AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Well, you can protect her and still be nice.”
“Not with this one,” I muttered.
“Well, I called to remind you to bring a bottle of wine, that’s all.”
“I’m not bringing wine. It’s not a date, Sarah.”
“Yeah, I’m aware. You messed that one up already.”
I sighed. She was right, but I couldn’t turn back the clock.
“I’ll see you later, Sarah.”
“Bye, Jake.”
I ended the call and stood by Nikole’s door until she came out thirty minutes later.
She had fixed her hair, and her clothes were straighter. The look was like a shield she put up. Hard and unapproachable. I liked it. It was much easier to do my job this way.
In truth, the job was relatively simple. Once I moved her to the second floor, I was able to control access to her. I’d run background checks on all employees at Simon and Feldstein, thanks to the governor, and other than a few small misdemeanors, no one had any priors that concerned me much. There was one girl, Christina. Her record was a lot more colorful than I’d expected, but after looking into the neighborhood she grew up in, I wasn’t worried. I was glad she hadn’t gotten into more trouble, and quite impressed she ended up here and not someplace else.
Nikole drove at a slower pace whenever she went home, whereas she was a speed demon in the mornings. I preferred the relaxing drive home, as she would often play with her hair or sing along to a song and I could see her lips move in the side view mirror. I imagined the songs to be slow ones since her mouth curved slowly and lips pouted at length, as though to hold an extended, ‘Ohhhh’. I would often change stations, trying to find the song she sang, but never could get the right one.
She pulled into her driveway and I jogged up the steps ahead of her, as I always did. I did a quick visual sweep of the area first. A large maple tree partially blocked her front entrance, and I checked around it to make sure there weren’t any footsteps around the soil or any tracks on her mat. Her fragrance hit me as I turned to see her walking up the steps. The wind had picked up, and it blew her hair across her face, brown wisps caressed her cheeks and chin. Her cheeks were rosy from the crisp air and her lips were red. Her eyes had dark spots underneath, though, and I wondered if she hadn’t gotten enough sleep last night. I blinked and turned away while she opened her front door.
She left it open for me, as was our new routine, and I proceeded to check the rooms. Everything appeared as it should. “I’ll see you later,” I said and closed the door behind me.
I sat in my car, with the engine turned off, and settled in for the night.
The weather had grown colder since I started this assignment a week ago. I usually stayed until I saw her bedroom light go off and then drove home. Jager had installed infrared cameras along the perimeter of her home and I knew that a squirrel couldn’t get close to her without one of us being alerted. It helped me sleep at night.
My breath came out in white puffs, and I rubbed my hands together to stay warm. Winter would be here soon, and I hoped we would get the guy before then. I had blankets in my truck, but I rarely used them for myself.
While I contemplated turning the engine on for a few minutes to warm up, I spotted Sarah’s blue hatchback from my side view mirror turn onto the road.
She honked twice as she pulled into the driveway and I raised my hand. After parking the car, Sarah opened the backseat door and pulled out a large pan. That must be her famous lasagna. My stomach protested as my mind recalled its delicious aroma.
To my regret, Sarah walked across the street to my window. “Hey, Jake.”
“Hi, Sarah.”
“You coming in?”
“You know I’m not.”
She pinched her mouth, her lips tightening to a sour pout. It almost looked comical if I didn’t know how deadly of a pinch she packed. I could still remember the bruises from when we were young.
“We’ll see about that.”
She turned around and marched toward the front steps.
With Sarah inside, I breathed a little easier. I’d taught my sister self-defense and a few lethal moves. I knew she could take care of herself.
I settled lower into my seat and closed my eyes for a few seconds, knowing she was inside with Nikole. I hadn’t slept for more than a few hours since starting this job and I knew a full night’s sleep would not come soon.
I spoke to Jager a little while ago, and he gave me a full briefing. They had a visual of the courier who delivered the package. He was a white male, probably in his late thirties or early forties. He wore a beanie, so we weren’t sure if his hair had any gray in it, but the sides were all a light brown. There weren’t any distinct scars or tattoos we could see from the video; he looked quite nondescript. Average. But he had an unusual gait, as though he had sustained a leg injury.
No other packages were delivered since yesterday, and still no more emails.
