34. Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Four
F ate brought him and Brooke together tonight of all nights. Her birthday. Twenty-one.
On his way to complete his next objective, he came around the corner on the way to the bar and there she was walking with Mindy Sue and some other friends headed in the same direction.
Why was she always wearing that baggy sweater?
Mindy Sue and Julie were with their boyfriends, Tony and Jeremiah, leaving Brooke still waiting on him to come to her and join their group.
Tonight had to be the night.
It felt right.
He’d wait until she had a drink or two, then approach her. Maybe when her friends were on the dance floor and Brooke was alone.
Yeah. They could share a private, intimate moment.
But Brooke and the others didn’t continue on to the bar; instead they went into the packed ice cream parlor. On a hot night like tonight, the place was filled with families and university students.
It was bright and cheerful with no place for him to blend into the background without looking like he didn’t quite belong.
He’d gotten good at watching Brooke and the others without being seen, mostly because no one ever really noticed him.
But this didn’t feel right.
He had it all planned out in his mind. An intimate evening alone with her, so they could talk and be together.
This wasn’t how he planned for it to happen. But it gave him an opportunity to leave Brooke the special gift he got for her very special birthday.
You could make tonight the night with her!
No. Mindy Sue would spend the whole night with her because it’s her birthday.
If he hadn’t been interrupted with the last girl, maybe he’d have been ready by tonight. With campus police upping their patrols after the last girl, he had to wait, so he didn’t get caught.
It made him angry that he’d screwed this up.
Brooke is waiting for you and alone on her birthday and it’s your fault.
He’d make it up to her. He’d finish tonight and be with her soon.
But first, if he couldn’t be by her side, he could still be a part of her special day.
He delayed his plans at the bar, turned back the other way, and went to his car, where he had her gift ready in the trunk. A necklace to match the bracelet he’d already given her.
He drove to her dorm, pulled on his black hoodie, and walked in behind a group of students who’d used their security badge to get in.
Not so safe and secure.
He hardly ever delivered anything by himself anymore. Too dangerous. But it was her birthday and she deserved his personal touch.
He found all kinds of ways around security measures so he could make Brooke happy.
He kept his head down and walked with purpose up to the third floor and right to Brooke’s door. He silently thanked Mindy Sue for decorating their door with balloons and streamers. He pulled on the pair of latex gloves he’d taken from his trunk along with Brooke’s gift. He used one of the streamers to conceal and tie the small box to the doorknob, then walked back down the empty hall, down the stairs, and out the door without anyone paying him any attention.
The security cameras wouldn’t catch even a glimpse of his face.
He was back in his car and at the ice cream shop again in less than half an hour, even with the difficulty of finding parking on the busy street. He peeked through the windows and found Brooke laughing and enjoying herself with her friends, an empty sundae glass in front of her.
She was having a good time.
He had some fun planned for tonight, too.
This would be the last time he went out without Brooke. He wouldn’t disappoint her again.
He watched Brooke for another moment, then reluctantly left her to her evening, knowing she’d be so happy when she got back to her room and found his gift.
The music in the bar drew him down the street and right in the door, nearly deafening him when he walked into the crowded room. It took him a couple minutes to push his way through all the bodies to find the woman he knew would be here tonight. A woman who’d give him exactly what he wanted.
Luck had been on his side earlier tonight when he spotted Brooke with friends and getting her gift to her. It shone on him now when he followed the woman he’d picked to help him tonight right out of the bar without having to wait for her to finish partying with her friends and head home.
He knew her pattern and wasn’t surprised when she stepped out of the bar, stood on the sidewalk, looked up at the sky, took in a breath, then glided down the street, carefree and light and buzzed, if not drunk. He hadn’t been there to see how much she’d had to drink.
Didn’t matter. She belonged to him tonight.
He wouldn’t be stopped.
He needed to do this one last thing so he’d be prepared when he went to Brooke.
And when the woman turned down the alleyway that led to a little-used trail on the backside of one of the campus’s parking lots, he caught up to her without her seeing him coming.
He pulled his knife from behind his back and bashed her in the temple with the heavy handle.
She went down hard, landing on her hands and knees, her palms skidding out from under her.
She instinctively rolled and tried to ward him off.
He snagged her by the wrist and dragged her behind some bushes that backed up to a cement block shed where they kept huge dumpsters.
She tried to scramble away, but he socked her in the face. Blinking to try to clear the blood from her eye from the wound on her temple, she fell back. “Take my bag. Take whatever you want, just leave me alone.”
“I will have what I want.” This time he’d get it right.
She suddenly bucked and tried to flip over and scramble free.
He knocked her in the head again, then put the knife to her throat. “Stop ruining this.”
Tears streamed down the sides of her face. She whimpered. But she didn’t move.
He did.
Blood pumping, adrenaline rocketing through him, his dick twitching with need, he didn’t waste time and finally took what he wanted.
And when he was done, all he could think about was being with Brooke.
He left the other woman there to sleep it off and headed back to his car.
Brooke was just leaving the ice cream shop when he returned for one last glimpse of her, feeling like he finally knew everything he needed to know to make her happy.
She passed right by him. He turned and whispered, “Happy birthday, Brooke. You’ll definitely get your wish. We’ll be together soon.”