black Californication - Red Hot Chili Peppers tee.

My anxiety rises as I step out of the exit into the large pool area and glance over in Lyons's direction. He has his back turned deep in conversation with another coach. I searched for the two girls in the locker room, but they must be in the pool. My heart goes out to Lu, whoever she may be, and I hope she looks after herself.

I want to tell them to stay away from him. I want to say to them to avoid circumstances where they’re alone with that man. He will not touch them if other people are around. Stay close to other people. Stay safe.

Once back in my car, I enter Isabelle Nelson into my phone’s search engine and await results for the Torres Island area. Two options come up, and one is the girl I’m looking for. She was really smart in high school, a straight-A student, but it looks like her education stopped when she graduated high school. I hoped she might be here at Keele, but she decided to pursue a career as an influencer on TikTok and Instagram rather than going to college.

How long can a career like this last? Especially when her bikini pics blend in with all the thousands of other women there. I go onto her Instagram page, which has over a million followers, and I send her a direct message asking if she’d like to catch up over a coffee.

There’s a ball of nerves tangled up inside me as I hesitate over what I need to do, but I am apprehensive about doing it.

“Fuck it.”

Me: Fancy giving me lessons today or tomorrow?

I start the Corolla up, expecting him not to reply immediately, and back out of the park with a scouring in my gut from seeing Lyons. I hope he got the message by me staring him down that I’m not afraid of him anymore. Who am I kidding? A man like that is supremely confident because the college and his buddies protect him, the other three to The Four. He’ll assume I wouldn’t dare challenge him or go to the police this long after the incident. And he’s right. I won’t be going to the police. Why bother the police when I can solve the problem myself?

After all, there’s nothing more dangerous than a woman who wants to inflict hell on a man.

10

Blake T: Well, if it isn’t the girl in the yellow Corolla! I’m out of town for a few days. I’ll let u know when I return.

Me: Doing what?

Blake T: Flipping burgers

Me: Liar.

Blake T: ?

Damn. I’m one of those people who, when I decide to do something, I want to do it immediately. For example, when I decide to get my hair restyled, I’ll make the appointment and expect them to fit me in that day. It’s almost like I'll lose interest once my enthusiasm dies down.

Anyway, Blake is unavailable for now, so I’ll watch a YouTube video tonight to learn how to load the handgun. I still refuse to touch it without supervision, and maybe it’s because I might shoot myself or someone else.

It’s stinking hot in the glasshouse that we’re forced to open some windows to let the fresh in and turn the soft sprinkler system on and my clothes stick to my body from the spraying of water and sweat. I’m working with tropical plants, but the heat is so consuming that it’s hard to concentrate now, so I leave to breathe fresh outside in the shade. Unfortunately, the water in my drink bottle is warm too and doesn’t quite cool me down and quench my thirst like I was hoping.

Sweat is pouring down my back as I find a private, shady corner between the wall of my botany classroom and an organic matter dump bin. There’s no one around, so I pour water over my head and use my T-shirt to dry my face off. It’s so hot that I’m close to removing my T-shirt and walking around in shorts and a sports bra. But, of course, that’s inappropriate and would encourage unwanted attention.

“Sorry,” a male voice states, and I drop my tee shirt from my eyes to find a man standing with his back to me wearing a white shirt, sleeves rolled up to the elbow tucked into black dress pants, and neatly cut silver hair. “Let me know when you’re done, and I’ll turn back around.”

I know who this is, but I’m unsure how I feel about it. “I’m done,” I tell him, and he turns around, and those sky-blue eyes dance over my face and wet tee shirt sticking to my breasts. “I needed a swim. I was so hot, but, um, there’s no pool here, obviously. Anyway, how did you find me?”

He rubs his unshaven silver chin with his hand, smiling. “I’m a detective, so I just showed reception my badge, and they told me where you were. It took me a while to find this place, though. It’s hidden behind the gardens.”

“Ogres and gnomes prefer to be hidden,” I say, and then I realize I was calling myself an ogre, which is funny since Z’s pet name for Cormac is Shrek.

“You’re looking good,” he says, running his eye discreetly over my bare legs.

“Thanks,” I answer awkwardly. “So, I saw you in that café…” I begin and hesitate because I’m unsure what direction this conversation should go.

“That’s why I’m here,” he states. “To see how you are. It’s been a couple of years since-”

“I prefer not to talk about it,” I interrupt.

“That’s understandable,” he agrees in a soothing voice.

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