Chapter Twelve
Ava Anderson
“There you go. Good boy.” I gush at DJ who claps his hands frantically for himself. He is in a better mood today and that rubs off on me easily.
The one I love and cherish with my entire life. My son.
“Come on. Show me again.” I urge and he jumps slightly. I gasp out loud and my dramatics make him laugh out loud.
“You are such a good mother.” Wade comments and I look up at him to see his back facing me as he stares at the window. He has been doing that all morning, going to the nearest window, and watching carefully, as though he can tell a threat is nearby.
It has done nothing but increase my anxiety, but I haven’t said anything. If this is his way of ensuring we are safe, who am I to argue?
“DJ is a good son.” I pinch my son’s cheek and he pushes my hand away, annoyed I am disturbing his playtime.
I get up from the floor and walk to stand next to Wade as I cross my arms and stare out the window. I see my neighbor, Mrs Dan, entering her house with her son, Josh.
It’s been so long since I saw her even though I have been in this house for the past weeks, doing nothing but whiling away time. Josh looks so grown up now.
“That’s my neighbor, Rachel. She is such a lovely woman that she used to invite DJ and I for tea and cookies every weekend after she found out I was a single mom. She had her first son, Adam, alone too and she raised him for ten years before she got married to her husband, Josh’s father.” I tell Wade and he nods his head slowly.
“Do you see yourself marrying someone else? I mean, after…” He looks at DJ and I know he is referring to Daniel, DJ’s father.
“I don’t know. I haven’t thought about it much.” I shrug then my eyes brighten up instantly. “Talking about relationships, I just had a brilliant idea last night and you might want to hear it out.”
“What is that?” Wade looks down at me, fully focused on what I have to say.
“Think about it. When was the first and last time the killer had shown himself?” I ask.
“Yesterday? He planted the bomb.” Wade answers .
“No, he ordered someone to plant the bomb. But when he murdered Lynn, I am pretty sure he did it himself. Why?”
“Because he was sure that you would be alone in the dressing room minutes before the show. The other times he tried to kill you, it was pre-arranged.” Wade’s eyes narrow, and I can see he is starting to get what I am about to say.
“Exactly! Which could mean one or two things. My closest guess is that he wanted me to meet him that night of the show, but when he failed to do that, he has been trying to just end my life. But what if we give him a chance to meet me face to face again?”
Wade’s face hardened and I can tell he does not like the idea at all. “Out of the question. I cannot let you anywhere that psychopath.” he hisses.
“Yes, I understand. It doesn’t have to be just me, you can be with me, but we must let him believe that I am going to be alone. For example, I go on a date with my boyfriend and my said boyfriend leaves me by myself to go pay the bill or something. Don’t you think he will want to show up then?”
“That might be a possibility but who is your boyfriend?” Wade asks. He is definitely buying the idea now.
“Why, you, of course.” I say and a look of surprise fills his face.
“Calm your horses. I am only saying we pretend we are a couple. I mean, with you by my side at all times, it’s obvious that you are my bodyguard, and his target may shift from me to you, just like when your men were killed in the incident. We need to shift his focus back on me and for us to do that, we have to make him think I am all alone. You are just my boyfriend and nothing else. ”
Wade rests his hand on his chin as he thinks about what I just said. I turn my gaze to DJ who is staring at us wide-eyed, and I stick out my tongue which makes him laugh out loud.
“Give me a second. I will have to inform my superintendents about this.” Wade excuses himself from the living room.
“Yay! We are going to catch some bad guys, DJ.” I jump and DJ jumps with me.
* * * *
“Yes sir. I believe it’s a great plan to lure him out. He seems to be someone who has history with Miss Anderson so I’m sure he will want to see her one last time before trying to take her life.” I explained to the captain, and he gave me his permission.
“Wait a second, Marcus wants to speak with you.” I hear the phone being handed over to Marcus and I already know what is coming.
“You must be out of your Goddamn mind, Wade, to even think of doing this.” Marcus hisses and I can tell he is keeping his voice down so the captain won’t hear him.
“Marcus, I know what this seems like, but this might actually be our chance to get him.”
“Chance to get him?! You are digging your grave here, Wade, and you will only end up getting hurt like you did four years ago!” Marcus yells at me .
“How many times do I have to tell you that this is not the same?! If you are so worried about me, then maybe you should put in more effort in investigating and getting us a lead to catch this bastard!” I grit out in annoyance.
Marcus stays silent and I realize I have overstepped. He is not only my senior at work but one of my greatest friends as well.
I sigh and run a hand through my hair. “Listen, Marcus, I know you are only doing this because you care about me, and you do not want to see me in pain again, but I need to do this for her. I have to make sure she is able to live her life normally or else, I won’t be able to forgive myself.”
“Five days. You have five freaking days to get this guy with your charade and if nothing happens by then, you call it off and I am taking you off this case. No arguments.” Marcus says before cutting the call.
I let out a heavy breath, drained from everything I have had to deal with lately. If I was this tired, I wonder how Ava would feel when she had to watch her back every second of the day.
I know this is the last thing I should be doing when I am trying to hold back my feelings for her but if this is a way I can protect her, then, I will gladly do it over and over again. If it doesn’t work out, I will do as Marcus says and leave this case.
Maybe that will be best for me. And for her.
“So, can I go and pick a dress for tonight now?” Ava sticks her head through the door and I chuckle under my breath.
She is something else.
* * * *
Ava Anderson
I walk out of my room and head to the living room where I hear noises coming from. Everyone in the room looks at me as I step in and I instantly feel self-conscious. Maybe choosing to wear this dress tonight was a bit too much?
Wade walks towards me, and I see he is dressed in black dress pants and shirt, with his hair falling over his face. He looks sophisticated in such an outfit like this. He looks just like the billionaire’s son that he is.
He takes his time, his eyes gliding down my body and then back up to my face. I had chosen to wear a green gown which stopped at my calves. The neckline is adorned with sequins winding up my shoulders and making my back appear bare.
I matched it with my pair of silver stilettos and my hair was tied up in a bun with a few loose strands falling by the sides of my face.
“A bit too much, I suppose?” I scrunch my face and he smiles and shakes his head.
“Just perfect.” he compliments, and I feel relieved by his words.
I look at the group of men in my living room who are huddled together in front of their computers and I sigh, a part of me wondering if this is the right thing to do. But I can’t back down now, not when I am the one who brought up the plan .
“They are ensuring that everything at the venue is secure.” Wade tells me and I nod my head.
“And DJ?”
“The officers in charge of him are right by his side. We plan to spend just an hour and half out there so you will not be away from him for too long.” Wade assures me, and I breathe out again, my nerves taking over me.
“Are you sure you are ready for this?” Wade takes my hand and asks.
“Yes.” I smile.
We walked out of the house and the car we will be taking tonight is waiting right by the driveway. My hand trembles a bit, seeing another car in front of us.
The last time this happened, two men died, and my garage was blown into pieces.
Wade opens the door for me, and I step in, securing my seatbelt around me. The ride to the restaurant is silent and uneventful, fortunately.
As we had planned, an article was released about me this evening with Wade confirmed as my boyfriend. A lot of my fans were happy for me while some were sad, hoping that I would somehow remain single for the rest of my life.
Wade had let me read some of the comments and I knew he wanted me to feel some sort of normalcy by reading what my fans had to say about me. Too bad my life is not normal anymore so no matter what I do, I don’t feel like who I used to be .
If everything goes as planned, the killer should try to show himself here, at a point where I will be left alone, vulnerable, and weak. The police are spread out all over the place and this time, it is not just Wade that is here to protect me but the entire squad as well.
I still don’t know whether to feel overwhelmed or honored.
Wade leads me into the cozy restaurant, and we sit by the river, the wind gently blowing against my skin. It’s been a long time since I felt this. The cool night breeze against me. A smile slips out of my lips.
“Beautiful sight, isn’t it?” Wade asks and I turn to look at him.
“Are you referring to me or to the river?” I playfully raised an eyebrow and he shook his head at my silliness.
I love how we have come to laugh at the littlest things together. It is quite a development from the first few weeks we wanted nothing more but to be apart from each other.
The waiter comes to take our order and our food is served.
“Anyone yet?” Wade talks into his earpiece as he cuts through his steak. I know he is talking to his team and asking about anyone suspicious yet.
There are but a few couples around here and none of them seem quite interested in us. I can’t imagine any of them here trying to kill me.
“So, Mr. Boyfriend.” I raise my glass of wine and plant a small smile on my face. I am finally out after so long and I plan to take advantage of it for as long as I can .
“How about a toast?”
“To what?” Wade asks and his eyes wander around the place.
“First.” I clink my glass against his. “To our relationship.”
“Second?” Wade clinks his glass against mine, but his eyes are still not on me.
“If we want to make this look as believable as it sounds, we might have to start looking at each other when we are conversing, don’t you think?”
“I am sorry. I just—” Wade sighs. “Okay, let’s talk.” he sits straight and turns to look at me.
“I want to know why you left the Army.” I start the conversation and take a bite of my steak. “I mean, you have only mentioned that you were formerly in the army but never the reason you had to leave.”
“You look fit, and you’re still young, so why?” I ask.
I look up to see Wade hesitating to speak, almost as though I had touched a spot he never wished to expose ever again.
“I-I’m sorry if you do not like my question. Let me ask you something else.” I tried to change the subject.
“No, it’s fine,” he sighs. “I can talk about it now, I guess.” He mutters and I notice how tense he looks. What might have happened that still affected him this badly till now ?
“It was five years ago, when I met her.” he started and somehow, my entire body freezes at his statement.