Page 33 of Dark Obsession

She had thought more than once that Scott might be the one stalking her, and once again, she had no evidence.But she still put him at the top of her list.He was the only person in town she could think of who made her uncomfortable and creeped her out.

Keira sighed.The shop was quiet for the first time that day giving her a chance to catch her breath.The morning had flown past.Between customers, receiving supplies, and trying to stock the shelves, lunchtime arrived before she knew it.

“Vicki, I’m going to get us some lunch from Frankie’s.What do you want?”

“I’ll take the soup and grilled cheese special.”

Keira looked up from her purse.“That does sound good, maybe I’ll try it, too.”

“Hey, Keira, we haven’t had a chance to talk this morning.”Vicki walked toward her.Her brows pinched with concern.“Is something going on that I could help with?”

Keira paused, swiped any emotion from her face, and took a quiet breath before raising her gaze to Vicki’s.“Why would you ask that?”

“Because every day that passes, you look more tired and a little more stressed.Is it the shop?”

“No, it’s not the shop.”

“Daniel?”Vicki asked.

“No, I’m just missing my sister, and it’s always a lot to deal with when you move to a new town.”Keira looked down again, afraid Vicki would see through her lie.

Vicki looked skeptical.“Are you sure that’s it?It even looks like you’ve lost weight.I understand if you don’t want to talk to me, but maybe you should call Layla.”

Keira grabbed her purse and shook her head.“Absolutely not.I’m fine, I promise.But I promise to tell you if I need help, okay?”

Vicki crossed her arms over her chest.“All right, I’ll leave it alone for now.”

“Good.But thank you for worrying about me.It’s nice to know someone cares.”Keira hugged her quickly before walking out the back door.

Keira leaned against the door and breathed a sigh of relief.She wanted so badly to confide in someone, but was afraid they wouldn’t believe her either or think she was being ridiculous.

As she approached her car, her stomach tightened in fear as she caught sight of the piece of paper on the dashboard with, “I’m watching you,” written boldly in black marker.Then she noticed the unlocked car door.

A fine trembling started at her hands and moved slowly down her body until it felt like she might shatter.Three little words caused this wave of bundled panic.The only thought going through her fear-filled body was,he can get to me anywhere.

Terror raced through her.Her house had been locked, and she knew she had locked the car when she got here.How did he get into a locked car?She knew there were ways to unlock cars, but she hadn’t known it would be so easy.

Keira unsteadily put the paper in her purse.A sense of helplessness raced through her before a slight feeling of anger took hold.She was not going to stand by and let this happen.Before she picked up lunch, she was stopping by the police department.She knew they couldn’t do anything, but at least she’d have it all on record.Taking that step calmed something in her, giving her back some of the control her stalker was trying to steal from her.

Keira’s heart stuttered with anxiety as she walked into the lobby of the police department.Her eyes widened at all the activity, smells, and sounds.Everywhere she looked, some kind of drama played out.

“Can I help you?”

Keira jerked at the gravelly voice behind her.Her eyes lifted until she could focus on the man’s face standing next to her.“Y-yes, thank you, I would like to report a stalking?”

The cop looked her over.His cop eyes seemed to see into the heart of people, and it made her uncomfortable.

“Let me get you someone.Go sit over there?”

She released a relieved sigh.One more step forward, she thought.“Thank you.”

Keira walked on shaky legs to a bench against the wall, sitting down carefully because wads of gum and what looked like different kinds of fluid were smeared on the wooden, beat-up benches.

For several minutes, she watched cops, in uniform and not.Some people, she guessed, were in trouble because of the heightened levels of emotion and desperation on their faces.

The building itself felt cold to her.Inside and out.From the white cracked linoleum to the faded grey walls.Everywhere she looked, everything looked rough and worn.She gasped when two uniformed policemen came through the doors, dragging a man screaming obscenities at them.No matter how hard the man struggled, the officers had total control over him.It amazed her that neither man seemed to care.

“Ma’am?”

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