Page 47 of Griffin

He seemed to think Todd was just using me, failing to see the real risk involved. That stung.

But then my mind wandered to my recent streams. No sign of the stalker. No creepy messages. No veiled threats.

The realization was almost a relief, like a weight I hadn’t even realized I was carrying had been lifted.

They'd probably changed their username—wouldn't be the first time. But the DMs had gone silent too.

That had never happened before, not since this nightmare had started. It was hard not to think that the stalker was satisfied, like my return to streaming had somehow appeased them.

The thought left a bitter taste in my mouth. I shuddered and pushed it aside. It was too much to deal with right now.

But that wasn’t what was eating at me most. No, the real issue was Griffin.

The truth was, the only version of Todd that Griffin knew was the one I’d shown him: the late-night rants, the venting, the moments when frustration boiled over.

Griffin only knew Todd through my complaints, through the cracks in our friendship I’d let him see.

It wasn’t fair to Todd. But then again... maybe it wasn’t entirely untrue.

My head swam, caught in an endless loop. Anger at Griffin for judging Todd. Guilt for painting Todd in such a bad light. Frustration at myself for not being able to stop any of it.

I felt like I was running in circles, and no matter what, I always ended up right back at Griffin.

Noah’s voice cut through my thoughts. “What the hell!” He was holding my phone to his ear. “I’ve been calling you for over an hour, and one phone call from Michael’s number gets you to pick up after one ring?”

My head snapped up so fast it almost hurt. Was he calling Griffin?

The front door swung open, and there he was.

"I was on my way anyway," Griffin said, his tone clipped. His eyes scanned the room, briefly landing on me before flicking back to Noah. "Don’t use his phone to call me again."

“Call Cooper back. Now.” Noah jabbed a finger at him. “He’s been calling me nonstop because he couldn’t get through to you.”

Griffin didn’t respond. His gaze lingered on me, sitting in a booth at the back of the bar, expression unreadable.

For a moment, it seemed like he might come over, but he hesitated, unsure whether he should.

Noah nudged Griffin’s shoulder with the rag, snapping him out of it. “I’m serious, Griffin. Call Cooper. Now.”

“It’ll only take a minute,” Griffin said, finally turning away. His eyes left mine only when he stepped into his small office at the back of the bar.

Noah glanced at the closed door, then shot me an apologetic look. “Did something happen between you two?” His voice softened. “Sorry about him. I don’t know what he did, but… he’s like that sometimes.”

I nodded, forcing a tight smile. “It’s alright.”

Noah looked like he wanted to press further, but he shrugged and went back to work.

A few minutes later, Griffin emerged from the office. I expected him to go straight to Noah, probably to follow up on Cooper’s call, but instead, he crossed the room and slid into the seat across from me.

“Michael,” he said, his voice low but steady.

I glanced up, startled, then quickly dropped my gaze to my hands resting on the table.

“Stop,” I said, cutting him off before he could continue.

“What I said earlier,” I began, my words coming out uneven, “it wasn’t fair to you. I never told you, but Todd doesn’t know why I’m here. He doesn’t know about the stalker, or that I’m hiding out in Pecan Pines because of it.” I took a deep breath, the weight of the admission settling heavily between us.

Griffin shifted slightly but stayed silent, letting me continue.

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