Forgive Me by Kateri Stanley (reading strategies book TXT) 📕

loud and he knew how to hack Facebook accounts. He was a fraper, according to Tammy. He took over profiles and wrote obscene messages on their statuses conjuring up false stories like an apparent coming out of the closet or a drunken pregnancy gone wrong. It wasn’t something Anna found admiring at all.

After they said their goodbyes, Anna hung up fast and sharp so the conversation couldn’t continue. She carried her bowl of popcorn back to the hallway, muttering about Damon. She ascended the stairs, stopping when she saw the door to the back garden was open.

“Anna...”

The voice was soft, but she didn’t recognise it. The bowl slipped from her grasp; popcorn spilling across the steps. Standing at the top like it was a throne was a figure. He was clad in black, breathing heavy through a gas mask, an axe shining and swinging in his right hand.

Anna ran for the back door when her body was lifted off the floor and his biceps began to crush her ribcage. The intruder ripped off his gas mask and grabbed the back of her head. Anna's hollow screams were suddenly silenced as the intruder pressed his lips against hers. She heard his voice faint in her ear:

“So... beautiful.”

 

Not another, the woman thought. Her stomach plummeted as she watched the news:

“The bodies of Valerie Walker and Duncan Gregory have been found early this morning. They were on their third date, had dinner at Bella Italia and saw a horror movie. They weren't answering their phones and their families found it bizarre neither returned home. In the early hours of the morning, Melvin Leachman, a retired train engineer was walking his dog when he found Gregory's car and two bodies. We are unable to comment if this has anything to do with the Night Scrawler at this time.”

She changed the channel in disgust, glancing at her baby sleeping on her chest. She swayed from side to side, rocking her to keep her snoozing.

The Night Scrawler. She moved into the hallway, listening for the movements of her new house guest. He'll enjoy this. It gives him a purpose. Fucking media. We always know how to cater to the criminally insane.

She went upstairs and put her daughter in her crib, touching the side of her head. “I love you, little one,” she whispered.

The woman retrieved the baby monitor from her bedside table and locked the door. Since she'd heard about the murders, her paranoia had inspired her to buy a lock for her bedroom.

She kept her composure as she edged downstairs. The door to the basement was cold and eerie and she made sure the hammer she had was adequate to hide up her sleeve or behind her back. As she entered, she heard his breathing light and low and her skin was trembling underneath her gown. She reached the end of the steps, thankfully he was still bound to his seat. She said his name and his head rose slowly, his blue eyes staring back.

A slight smile washed across his dazed face and her hand tightened around the hammer. When he uttered her name, she unclenched her fingers from the handle. Something shivered along her back when he spoke.

I’ve missed his voice.

Chapter Twenty

A cold draft snakes up around my bound hands and ankles when I regain consciousness. My gut twists as my mind rises out of the darkness from fragments of the past, from a time I don’t want to be swimming in. Your footsteps drift down the steps. I wince and try to push my feet forwards but I can't move. I must say, I’m impressed by this. I can’t believe you managed to lug my heavy mass. How did you do it?

You say my name and I stare at you. Your scent drifts, tempting, engulfing me. I smell the remnants of blood where you knocked me out. I ignore the throbbing memory of pain in my head.

You hold me to the spot. Your hair is long and sleek, shimmering against the single light above. I see the look you're giving me. You're so beautiful, even when you're angry and sleep deprived. We've been here before, when I let all my barriers down to be honest with you. When I put my career and everything I’d worked hard for on the line just to see you again, to tell you secrets I couldn't conceal any longer. You can’t say this isn’t commitment, or that I don’t care or love you.

We connect for a little while and I utter your name. You blink and quake. Your heartbeat rises, you’re remembering what I am, what we shared. You’re bothered by me and you don’t want to be. I must confess, I feel a glow of happiness warming up in my core. You must still think about it…

“Why?” You ask, I can’t ignore the raw pain in your voice.

It brings me back to reality. I’m trapped in this basement under lock and key, in another prison, with a different master this time.

“Why? Why did you do it?”

Chapter Twenty-One

The woman stared at the photograph of the family on her desk. The people in the frame, their fixed smiles, the lies bubbling underneath and the blissful ignorance they were swimming in. Her stomach tumbled as images rushed through her mind. They’d been lied to, for so many years. If only we’d known, would everything be different? Would I be a better person?

The phone rang before her thoughts could trundle down a murky road. She snatched the phone from the cradle.

“Switch on the news,” the voice said.

“Mom. What’s wrong?” the woman asked.

“Just watch.”

Lorraine Thurman’s worried expression burst onto the screen. The woman noticed a house perched in the background, with blue flowers painted on the door. The woman had been there before.

“This comes with a heavy heart,” Lorraine announced.

Oh God…

“The body of a young girl has been found early this morning. Police have not disclosed full details at this time. However, they have confirmed the victim was