Chapter Fifteen
The remainder of that Saturday, Dani threw all of her energy into doubling down on home security.
Her instincts told her she should run away and hide somewhere; disappear and start a whole new life high up in the mountains, far away from people and places and things.
But she knew that if Matt Vickers wanted to find her, he would.
It made little sense to be anywhere else.
At least in her own home she would be playing by her own rules.
If he did manage to find her, he would fall right into her trap, and Dani would be ready and waiting to finish the job she started twenty-five years ago.
“A little late in the year to be getting ready for hurricane season, isn’t it?”
Dani wiped the sweat from her brow and turned toward the familiar voice.
Her neighbor, Carl, stood at the edge of the sidewalk and smiled at her from under the shade of his baseball cap.
His mature pale skin was red from the sun, sweat stains in the shape of a smiley face developing on the front of his pink polo shirt.
Carl was retired and had a habit of intrusively offering his opinion to Dani about everything from how often to run her sprinkler system to which of their neighbors seemed “suspicious.” Dani was usually able to avoid him, but that day, he caught her by surprise.
“I’m just making sure my home security system is functioning properly,” Dani said. “I’m all set for hurricane prep, too.”
“You know, I got a guy that comes out and does my security system for me,” he said. “Really affordable. Cameras and everything. I can give you his number.”
“Thanks. I’m all set though.”
“What is it, one of those DIY doorbell thingies?” Carl scoffed. “Those are no good. Imports. They listen in on your house so they can get your social security numbers and passwords and steal your identity. Nah, you need a good, honest system. Made in the USA, that’s what I say.”
“I’ve got my own custom security system,” she said, suppressing the urge to roll her eyes. “Thank you for your suggestion though.”
“No problemo! Say, it’s been a while since I seen your aunt … eh, Lisa!” He snapped his fingers and his expression lit up. “Wasn’t that her name?”
This time, Dani’s eyes disappeared into the back of her head. “Yes, Aunt Lisa. She was very flattered, but not interested.”
“My offer still stands. Shame to let my season pass to the Rays go to waste.” Carl wiggled his eyebrows. “Invitations open to you, too.”
“No, thank you.” Dani dropped her friendly smile. She’d had enough. “I’m about done out front. I need to go check the back. Take care.”
“Oh! There’s also the neighborhood Fall Festival coming up! We could…”
“Bye, Carl!”
She waved and left him to shout at her back as she disappeared around the corner of the house.
Living in a gated neighborhood was supposed to provide an extra level of security and a way to keep people who aren’t invited at bay.
Too bad some of the people she needed protection from were her own neighbors.
Carl was mostly harmless, but in her brief interactions it became clear that he was the kind of man that wasn’t used to being told “no”.
Dani knew that guys like him were only a few degrees of separation from guys like Matt Vickers.
Total isolation in the mountains was beginning to sound better and better with every passing moment.
Even though her home was already very secure, there were always batteries to recharge and basic maintenance to keep up with.
The side gate that opened to her backyard was already outfitted with a special electronic keycode, but she added an extra electrifying element in the event that someone so much as touched the metal handle.
She gave her back door the same electrifying treatment, as well as her garage door.
Thankfully, solicitors and unwanted visitors were few in her gated community, so the chance of someone mistakenly being shocked was minimal.
So long as they came to the front door, they could avoid getting zapped.
Short of having bars on her windows, Dani’s house was as secure as it could possibly be.
Thorny bushes were installed under every window.
Motion activated flood lights illuminated every dark corner.
For the average homeowner, her level of home security might have seemed like overkill, but for Dani, every motion detection sensor and tripped wire was essential.
The only thing that would make her feel more secure at that point was a guard dog, but Dani couldn’t risk having another living creature to care for and love in her life.
Vickers would just find a way to take that from her, too.
By nightfall, Dani was finished with her extra home security measures and surmised that even Kevin McCallister himself would be proud of her work.
She wanted to call Lisa to warn her and tell her the news about Vickers, but she also didn’t want to unnecessarily worry her.
Neither of them were in immediate danger, but Dani knew exactly how her aunt would react if she found out her attacker had possibly escaped.
Lisa also had a guard at the front entrance of her mobile home community and the same security set up as Dani had, so she wasn’t too concerned about safety.
Vickers only hurt people that got in his way when he was trying to get to her, so it was best if she stayed clear of her aunt for a while.
More than anything, she needed to protect the one person she cared about the most. The only family she had left.
Dani’s stomach rumbled as she checked one last security sensor and locked down her house for the night.
She hastily put together a sandwich, returned to her office and flipped on the desktop monitors.
The multi-screen control center illuminated her face with bright light as she brought up all of her security camera live feeds one by one.
She sat there and finished her sandwich watching June bugs bop against the flood lights.
A car passed by on the doorbell camera and she flinched as a stray cat set off one of the sensors.
She spent the rest of her Saturday night watching the security cameras and working on her screenplay.
The words were flowing from her fingertips, dialog and scene coming together like never before.
For so long, she had told stories that meant something to other people, writing heart-felt rom coms and saccharine Christmas romances that she could never relate to.
This story was for her. It was about her.
And it was for everyone who has been in her shoes, too.
FADE IN
ON A RINGING TELEPHONE
A hand reaches for the telephone, bringing it to the face of CANDI BATES, a teenage girl. Innocent and bored at her summer video store rental job.
CANDI
Cool Flix Video, be kind, rewind.
How can I help you?
MAN’S VOICE
Hey, Candi.
CANDI
Who’s this?
MAN’S VOICE
I’ll tell you in a minute.
I want to ask you a question first.
CANDI
What?
MAN’S VOICE
You got a boyfriend?
CANDI
This is a video store, not 1-900-SPANK-IT.
Get lost, jerk.
CLICK! CANDI slams the receiver on the phone.
JOSH, a lanky teenage boy, is across the store stocking video tapes. He looks over at the sound of the commotion.
JOSH
Is that creeper calling back again?
CANDI
Yeah, but I told him off this time.
“Ugh, what am I doing?” Dani shook her head and highlighted the last page of her script. “This is terrible. DELETE.”
She pressed the backspace button and the words on the page disappeared.
Maybe it wasn’t her place to tell this story after all.
Profiting from the death of her friends or disrespecting their memory in any way felt wrong.
But it was her story, too. One that she had been holding inside her chest for far too long.
Perhaps she could tell it from another angle. She started again.
FADE IN
ON A LAPTOP KEYBOARD
Hands tap at the laptop keyboard, the screen illuminating the face of CANDI BATES, a middle-aged woman. Strong and sure of herself, but weathered by a hard life and her work as a college professor. CANDI stares out the window and sees the figure of a MAN staring back at her.
Suddenly, there’s a KNOCK at her door.
CANDI
(GASP) Who is it?
JENNA, another middle aged college professor, stands in the doorway, smiling.
JENNA
Wow, you’re jumpy today.
“Much better,” Dani said, reading back the words.
It felt right to start out the story in the present day instead of when she was a teenager.
The past was the past, but there was nothing scary about things that happened.
Dani had already seen that movie, and she knew how it ended.
It was the things that were yet to happen that she had to fear.