Monsters & Fairytales (47 page)

I picked up papers and anything else that was lying on the countertop. Then I remembered that Joe had never given it back. I looked up for him and saw him walking out the window.

“Joe?!”
I whimpered. Was he really leaving me? “Come back.”

“What for?”

He jumped the railing to his apartment. I rushed over and looked out the window. He was gone. I sat on the couch and started crying. I wasn’t being ridiculous, I wasn’t. I was terrified; however right he was. All I knew was what he had told me. I didn’t remember this guy. I didn’t remember the rest of Tuesday or much of Wednesday without Joe in it. This isn’t fair.

“Mira, I’m sorry.”

Joe was in front of me. It scared me. I hadn’t even heard him open my window back up. Had he ever closed it?

“No, it’s my fault. You were right. You’d never let anything happen to me, you’ve more than shown that.” I wiped my tears away.

“I’m glad you realize that. Can you call off the cops now?” He smiled.

“What? No.”

I felt my temper rise up again. What had just happened?

“Are you serious?”

He stood up. We were right back to square one.

“Yes? Joe, I want to make sure I am safe. You can only do so much. If I don’t get a police report in on this guy, then when something does happen, it’ll look like I let it happen, like I was just asking for it.”

“They are just going to waste your time.” He laughed.

“Why are you so against this?”

I watched him pace nervously around my living room.

“
Nothing.
Look, I support whatever it is you feel you have to do, okay? I just don’t want to be here and flip out on them. I know they are going to treat you like crap and laugh in your face. Can you let me know when they leave? My number is in your cell, I programmed it last night.”

He walked over and held my cheeks. He had a nervous smile across his face. I was desperate to understand what was happening, but I knew he wasn’t going to explain himself.

He kissed the top of my head and rushed back over to the window. Leaping out, he disappeared over the railing to his balcony. I was just standing there. I looked down and realized I was still in my pajamas. I was sure that as much as the cop would appreciate me keeping the “crime scene” as authentic as possible, this was highly inappropriate.
             

I raced off to my bedroom to put on regular shorts and not boxers. Thank goodness I chose a normal spaghetti strap shirt rather than a pajama top; it made that part much easier. All I needed to do was swap out my sports bra with a legitimate one, and I’d be presentable.
             

I found some cargo shorts that matched and slid them on. Right as I was snapping my bra, Spike was snorting down the hallway.
Perfect timing.
The cops arrived. I opened the door right as he knocked.

“Ms. Frances?”
The officer asked.

“Yes, that’s me.” I said.

I was struggling to hold Spike back and keep the door from slamming in his face. He didn’t seem to notice much, though.

“Hi, I’m Officer Johnston. Says here that you think the man that is trying to hurt you is in your house or...was in your house?”

“Yes, sir.”
I nodded.

I finally managed to pull Spike back far enough so that the officer could get into the apartment.

“Do you have any sort of an alarm set or anything like that?”

He had a funny country accent. I watched him tap his pen on the pad in his hand and look around my living area.

“No, sir.”

“
Alrighty
.
And how do you think he got in?”

Officer Johnston
pulled up his pants
and sat on one of the stools at the bar in the kitchen.

“Not sure, sir, if I had to guess I’d say one of my windows. As you can see, anyone can access my balcony.”

I pointed behind me. He tilted his head to look around me. With a deep breath, he got up and walked over to it. He opened the window and climbed out. I watched him look over the railing and around the corners. He came back inside rather quickly.

“Tell me a bit about this fellow so I know how to identify him and what to expect.”

“Well, that’s the issue. I don’t remember him.”

“You don’t remember him?”

He looked at me, dumbfounded.

“Yes. Yesterday morning I woke up in my room and I couldn’t remember anything. I spent the whole day at the hospital getting tested and turns out I got a concussion. Apparently, my friend seems to think, or well, seems to know that it was this man, Sebastian.”

“Is this friend here?”

“No, he just left.”

“Well, now…” He stopped to keep himself from laughing. “Why on earth would you send away the one person that can identify this person?”

“I didn’t send him away.”

I was severely offended by how the cop was talking to me. Joe seemed to be right. I could see him cursing out the officer right about now for the way he was acting. Of course, if Joe were here, then he probably wouldn’t be laughing in my face.

“Well, can you call him back?” Officer Johnston leaned close. He sort of whispered it in a threatening manner.

“If I had his number, yes.”
I hissed back.

I wasn’t afraid of him and I wasn’t about to try to call up Joe when he had specifically said all of this was going to happen.

“Well, there’s not much I can do.”

“You can’t write up a report?”

I didn’t want to let him leave that easily. I held my ground in front of the door.

“For what, now?”

“This letter that I got.”

I touched my pockets, I didn’t have it. I’d forgotten to get it back.

“You okay?” He asked when he saw me panicking.

“I lost it.” I said.

“Then no, I can’t write up a report.”

“You can’t check the premises for me and make sure I’m safe?” I was pleading.

“
Not if I don’t know who I’m looking for.”

He started to walk towards the door. He seemed as if he were going to leave no matter if I was in the way or not.

“Excuse me! But I am the only one who lives here. So if you find anyone, and I mean anyone, in this apartment, then they don’t belong here!”

I took a step towards him to claim alpha.
             

“Are you sure?” He asked looking at me curiously.

“Yes.” I stared back into his eyes. He was a terrible man.

He sighed,
then
told me to hold on a second. I watched him close his notepad and put that and the pen into his shirt pocket. Then he carefully reached for his belt and pulled out his flashlight. Great, that’ll do a lot of good. He adjusted his
belt over his bulbous belly
and then disappeared down the hallway.
             

I quickly stopped Spike from following. We sat on the floor together, waiting. After a few doors opened, and a few windows creaked, I heard him walking back towards me.

“Well, Ms. Frances, everything seems to be fine. Whoever left you that note has long left the area. I can assure you.”

For the last time, I hoped, I watched him adjust his belt. It was really rather worse from this angle.

“Thank you.” I said.

I stood up and let Spike go. He ran around the corner to see what all the fuss was about.

“If he’s not afraid, then you should know you’re safe.” Officer Johnston winked.

“And if you feel at any time that you aren’t safe, you just call us again or call me directly. But I checked every room and every closet. I looked under all the beds, and as you can tell, I checked the balcony. There is no one else in or around this apartment.”

He handed me his card. I thanked him for everything in a very dry voice. At least he was trying to make up for things. He smiled and nodded, then opened the door. I closed it and locked it behind him. I let out a huge sigh. It was more of a scream of frustration. Why was this happening? Staring at his card, I wanted to just rip it up. How pathetic. I tossed it on the counter. I’d throw it away later.
             

Something made me feel uneasy in this place, despite him telling me I was okay. I wasn’t sure I honestly believed he checked everywhere. Actually, I wasn’t sure that he could even see Sebastian at all. I seemed to only see him in my dreams and subconscious. Maybe I was dumb for calling him? If Sebastian had showed himself once before, he’d do it again.
             

I took a careful step down my hallway. I was cautious. Spike gave me a weird look. He’d never seen him. All I could see was that figure. It’s what haunted my subconscious, regardless of my present surroundings. It was even there in the doorway of my closet as I walked by.
             

I went into my bathroom and splashed some water on my face. I just needed to relax. Spike was still next to me. On a normal day, having him at my side would’ve let me know I was safe, but lately, things hadn’t been very normal. It was all in my head, but I expected Spike to be able to read my mind.

I threw myself on my bed and grunted. I needed to call Joe. I wanted to apologize for everything. I reached over on my nightstand and picked up my phone. He had saved his name in my phone with a nickname that said, ‘fiancé’. I couldn’t help but to smile. I didn’t know what I’d say to him when he answered; ‘Hey the cops left, you were right’.
             

I felt myself panicking again. I decided to just send him a text message. It’d be the easiest way to start a conversation without any confrontation.
             

A few seconds after sending him a smile face, I heard a jingle from my closet. That was really odd. Maybe he’d left it in there when he’d changed his clothes? He had walked out in a new outfit with nothing in his hands. No, he had had all his things in his hands. No, he’d had nothing.
             

I rolled over to get up and go to the closet, but I noticed a figure. It was the same figure I had seen in the doorway, earlier. He was real. He had been there the whole time! I was screaming.

“Mirabelle!
Mirabelle!
Shh
!” The creature cooed from the closet.

His voice rang familiarity. I stopped screaming. Sebastian?

“What do you want?!” I whispered.

Spike wasn’t freaking out. In fact he was whimpering. He wanted to go greet this intruder.

“I know. I’m sorry.”

It was odd, but Sebastian seemed to be speaking to Spike instead of me.

“Are you talking to my dog?” I asked.

“Yes. I am calming him down. He really wants to say, ‘Hi’ to me, but he’s angry at how you feel towards me. He doesn’t understand it, but he’s going to side with you.”

“Of course he is
,
he’s my dog. And I’d expect him to maul your throat to shreds with the way you knocked me unconscious and just abandoned me here with no memory!”

It was Sebastian. I knew it.

“I would never do that.”

He took a step out of the closet. The light hit his leg and it
shimmered
a purplish green, like that of oil. It was very curious looking.

“You remember me?” He whispered.

“What? No.”

I took my eyes off his leg and looked back to his face. He was hopeful.

“Are you sure?”

He looked at me like he wanted to walk closer, but he knew I wasn’t ready for that. I didn’t trust him.

“Yes. Now, you have three seconds to give me a good reason not to go into my kitchen, get that officer’s number, and call him right back.” I warned, getting up from the bed. I kept my back towards the open doorway, facing the intruder.

“Well, for one reason, I can just disappear and he’ll think you were just as crazy as before.”

“Smooth. That really makes me want to be nice to you.” I interrupted him, rolling my eyes.

“I’m sorry.” He said.

“I’m still waiting on that reason.” I whispered, carefully walking backwards.

If he did anything out of place, if his hair moved in the wrong direction, I was going to run for it.

“I said I was sorry.”

“What are you so sorry for?”

“For not being stronger.
You deserved the truth and I didn’t give it. I just lied to you and let you go. It wasn’t supposed to end that way.”
             

“What are you talking about?”

I was starting down the hall. Spike wasn’t following me. I didn’t have time to wait on him. Sebastian was filling every gap I made.

“We know each other, I promise. Your memory was wiped when you went through The Minakai’s churner.”

“Churner?”

I raised my eyebrow. I was pretty sure if I’d gone through a churner,
I’d be dead by now.