Fear

Chapter 2

2

Pryce looked at the woman across the booth from him. Something told him she was lying, but he had no reason to think she would be. Even if she agreed with what this vigilante was doing, people had no reason to protect her.

Pryce nodded, focusing on his pie so he’d stop staring at Edie’s mouth as she ate. Her lips wrapped around her fork, and her tongue darted out to lick off the last bit of deliciousness. He should not be getting hard from a woman eating pie, for f**k’s sake.

But he totally was.

Pryce cleared his throat. “So, uh, do you live around here?”

She looked up at him, startled, like he caught her. “Why?”

Pryce shrugged. “You said you saw me take that guy away. I figured the sirens woke you up.”

She shook her head, hiding her eyes by focusing on her coffee. She took a healthy sip. Must be decaf if she was going home to bed. Unless she lied about that.

“I was on my way here.”

“Here?” Pryce asked, more than a little shocked.

He looked more closely at Edie. She wore black jeans and a purple sweater. Her face had traces of makeup from earlier in the day. She was stunning, but she looked a little more pulled together than the diner they were sitting in.

“Can you really tell me the pie isn’t worth it?” she asked.

Pryce chuckled. “You got me there.”

She smiled at him, and Pryce was momentarily speechless. She was beautiful before, but when she smiled, she was downright stunning. Her eyes lit up with humor, and her full cheeks plumped up. Her skin glowed, the brown tones highlighted like she was a work of art instead of real. Her lips had a sheen on them, like she’d licked them right before she looked at him.

He wasn’t sure he could survive the rest of the night. Not without kissing her. And that was a very bad idea.

“So, what—”

Her question was interrupted by the squawk of Pryce’s radio. He kept it turned down when he was inside, but the screech was loud and drew the attention of half the people in the diner.

“This is Officer Murphy,” Pryce said into the radio, pressing his lips into a smile for Edie.

“Vehicle accident. Are you available?”

Pryce looked down at the crumbs left on his plate and back up at Edie. She was watching him closely. He wanted to know what she was thinking. If she wanted him to stay. He couldn’t, but he wanted to.

“Ten-four. On my way out now. I’ll call right back for the address.”

“Copy.”

Pryce put his radio back on his belt and slid to the edge of the booth. “Thank you for letting me share your booth. And for letting me buy you a slice of pie. I apologize for running off.”

Edie smiled. “Understood. Duty calls. I need to get home, anyway.”

“Can I walk you out?”

Edie’s smile faltered but only for a second. She shook her head. “I don’t want to hold you up. I need to use the restroom before I go.” She held up her hands. “Sticky.”

“Understood. Well, hopefully I’ll see you again sometime, Edie.”

“You know my name?” she gasped.

Pryce looked at the counter. “I thought that was what Jenny called you. I apologize if I heard wrong.”

She shook her head. “No, that’s right. I just didn’t realize. It was nice meeting you, Officer.”

“Pryce Murphy,” he said. “Call me Pryce.”

She looked him up and down, then nodded. “Pryce.”

“Be careful going home, Edie.”

“You be careful, too.”

He nodded, then hurried to the door. He stopped when he got to the door, then looked back at her. Edie lifted her hand in a wave. Pryce returned her wave, then went to his car, reluctant to go back to work for the first time in a very long time.

* * *

Edie pushed her way into the bathroom and drew a deep breath. She couldn’t remember being attracted to a man since she walked away from the hell that motivated her to take down men who thought they could do whatever they wanted to others.

Pryce was… different. She’d thought that before, so just the thought sent a shiver down her spine. The last man she had that thought about was Damon Street. A man who said he was going to help her, then held her captive as a toy to mess with.

Street deserved the bullet he got to the chest. More than almost anyone else Edie had ever known.

And any similarities to him and Pryce made her more than a little anxious about the man she’d found herself attracted to as they shared a table and a love for peach pie.

Edie waited until she was sure Pryce would be gone, then walked out of the bathroom with clean hands and an empty bladder. She stopped by the counter to say goodnight to Jenny and was surprised when the woman grinned conspiratorially at her.

“Officer Murphy seemed pretty smitten with you.”

Edie laughed it off. “He was just being kind.”

Jenny shook her head. “I’m not so sure about that. I’ve never seen him buy pie for anyone else. He’s in here almost as much as you are, too.”

“Really? I’ve never seen him here.”

Jenny shrugged. “Guess you’ve just missed each other. He’s good to the neighborhood. I think it’s because he doesn’t have a partner. He talks to the people who live around here. Makes sure no one will go after him.”

“Why would anyone go after him?”

Jenny shrugged. “Not everyone likes the police.”

“Don’t blame them,” Edie mumbled.

“Officer Murphy is good, though. He’s always watching out for this neighborhood. He was probably hoping to find out something about that vigilante that’s been on the news lately.” Jenny’s words held an edge.

“That’s what he said,” Edie replied, not willing to get into more of a discussion about her alter-ego.

“Well, I think anyone who’s looking to take criminals off the street is doing us a favor.” Her pointed look made Edie wonder if the sweet diner employee knew more than she was letting on. “But I also think if everyone was just a little nicer to each other, the world would be a better place.”

“Not everyone is willing to do that,” Edie said without thinking.

Jenny nodded. “I agree. Which is why that woman is a gift to us.”

Edie nodded slowly, wondering if there were more people who agreed with Jenny or more who agreed with Pryce. Edie had never cared a lot about what others thought, but hearing two opposing views in one night made her think.

“Well, have a good night, Edie. Be careful.”

“You, too, Jenny.”

Jenny nodded, then went back to wiping down the counter, working her way over to the booth where Edie and Pryce had been.

Edie let herself out of the diner, relieved when there was no police car outside. She walked across the well-lit parking lot to where she parked her borrowed van and let herself in. The engine cranked up without a second of hesitation, and Edie pulled out onto the street.

The streets were quiet at quarter-to-eleven on a Tuesday night. Most people were asleep in preparation for the next day of work and school. Edie liked the quiet of the night, almost as much as she liked knowing she was doing something to help. Something she never felt like she had the power to do before.

Edie parked the van in the lot behind Shelter in the Storm. She locked it and pocketed the keys Frannie let her have. The house was mostly dark, but the lights all around the outside were bright, erasing all shadows between the parking lot and the door.

Edie let herself in the side door. She locked it behind her, doing her best to stay quiet so she didn’t wake anyone up. Frannie and Marcus were doing her a favor by letting her stay there. Frannie was wonderful. She owned Shelter in the Storm, a dream she created after she witnessed a woman murdered in an alley. Frannie wanted to give women a place to go when they had nowhere else to turn. And she’d done that. Marcus was the police captain, and Frannie’s husband. The two of them protected the women who stayed in the shelter, helping them to heal and rebuild their lives.

Edie thought of herself as lucky to call them friends. Even though she felt like their generosity was so much more than just a roof over her head. Edie needed Frannie and Marcus’s help just as much as every other woman who called the place home, for however long they were there.

Edie turned to the door that led up the stairs to the rest of the shelter. Frannie and Marcus lived in the basement, and the others lived upstairs. There was almost always someone awake, but curfew was eleven, so Edie was careful to be quiet in case others were sleeping.

“Hey,” someone said as Edie stepped onto the bottom step to go up to her room.

She stopped and turned, spotting the young woman on the living room couch. Charlotte was barely a legal adult, but she’d already witnessed the worst a person could see. Her boyfriend tried to kill her, and she was lucky enough to escape from him. When she got to the police station, Marcus called Frannie and had Charlotte whisked away before the boyfriend could figure out where she was.

Not that he didn’t try. But Charlotte was safe. If safe meant hiding from a man who vowed to finish the job if he ever found her.

“Hi,” Edie said, changing direction to speak to Charlotte.

“Where were you?”

“Visiting a friend,” Edie said. Her standard lie. She told everyone she was visiting a friend whenever she went anywhere. Most people didn’t ask for more.

Charlotte wasn’t most people.

“Who’s your friend?”

Edie shrugged. “Jenny. What are you doing up?”

Charlotte picked at her nailbed, the pink skin turning red before she made her way through the layers of skin to the blood beneath.

“Are you okay?”

Charlotte shrugged and laughed mirthlessly. “Are any of us okay? I mean, really?”

Edie sighed and sank to a seat on the couch across from Charlotte. Charlotte was curled up on a chair, looking younger than eighteen. Edie was so full of hope and excitement when she was Charlotte’s age. On her way to college on a scholarship to play tennis. Surrounded by new friends and fun. Her whole life was ahead of her.

Sixteen years later, nothing had turned out the way Edie was foolish enough to hope for back then.

“Have you talked to Stacey?” Edie asked.

Charlotte shared one night that she didn’t like talking to Stacey. The counselor for the women in the shelter, Stacey, was kind and understanding and compassionate. But Charlotte couldn’t relate to her, according to her excuses.

Edie was fairly sure she was not willing to face the s**t in her head. If that wasn’t the pot calling the kettle black, Edie didn’t know what was.

“Why? Talking isn’t going to change anything.” It was Charlotte’s default answer.

One Edie didn’t have a good response to. “Maybe it’ll help.”

“Are you talking to her?”

Edie eyed the younger woman. Stacey was a friend. Even if Edie didn’t like the idea of talking to her as a therapist, Stacey was a wonderful person and someone Edie thought of as a friend. “I’ll go if you go,” Edie said.

Charlotte narrowed her eyes at Edie. “Why?”

Edie shrugged. “Maybe it’s time for both of us.”

Charlotte rolled her eyes and went back to picking at her nails. It was a good sign, even as more blood oozed from the wounds. It meant she was actually thinking about it.

“Fine. But you go first.”

Edie nodded. Busted. She was planning to make Charlotte go, then never get an appointment. It was a shitty plan, but it was all she had.

“Agreed. But you have to go.”

“I will if you do.”

Edie examined Charlotte and nodded once, an agreement.

“You going to bed?” Edie asked.

Charlotte shrugged but unfolded herself from the chair. Edie knew the only sleep Charlotte got was fitful and usually resulted in being woken by a nightmare. Their rooms were next door, but Charlotte never woke Edie up. Edie didn’t sleep any better than Charlotte. She’d just learned not to scream when the nightmares woke her.

At the top of the stairs, they turned down the hallway. They didn’t touch, neither was okay with touching, but Edie waited until Charlotte reached her door and waved. When Charlotte went inside her room and locked the door, Edie followed suit, hoping sleep would be nicer to her than it usually was.

* * *

Edie sat in the chair in the corner of her room, staring at the door. She’d spent the night alternating between dreams she couldn’t remember but knew were terrifying and remembering the look of delight in Pryce’s eyes when he took a bite of pie.

The world outside was waking up, and it wouldn’t be long before the world inside the house would follow. Charlotte was up. Her nightmare came just after five, which was a little more sleep than she’d gotten the night before. Edie heard Charlotte moving around in her room, changing positions and staying busy. Probably so she didn’t fall asleep again.

Edie was restless and felt the need for coffee. Her stomach rumbled, telling her breakfast was a good idea, too. Her slice of peach pie was digested and gone, and even though the house was quiet, she hoped she’d be able to find something in the kitchen.

Edie let herself out of her room and closed her door silently, not wanting to disturb the others, and secretly not wanting to let Charlotte know she was awake. Edie liked Charlotte a lot, but the nightmares made Edie felt like her skin was too tight. When she felt that way, being around others was a challenge.

Well, more of a challenge.

No one was in the hallway, but the lights were on downstairs. Edie hugged the wall, having learned months ago that the right side of the stairwell didn’t creak. She made it to the front hallway before she heard voices.

“I can’t do anything,” Marcus said. His voice was rough, broken. Like he’d given up.

But on what?

“There’s nothing you can do? A man like that is going to go back out onto the streets?” Frannie hissed.

Marcus grunted. “You know I wish I could change that, but the system works that way. He made bail, so he’s going to get out.”

“And you know what he’s going to do.” Frannie was not happy.

Marcus sighed heavily. “Yeah. He’s going to sell more drugs and probably kill more teenagers.”

Edie sucked in a silent breath. No. It wasn’t possible. The man she gift wrapped last night was getting out of jail? After a handful of hours? A teenager died. Because of him. He all but admitted it, even though Edie couldn’t tell them that without also confessing she was the one who tied him up. What was wrong with their justice system?

“I thought you said he confessed,” Frannie said.

That was news to Edie, good news. She tiptoed closer to make sure she didn’t miss a word.

“Officer Murphy tricked him into saying the girl’s name. Murphy called the girl Sara, but the guy corrected him to Tara.”

“That’s good. Why is he being let out?”

“You know why,” Marcus barked. He drew a breath and let it out slowly, the sound of it audible in the otherwise silent house. “Tara’s name was on the news. Reports of her death were all over the place. The guy said he heard it somewhere. Not that he knew her. Not that he had any contact with her. Just that he heard it.”

“You know that’s utter bullshit, right?”

“Of course I do.” Marcus laughed sourly. “But I can’t do anything. What am I supposed to tell them? The vigilante is only capturing bad guys, so this guy must be bad. The justice system doesn’t know as much as she does?”

“Sure, you could start with that,” Frannie said. Her tone was soothing and kind.

A sharp contrast to the anger and pain Edie felt. She wanted to rush in there and tell Marcus she was the vigilante. That she was the one bringing all those guys down. She could share all the information she used to find them.

But she knew the system. She’d learned a lot when she was living in safe houses. She’d learned how evidence needed to be discovered, how it needed to be handled, and who could turn it over. If any of that was messed up, the guilty party walked free.

Which was so f*****g ridiculous. Because most of these criminals were smarter than the cops investigating them. They knew how to manipulate the system. They knew what to say and do in order to get out.

As evidence by the fact that the guy she had in cuffs less than twelve hours earlier was already about to walk free.

“If there’s something out there to find on this guy, we will find it,” Marcus said. His tone was firm, a promise.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t the first promise Edie had heard from law enforcement. So far, few promises were kept. Which was why she decided to take matters into her own hands two months ago. She refused to sit around and wait for them to find something. To let these people walk free when others were being held captive for the enjoyment of the sick f***s who decided they were in power.

No. Edie wasn’t going to sit back and let it happen like that. She was going to stop the evil that was ruining Niagara Falls. She was going to help make it beautiful again.

Even if she had to do it alone.