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“Eden?” Chandler said, his tone worried. “Are you still there?”
She swallowed hard past her dry throat and nodded, even though he couldn’t see her. “Yeah, I’m still here. But…” They slowed for another light ahead and Eden peered even more closely in the rearview mirror at the car behind her and saw the driver. From the build it was definitely a man, but he had on a mask, so she couldn’t see his face. Didn’t matter. Deep inside, she knew it was him.
“Eden?” Chandler said again, his voice louder now as his concern edged higher. “What the hell is going on?”
“Someone’s following me,” she said, keeping one eye on traffic and the other on the car behind her. “I think it’s Terry.” Shoulders stiff with tension, she gripped the steering wheel tight. “He’s riding my bumper. I think he wants me to have another accident.” Her voice caught. “I’m scared, Chandler. I don’t know what to do.”
“Shit. Okay, Eden. Darling. It’s going to be okay. You’re going to be okay. But I need you to trust me and do what I say. Do you trust me?”
“Y-yes,” she said, the words sticking in her dry mouth. “He’s getting closer again. Fuck!”
The vehicle shook from another small collision. Cars around her honked and pointed, some taking videos on their phones. She hoped someone was calling the police. She’d do it herself, but she didn’t think she could get through this without Chandler on the line with her.
“All right,” Chandler said. “Here’s what I need you to do for now. Do your best to stay on the road and remain as steady as possible. Can you do that for me?”
They took a couple of deep breaths together and it helped her.
“Yes. Okay. I can do this.”
“You absolutely can do this. You’re amazing, Eden. You’ve got this. Keep driving,” Chandler continued, his tone calming her more than she could say. “Stay on busy streets. Don’t let him corner you on small, quiet roads or in a parking lot. All those people taking pictures and videos? They’re helping you. If he really went after you, he’d have a hell of a time getting away afterward with the crowd boxing him in.”
“Got it,” she said, sounding as shaky as she felt. “Should I go faster?”
“No. Don’t speed,” he said, adamant. “In fact, slow down. I know it’s tempting to try to get away, but the faster you go, the easier it is to lose control of your vehicle.” He exhaled slow. “In your mini-bus, you’d have a harder time keeping control at higher speeds than he would—not to mention, he’ll probably be able to outpace you, no matter what he’s driving. Those buses are nice, but they’re not exactly speed demons.”
Despite the situation, he made her chuckle, and a few tiny knots between her shoulder blades unfurled. She was still scared as hell, but having Chandler there with her—even remotely—made her feel safer, more secure. She loved him for that.
Wait. What? She loved him?
She put the thought aside—it was not helpful now.
“Hey,” he said. “You still there?”
“Yep. Still here.”
“Good. You’re doing great.”
“You can’t even see me.”
“Don’t need to. I know you, Eden. Like I said before. You’ve got this.” The warmth in his tone helped defrost the chill of fear inside her.
Bump!
The asshole rammed her back bumper again. This time she got pissed. She’d just bought this thing. Anger was good, right? Better than stark raving fear anyway. She also recovered and stayed in her lane faster and better than before too—the slower speed was definitely helping her with control. Maybe Chandler was right. Maybe she did have this.
“Where are you now?” Chandler asked.
Eden looked around and told him her location.
“There’s a police station not far from there, on Radcliffe Street. I want you to head there now. Understand? I’ll meet you there.”
“Don’t hang up!” she yelled.
“I won’t. Promise.” Through the phone line, she could hear sounds of him leaving his house, getting in his own car and starting it. “I’m about ten minutes away. We should arrive at the same time. Just stay with me.”
“I will.” As she got closer to the police station and it became apparent where she was going, the car behind her took off, zooming around her fast, darting through traffic and running lights. Luckily, they didn’t hit any other cars.. Unfortunately, it had been too fast for her to get a good read on the license plate number, just a glimpse before they’d sped away. A letter and maybe a number, that was all. Not helpful. The best she could hope for was that one of the people who had filmed the whole scene would post it online or send it to the police.
A few minutes later, Eden pulled into the police station parking lot. Chandler followed shortly thereafter. As soon as she was out of her vehicle, it all caught up with her—the return of her memories of the clerk’s murder, the car chase, everything—and she would’ve collapsed on the ground in a sobbing mess if Chandler hadn’t been there to take her in his arms and hold her close. Normally, she wasn’t a crier, especially in public, where other people could see, but by that point, Eden was too exhausted to care. She just threw herself into his arms and held on as hard as she could.
