Chapter Four
Muffled noises drift down the hallway, soft bangs trailing behind.
I throw the pillow over my head, trying to drown out the noise.
Metal screams against metal, tearing through what little peace I'd built. “CAM, what the fuck, dude?” I yell, dragging myself out of bed. Looking at the clock on my dresser, I trudge to the kitchen. “Is there a fucking emergency or something? Why are you banging on stuff? It’s seven in the morning.”
Cam tears through the kitchen like a maniac, cabinets slamming. "Yeah, meeting in ten, and the damn coffee's gone AWOL. Fuckkkkk."
I walk over to the pantry and slide the bag of sugar out of the way. Bringing the holy grail back with me, “Did you even look for it?” Tossing it at Cam, I grab a glass and fill it with water. He’s staring at me as I down the whole glass in one breath.
“I swear I did.” I catalog the damage: hair disheveled, clothes disheveled. Consistent, at least. “Alright, I’m out of here.” He grabs his backpack, waving as he heads out the door.
My phone wakes up with a sound. Wade sent what I asked for.
I grab my computer and plop down on the couch, hitting play on my phone.
Ghost Inside The Shell by Catch Your Breath comes through the surround sound.
Loading the files, I start sifting through them.
Most are just pictures of his deceased wife, overlaid with a ghostly rendition of "You Are My Sunshine.
" No words. No demands. Whoever is doing this is just tormenting him. Why are you being haunted, Wade?
Running an IP trace to see who the shadow that is terrorizing one of the most powerful men in Nashville— hoping that whoever it is isn’t as smart as they think they are.
After a few minutes, a picture pops up: a roadrunner with a banner that says ‘Catch me if you can’.
Okay, shadow, I see you. You can only hide for so long.
Closing my computer, I make a note to have Cam run another trace on his programs later.
I think I’ll make a little trip down to the cafe.
Smirking to myself, I head to the room to change.
The bell chimes. Sarah spots me, already smiling. "Kiera's at an auction." The smirk says she knows exactly why I came.
Faking offense, “I’m offended. I was here for the chicken pesto again, and the best damn iced tea I’ve ever had.” I give her my best boyish grin.
Sarah laughs. "Yeah, yeah. Sure, you were.
Sit, I'll get your order in." I beeline for the corner booth, phone already out, hunting for the auction Wade sent her to. Pulling up only two options, and one of them is an estate auction that’s not his style, I settle for the last option. The auction doesn’t start until two this afternoon in Knoxville, and it's almost three hours to get there.
Plenty of time to go look at her life. Sarah comes back with my tea and sandwich, “Here you go, Hun. Let me know if you need anything else.” Thanking her, I quickly devour my food and head to the register.
“Well, that was fast. In a hurry?” She rings me up.
“I got a meeting. Keep the change. Thanks, Sarah.” Without you, I wouldn’t know where the thorn was.
Leaving the cafe, I choose to walk toward the HT Complex, a couple of blocks away.
I pass a few bars and shops on my way to Kiera’s apartment, the high-rise finally coming into view.
Walking into the parking garage searching for her parking space, it’s empty.
I move toward the elevator to my left, enter, and press the top-floor button.
For a fancy complex, there aren’t many cameras.
I noticed the one by the front door, but there were none in the parking garage or the elevator, where most assaults would happen.
The door opens onto a long hallway with a single door at the end.
No cameras here, either, or security. I’ll be fixing that.
Noticing the lock is a key card one, I pull out my phone and open the electronic lock pick Cam built.
The light turns green on the door, allowing me access.
At a glance, the apartment features an open floor plan with floor-to-ceiling windows offering a view of the city.
While the apartment and the appliances may be extravagant, her furniture is not.
A worn couch and matching sofa sit facing each other with a glass coffee table between them.
The area she has designated as the dining area has a scratched-up oak table from a well-loved home.
The kitchen has black marble countertops with one of those see-through fridges, but the little trinkets around the kitchen look mismatched and out of place.
If this place isn’t a walking contradiction.
Making my way down the hallway, there's a door to her bathroom and bedroom.
I turn into the bathroom and stop. Chaos.
Absolute chaos. Makeup and skincare litter the countertop, towels are thrown over the glass shower wall, and clothes are strung across the floor.
Next up is the bedroom, where the floor-to-ceiling windows take up one wall of her bedroom.
The other walls are painted black. Dead center on one wall is her bed, parallel to the windows.
A dead bouquet of peonies and lavender is hanging over her bed.
She has a purple-and-black floral bedspread.
On another wall, there are floor-to-ceiling mirror doors.
Sliding one side open, it opens to her walk-in closet.
The closet is filled with dark-colored clothes in various shades of black, grey, and red.
Closing the closet door, I look around and notice that her computer is on her bed.
I flip the computer open, and the lock screen pops up, prompting me to enter a password.
I grab a phone cable from my bag. I connect my phone to the computer with the charging cable, then open the password-cracking software.
A few seconds go by before the screen opens to the home page, and I begin searching through her drives.
I see nothing of concern. Looks like the typical stuff a girl's computer would have.
After downloading hidden spyware onto her computer, I turned it off and returned it to where I found it.
Looking at the time, it’ll be about an hour before she gets home.
I start making quick work of setting up the cameras I brought with me.
Once everything is in place the way I want it, I check the cameras on my phone to double-check the positioning.
No more hiding for you, Thorn. With everything as I found it, I make my way back down to the parking garage. I’ll be seeing you soon.
Cam was already back by the time I got home. Setting my bags down, I wonder to the kitchen. “How was your meeting?” I ask, grabbing a beer from the fridge.
“It went well. I got us another job in the books for next week. Well, me. It’s setting up new computers for a small company.” Cam looks back at his phone.
“That’s great. I need to check on a construction site tomorrow.
The Foreman ran into some issues with the Code Enforcement officer.
” Plopping down next to him, I lean back, “Oh, hey. I tried using the IP tracer on the emails sent to Wade. They came up short with my software. Can you give it a try for me? I already sent you the files.”
“Sure. Weird that you couldn’t trace it, though.” He’s looking at me like I just said something off the wall. And while I am pretty good with tech stuff, my programs do about half as much as his. Whoever sent this is better than I thought.
“Thanks. I appreciate it.” Letting silence wash over us, I focus on the show on the TV. Don’t get attached to anyone. Men don’t show emotions. Her voice trickles into my brain. No one will love you. Jumping up, I head toward my room. “Night,” I call over my shoulder.
Rushing to the bathroom, I quickly turn on the hot water.
Be quiet if you want my love. Her voice won’t go away.
Stripping, I step into the scalding water, trying to wash away the sins that were never mine to claim.
You are the sin. “Shut up. Just shut the fuck up,” I mutter to myself as I slide down the wall.
I sit there until the water runs cold. Her words slice, relentless, hate in every syllable.
Venom, pouring out with every sentence. “Please…. Just shut up,” I rasp, silent tears rolling down my face.
Shuddering a breath, I stand up, leaving the shower while drying off.
Slipping on sweats, I lay back on the bed, my mind running a million miles an hour.
I pull up the cameras I placed at Kiera’s apartment.
Scrolling through the feeds, I find her in the bathroom, almost in the same position I was just in.
A sense of relief washes over me. I’m not the only one trying to wash sins away.