Anonymous(42)

“She does. Why do you think I married her?”

Swallowing hard, he clicks on a picture of Samantha. “You’re a lucky man, Jake. I’d found someone like that too, and now she’s been taken away from me.” Tears form in his eyes. “I never thought anything like this would happen to me. I’m an undercover cop for fuck’s sake. I should’ve protected her. Being in my line of work, sometimes it’s hard not to think you’re invincible.”

“I know how that goes. I thought I’d have learned my lesson after my motorcycle accident a few years ago, but it finally took getting run off the road and possibly dying again to make me see the light.” Luckily, in my motorcycle accident, I high-sided and only dislocated a shoulder in the process. My rear brakes had locked up and I was thrown off. Never in my years of riding had I ever had that happen to me.

Terry’s phone rings and he steps out of the room. Officer McGee comes over and takes his place beside the bed to look at the video. We watch more, and nothing exciting happens, until Bryan’s truck pulls up the driveway. It’s dark, but I can see the driver get out of the truck, wearing a dark jacket and a ballcap on his head. He’s taller than Bryan, and a little more muscular up top. I can’t see any distinct facial features.

“He’s back,” I say.

Bryan huffs. “But what for?”

The man sneaks out of view, just as another car pulls into the driveway. I point at the screen. “Is that Samantha pulling in?”

Bryan holds his breath, his focus on the video. We watch as Samantha walks up to the door, dressed in her pink sweater and jeans. My stomach drops because I know what’s about to happen. Bile rises up the back of my throat, especially when I see the dark figure coming up behind her. I know I should turn away, but I can’t. He hits her on the back of the head and carries her to the truck, tossing her in the back, along with the two by four.

Bryan’s chest rises and falls so fast, I’m afraid he’s going to hyperventilate. I’ve seen people lose control and he’s already there. “Bryan,” I say, keeping my voice calm.

“He killed her on my fucking doorstep.” Tears fall freely down his face. He looks up at me and screams. “HE KILLED HER ON MY FUCKING DOORSTEP!” Ripping out his IV, he pushes his computer off the bed and jumps to his feet, slamming his hands on the wall. “I need to get out of here. I need to find him.”

The machines beep out of control and a nurse rushes in. She sees what’s going on and her eyes widen, but by the look on her face, she’s too afraid to approach Bryan. Officer McGee pulls her aside. “We need to get him calmed down.”

Terry hurries in and tries to calm Bryan down, to no avail. Bryan is much stronger, and Terry can’t keep up. I grab Bryan around the waist, pinning his arms to his side. I have my strength from MMA fighting on my side. The nurse scrambles to get to us with a syringe in her hand. “I don’t want that,” he yells.

I squeeze him tighter and he fights me. “If you don’t calm down, that’s exactly what you’ll get. I know what you saw hurt, and I can’t imagine the kind of pain you’re feeling right now, but you have to focus on getting out of here. You can’t help find her killer if you’re doped up in a hospital bed.”

A loud, guttural scream belts out of his mouth and he drops to his knees, completely lost, sobbing uncontrollably. We let him mourn and it’s hard to watch; I feel every ounce of his pain and grief, as if it’s my own. As the minutes pass by, his breathing slows, and his tears stop flowing. Anger takes hold once again, but he’s keeping it restrained—boiling close to the surface. He glares up at Terry, body tense. “I’m out of here tomorrow. I don’t care what you have to do, make it happen. You all know I’m innocent. I need to be out there looking for this bastard. He’s mine.”

When Terry nods, Bryan cooperates with the nurse and sits back on the bed, while she puts his IV back in.

Terry pulls me over to the side. “What the hell happened while I was gone?”

I nod toward the laptop still on the floor. “He watched Samantha’s murder.”

Terry bows his head. “Fuck. No wonder he went crazy.”

“What’s going to happen now?”

He looks over at Bryan whose hard gaze is focused on the ceiling. “We let him go and I clear him of all suspicion. He won’t stop until he finds who’s responsible.”

“Agreed.” The sooner he does, the sooner I can have my wife back.





Twenty





Jake





Sleep was no friend of mine last night. I’d received a text from this anonymous asshole around midnight, and I’ve been staring at it ever since.

xxx-xxx-6334: I’m going to find your wife. She’s MINE.

Even though it’d been late, I called Terry to let him know what happened. The number came from one of the same numbers on Ellie’s phone. All I could think about was what would happen if that fucker did find Ellie. My bags are packed and I’m ready to head to Canada. My flight leaves the day after tomorrow. Terry worked his magic and I’m flying under an alias, to make sure my whereabouts can’t be traced.

The doorbell rings and by the time I get to the door, the FedEx truck is leaving my driveway. I pick up the large envelope and it’s from Arizona—the contract for our new house. Before I head to Canada, I’m going to sign and ship them back. I’m ready to get out there and start a new life with Ellie.