He wasn’t about to tell her how many times he’d read through her letters over the years. At least, not in front of Ghost and Naomi. So he kept his mouth shut.
After an awkward beat, Naomi spoke up again. “If it’s not too intrusive, I’d like to see any of the letters where she mentions the stalking.”
He looked to Maggie for the answer. They were his letters, but her words. Her thoughts and fears. The decision should be hers.
She waved a hand. “Sure. Why not?”
“Did you report the stalking?” Ghost asked.
“I tried. Multiple times. The police said gifts aren’t threatening. That I couldn’t prove they were from him since the cards weren’t signed.” A bitter smile flickered across her face. “Sometimes it was just ‘L’ with hearts drawn around it.”
Ghost typed fast, documenting everything. “When did it escalate?”
“Six weeks ago. I came home to find someone had been in my house. Nothing taken—just things moved slightly out of place. A mug I’d left on the counter was in the sink. My mail had been opened and resealed.” She shuddered. “Then I found a photo of me sleeping on my nightstand. He was there while I wassleepingand left the photo so I’d know he could get to me. That was the last straw, and when I wrote Anson to tell him I was coming.”
Anson clenched his fists at his sides. A low, dull roar filled his ears—the sound of his own blood pressure spiking. He forced himself to unclench, to breathe. This wasn’t about him or his anger. This was about Maggie’s safety.
“Police response?” Ghost didn’t look up from his screen.
“They came out, took a report. Said there was no sign of forced entry, so I must have forgotten to lock a door or window. Suggested I was overreacting because of my ‘prior relationship’ with Landry.” She scoffed. “Our ‘prior relationship’ was mostly professional, and ended with a handful of dates and one very regrettable night before I realized what he was really like.”
Naomi growled and pushed off from the desk to pace. “Yeah, that tracks. And the restraining order?”
“I filed for one four months ago. It’s still ‘processing.’ Every time I call, they have a new excuse—backlog, paperwork issue, need more evidence. Meanwhile, he keeps emailing me nonstop, finding my phone number and leaving messages.”
“Go on, play them,” Anson urged.
Her fingers trembled slightly as she pulled her phone from her pocket. She played the messages, and Anson watched Ghost’s expression harden with each one.
“Do you really think you can hide from me, bitch? There’s nowhere you can go that I won’t find you.”
Yeah, hearing it a second time didn’t help
Silence fell, broken only by the soft hum of computers and Ghost’s fingers striking keys with increasing force.
“Ugh, it’s a classic escalation pattern,” Naomi fumed and continued to pace. “Starts with love-bombing, moves to guilt, then to threats. The shift from ‘beautiful’ to ‘bitch’ is textbook. I can’t believe the cops didn’t do anything. No, actually, I can.”
Ghost looked up from his screen for the first time. “I need to ask about people close to you. Who would know your number? Your schedule? Your movements? Details about your life? He’s getting that information from somewhere.”
Ghost sat back from his computer, his expression unreadable, but he reached out and caught Naomi’s hand as she passed.
She stopped pacing and looked down at him, then inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly.
“I just pisses me off,” she said as if he’d spoken and squeezed his hand.
Ghost gave a rare smile. “I know it does, Fury.”
She scoffed and smacked his arm with the back of her hand, but the exchange seemed to do the trick in calming her down.
“I can work with this,” Ghost said, turning to Maggie. “These voicemails are gold—clearly threatening, time-stamped, traceable.”
“But will they be enough for the police?” Maggie’s voice was small, doubt etched into every line of her face.
“We’re not going to the police. Not yet. First, we gather intelligence. I want access to your inbox so I can start tracing the emails.”
Anson snorted. “You can’t just hack in?”
Ghost sent him a flat look. “I could, but that would be rude. Consent is important. Even for digital invasions.”
