Chapter 102
1091 Words
Dallas was relaxing in bed, listening to the water running in the bathroom. He idly imagined Olivia in the shower, her beautiful body slick and shiny, rivulets of water running between her breasts. He groaned and his c**k hardened immediately.
God, you just came twenty minutes ago, man. Down, boy. Or maybe you should just go and join her.
Just then, in his jeans pocket, Dallas’ cell began to ring. He sat up quickly and answered.
“Mark?”
“You alone, Dallas?”
“Give me thirty seconds.” He grabbed his boxer shorts and jeans, went to his office and closed the door. “OK, go.”
“Sully just called from Castell’s apartment… he picked the lock, no problem, and Sully found one hell of a creepy stalker wall. Actually, a whole f*****g creepy stalker room.”
“What?”
“Yeah. Pictures of Liv, hundreds of ‘em. Some professional from her photo shoots and magazine stuff, some snapped on the street. Lots of her at home, taken from inside the house.”
Dallas’ stomach clenched. “Go on.”
“Sully also found a notebook with all the security codes to Liv’s house written down, and her schedule was on his laptop. And there were also the floor plans to Liv’s house there… but they’re not the same as our plans.”
“What?” Dallas said.
“Yeah. Seems that Castell had the originals, with a small hidden room on the ground floor clearly illustrated, just off the bedrooms. Looks like the entrance is from the closet in the second, smaller guest room, the one down in the basement that Liv uses for storage. But on our plans, that room and its entrance have both been removed.”
“How the f**k would he have been able to do that?”
“It’s not hard to pay someone to modify plans, Dallas.”
“No, not that part – that part I get. I mean, how did he switch the floor plans?”
“Maybe he paid someone off at the property agency? That’s also easy enough to do.”
“Yeah,” Dallas said slowly. “Yeah, I suppose.”
Mark paused. “What are you thinking?”
“I don’t know,” Dallas said. “Just – something. Anyway, what about the infrared scanner?”
“It’ll be here in about forty minutes. And Selena’s on her way to you now with Liv’s clothes. What do you want to do next?”
“Send Sully over here to pick up Olivia, OK? I want him to take her to the office. Selena and I will come to you as soon as Olivia’s on her way.” He glanced at his watch. “We should be there when the scanner arrives, and we’ll be able to see if anyone’s in that hidden room.”
“Ten-four, boss. See you soon.”
Dallas came out of the office and went down to his bedroom. Olivia was standing there with a towel wrapped around her. She smiled, but then she saw the look on his face.
“What?” she asked.
“Listen, baby,” he said calmly. “Selena’s dropping some clothes off, and Sully’s on his way. I want him to take you to the office, OK?”
She searched his eyes. “And you?”
“I’m going to your house.”
“Why?”
“Because the man who’s been stalking you may be hidden there.”
She sat down on the bed. “In my house?”
“Yeah. Maybe.”
She swallowed hard. “He’s in my house?”
“I don’t know for sure, baby. But there’s a good chance he is.”
“And – and he’s been there before?”
“Maybe this whole time.” He forced out the next words. “Maybe for a long time.”
She gasped. “Oh, my God.” She got to her feet and stumbled past him.
“Olivia?” he said, alarmed.
She managed to get to the bathroom in time. She threw up, her body shaking in shock. Dallas knelt down behind her, rubbing her back, holding her long hair in his hand. She sobbed as she vomited, her whole body literally revolting against the idea that someone had been in her home without her knowledge.
Where was he all this time? How long has he been there? Oh, my God… was he in my bed? Did he go through my things? Did he see me naked? Did he touch me when I slept? Oh, God…
She fell backwards now, her strength gone. Dallas helped her to stand up and drink a bit of water, rinse her mouth. He lifted her easily and carried her into the bedroom.
She was crying now, crying in earnest, and he held her close, rocking her back and forth. He felt totally helpless, knowing that he could change nothing about what this asshole had done to her. All Dallas could offer her was the promise that this sick f**k wouldn’t do anything else.
When she had calmed, he took her face in his hands and spoke softly. “It’s going to be OK, Olivia. Sully will keep you safe, and I’m going to go and get this guy. You hear me, baby? If he’s there, I’ll get him. I promise.”
“I can’t go back there, Dallas,” she said, her voice shaking. “I can’t ever live in that house again…”
“You don’t have to,” he said. “You’ll stay with me until you sell it, or burn it down, or whatever the f**k you decide to do with it. OK? Don’t even worry about that, Olivia. Right now, all you need to think about is breathing. Just keep breathing. Can you do that?”
She nodded.
“That’s my girl.” He kissed her forehead. “This is almost over, baby. I promise. Sully will get you to the office, and I’ll meet you there right after. Then we’ll come back here and order some Indian food and eat until we fall into curry comas.” He brushed her lips with his strong fingers. “I think they’re called ‘kormas’.”
She managed a small smile. “Sounds good. And that’s a terrible joke.”
“Yeah, I know.” He heard a car door slam and grabbed his t-shirt. “That’s probably Selena. Stay here while I check.”
“OK.”
- Writer
