Chapter 18 – Haley #2
“I said, I’ll see you this afternoon at McIntyre Security.” She gets up and takes her plate and utensils to the sink. “Dave, honey, it’s time to go.”
Dave puts his tablet down and carries his place setting to the sink. He kisses my mom on the cheek. “Thank you for breakfast.”
Mom and Dave both leave for work. Philip waits for me while I run upstairs to brush my teeth and grab my backpack. When I come downstairs, he’s waiting by the front door. I lock up on our way out, and he walks me to his truck.
“Are you ready for this?” he asks as he opens my door for me. He gives me a boost up into the cab.
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
“We’ve got a full day ahead of us. After your classes, and meeting with Detective Bauer and later with Shane, we’re going to have to move you somewhere safe.”
“Where will that be? And you’ll be with me, right?”
“That’s the plan.”
* * *
After we arrive at campus, Philip parks in one of the visitor lots, and we walk to my chemistry lecture class. The classroom doors are already open, and dozens of students shuffle in and out of the large lecture hall.
We have a few minutes before class starts, so we hang back in the hallway a moment.
“Sit in an aisle seat where I can see you,” Philip says. “I’ll be in the back of the room trying to look inconspicuous. If you need me for anything, text me.”
I nod. “Will do.”
Andrea and Christian walk past us.
“Haley, hi,” Andrea says when she notices me. “How’s it going?”
I paste a smile on my face. “Fine. You?”
“I’m good.” She nods to her companion. “We’re both good.”
“Hey,” Christian says. “How’s it going, Haley?” He glances curiously at Philip.
Before I can reply, Andrea tugs Christian with her as they walk into the lecture hall. “Come on, let’s go find seats,” Andrea says to him. “See you in lab later!” she calls to me as they disappear into the throng of students filling the room.
“Class is about to start,” I tell Philip. “I’d better go if I want a good seat.”
He nods. “Text me if you notice anything sketchy. I’ll be right here.” He gestures to an empty aisle seat at the back of the room close to the exit.
I do my best to focus on the lecture. I take notes on my tablet, copy down the molecular structures the professor is describing, and annotate my drawings.
Other than Andrea and Christian, I don’t see anyone else I know by name. I don’t even see Mark anywhere.
When class ends, I put my stuff away and head to the back of the room, where Philip is waiting for me.
“Everything went okay?” he asks as he holds the door open for me.
I nod. “Yes. Nothing sketchy.”
“Next is history. Cool. I’ll get to hang out with Jason.”
We find our friends waiting for us outside the history class lecture hall.
Layla runs up to me and throws her arms around me. “We heard,” she whispers. “This morning, Jake McIntyre called Jason to brief him on the situation. I’m so sorry! But thank God Philip’s with you.”
Philip and Jason stand a few feet away having a rather serious conversation.
Jasmine hugs me next. “Who is this asshole who’s harassing you? Just point him out, and I’ll break his dick in two.” The scary thing is, she sounds quite serious.
I laugh so hard, Philip actually stops what he’s doing to watch me.
Layla, Jasmine, and I take our usual seats. Philip and Jason are seated in the back row. They both have a direct line of sight to Layla and me.
I do my best to focus on the professor’s presentation, taking detailed notes. I really should get an audio recorder.
When class is over, the girls hug me goodbye. Normally, we’d go to the cafeteria to have lunch together, but I don’t have an appetite. I’m too nervous thinking about meeting with the detective at noon.
Philip and Jason shake hands, and we part ways.
“Are you sure you don’t want any lunch?” Philip asks.
“I can’t even think about food right now, but if you’re hungry—”
“What would you normally be doing about now, if not eating lunch with the girls?”
“I’d probably stop in at the student union to get a coffee and a bagel.”
He holds his hand out to me. “Why don’t we do that? I think you should eat something.”
We hit the café, and both of us get coffee. Iced caramel coffee for me. Black for Philip. I get my bagel and some blueberry cream cheese. He grabs a couple of cheeseburgers. That man can really put away the food.
We luck out and find a small table for two.
While we’re eating, my phone chimes with an incoming text. I glance at the screen, expecting it to be a message from my mom.
But no. It’s not.
UNKNOWN – What the fuck is he doing here? He’s not a student. He shouldn’t be here.
My stomach tightens into a painful knot as I stare at the screen.
“What is it, Haley?” When I don’t respond right away, Philip holds out his hand. “Let me see it.”
I hand him my phone, and he scowls as he reads the message.
His expression tightens. “Fuck.”
“It’s like he has eyes everywhere,” I say. “He always knows what I’m doing.”
We finish our food and throw away our trash.
As we’re walking out of the building, my phone chimes again. I check the screen.
UNKNOWN - Roses are red. Violets are blue. It doesn’t matter who he is. Because I’ll be the one fucking you.
Immediately, there’s another text.
UNKNOWN – And don’t pretend you don’t want that, too, because I know you do.
I glance up at Philip, too shocked to say a word.
Philip takes my phone from me and reads the text. “Come on.” He puts his arm around me. “Let’s go find the campus police department.”