Before I could figure out what to do, either run or stay, the door was slowly pushed open. A minute later, a man turned, surveying the living room after shutting the door firmly behind him.
For a moment, his face held uncertainty. His lips were set in a firm line before he noticed me. His shoulders loosened, and a soft smile caused wrinkles around his eyes to appear.
“Emery?” I hadn’t been expecting such a pleasant and soft voice. It was a contrast to how he looked.
All I could manage was a nod, my eyes wide in fear.
“I’m Ryker. I live right next door.” He gestured to the right. When I didn’t say anything after a moment, he went on. “You were told I’d be by sometime, right?”
Had I been? I couldn’t remember. I shrugged a single shoulder.
“Uh, alright.” He laughed, flipping a hand through the strands of his dark hair. He seemed just as awful at this human interaction thing as I was. “Well, I just wanted to pop in and introduce myself, in case you needed anything.”
“I-I-I’m okay.” I grimaced, hearing my weak, shaking voice. It didn’t help matters that my throat was still slightly swollen from the near-death experience.
“Can I be honest for a moment?” The man, Ryker, asked, taking a step closer to me.
I nodded. I wouldn’t stop him from saying or doing anything he wanted.
He must have seen something in my expression, because he paused on the other side of the chair. His hands wrapped around the top of it, keeping him in place.
“I’m used to shopping for whoever is in this house,” he paused, wetting his lips with the tip of his tongue. “Normally, I don’t offer anything other than that.”
Did he know who I was? What I’d done?
“I don’t know anything about why you’re here,” Ryker was quick to say as though he could read my mind. I pulled my legs even tighter to my chest, “But if you need anything, don’t be afraid to come knock on my door.”
I nodded slowly. I wouldn’t do that, but okay.
“I’ll be back tomorrow to get your shopping list.” He waited another beat for me to say or do anything. When I didn’t, he dipped his chin and left.
On the other side of the door, I could hear the undercover cop, or so I assumed, and Ryker talking. I couldn’t understand a word they said, but their tones were enough to let me know something wasn’t right.
Was it me? Was there danger?
I knew both answers.
Ryker
Iknew criminals. Once upon a time, I’d been on that side of the line, the one who brought them to justice. Now, I was on the outside looking in.
There was a reason I no longer did that kind of work.
I knew the house beside mine housed more criminals than anything, and most of the time, I kept my distance. I’d do the shopping, and that was that. One time a week, at the exact same time. Nothing more, nothing less.
I hadn’t put much thought into the normal phone call from Officer Luke, because he always called to keep me updated. He also knew I’d keep my eyes out for any trouble that could possibly be coming through town. So, the details of what was spoken on the other end of the line a day before the new guy showed up was the same as all the rest.
“Don’t scare him. He’s not like the others.”
I figured the guy was young, beat-up and a partier. It was easy to assume he was the one who’d held a party or was part of a group of kids who thought they were gang wannabes.
I’d never expected a wide-eyed, frightened boy huddled on the couch like life was going to rip him into shreds.
Emery. That name did fit the boy. Sure, he was legal age, but he looked like a high-school kid who’d walked in on a room full of naked girls.
What got me the most wasn’t just the pure openness that he probably had no clue he had, but the lost and hopeless look.
It’d only take a small pin to drop, and the poor boy would be running to hide under the bed like a cat.
