Acts of Desperation(33)

I quietly went downstairs and into the kitchen, following the sound. I saw the source glowing on the granite countertop—his cell phone. It was just after two, and I wondered who’d be texting or calling at that hour. I walked up and glanced down at the screen then my breath caught in my throat.

There were multiple text messages from an unknown number, and they all said the same thing.

MURDERER.





Chapter Fourteen


“Can you come get me?” I whispered into my phone. I was hiding in Jax’s office.

“Sember? What time is it? What’s wrong?” Liz said, her voice groggy with sleep.

“I need you to come get me right now. I’m at Jax’s. Don’t ask me any questions. I’ll explain later, but I need to get out of here now.”

“You’re scaring me. Are you ok?” she asked.

“Yes. I’m fine. But come now.” I gave her the address.

“Ok, sit tight. It shouldn’t take me but ten minutes.”

“Ok, hurry. I’ll be outside.” I hung up and took a shaky breath.

I crept back up to the bedroom and grabbed my clothes. I stood next to the bed and watched Jax sleep again. What was he hiding from me? He mumbled something under his breath then rolled over. I nearly had a heart attack, so I snuck back downstairs, glancing back over my shoulder once, and got dressed in the kitchen. I grabbed my purse off the table and slipped out the front door.

Within minutes, Liz’s car pulled up to the curb.

“What the hell is going on?” she asked.

“Just go,” I said, sliding in.

She hit the gas, and we sped away.

“You’re freaking me out,” she said. So without further ado, I told her about the messages I discovered on Jax’s phone. “What? That’s messed up.”

“I know. I don’t know what to think. He still hasn’t told me his little secret. Then, I found this picture of a girl shoved in a book. Liz, she looked a lot like me. But when he saw me looking at it, he snatched it out of my hand. What if he’s some crazy serial killer?”

“I highly doubt he’s a serial killer, Sember.” Ok, hearing her say it did make it sound ridiculous.

“I know, but he’s hiding something from me, and what would explain those messages?”

“You’ve got me there. I have no idea, but I’m glad you called me. I wouldn’t have wanted to stick around either.”

When we got home, we locked up the house and went up to bed. I borrowed one of Liz’s t-shirts from her closet.

“I’m staying in here with you tonight.” I wasn’t asking either, it was a fact. Throughout our friendship, we’d had countless sleepovers. One night after we played with a Ouija board, it set the precedent for us sleeping together when we were spooked.

“That’s fine, but if you put your cold feet on me, you’re outta here.” She winked.

I laughed. “Deal.” Then we crawled into bed and went to sleep.

****

I heard a shuffling noise. “What time is it?” I asked.

“Six thirty,” Liz whispered.

“What are you doing?”

“I’ve got a bridal party going into hair at seven thirty. I need to make sure everything runs smoothly. It can start going wrong right from the get-go. Girls forget to eat then they drink too much alcohol. I need to be there to supervise the whole time to ensure a prefect, fairy tale day. Are you gonna be alright? I hate to ditch you.”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I’m here,” I said, despite the growing uneasiness that hit me every time I’d rolled over in my sleep.

“K. I’ll check in with you later,” she said.

While Liz showered, I must have fallen back asleep because I don’t remember hearing her leave. When I woke up, I looked over to my phone. I’d turned it off before we went to bed, and I dreaded hitting the power button to turn it back on.

I went down to the living room and sat on the couch with a warm mug of coffee. I stared at the TV as I tried to make sense of what I’d seen. The mystery girl’s face flashed in my mind and then the text messages. They were running in a loop over and over in my mind. I couldn’t make sense of it.

When a knock came at my door, my stomach dropped. Jax had probably rushed right over when he discovered I’d gone. He was likely either pissed or confused, or maybe some combination of the two. But, it was time to face the music and get some answers.

I set my mug down and wrapped a blanket around my waist since I was still only wearing Liz’s t-shirt and my undies. I took a deep breath and opened the door. I was surprised when I saw John.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

He didn’t acknowledge me and pushed his way inside.

“O-k…I guess come on in,” I said, shutting the door. There was something off about the way he looked; it was peculiar. He just stood and stared at me. “Do you…want a cup of coffee or something?” I started walking toward the kitchen. When he didn’t respond, I turned back to look at him. “John?”

“This isn’t over, you and me,” he said.

“Yes, it is,” I said. “Why are you here?”

“None of my calls are going through.”

“Yeah, I know because you wouldn’t stop calling me. I blocked you,” I said. I loved that new addition with the latest Apple software update.