“No, I looked before I pulled you away, and no one was out there.”
“But mayb?—”
“I looked away for maybe ten seconds at a time at most. No one saw us, I’m sure of it.”
She worries her bottom lip, appearing unconvinced as she quickly ties the laces then moves to the other one.
“If anything, it’s more likely they heard you and your big mouth,” I say, amusement coloring my tone.
Her head snaps up, briefly pausing with her foot halfway in the boot. Then, she resumes, but not before aiming a glare my way, her cheeks reddening.
Mission accomplished.
I’d rather she be angry with me than spiral over the possibility of being seen.
“I wasnotthat loud,” she argues defensively. Her voice cracks, only proving her wrong.
I pause and arch a brow, and that prompts her to pause again, too. She gazes at me with wide eyes, teetering between embarrassment and denial.
I give her a deadened stare. “My eardrums are still ringing.”
Her mouth drops. “Ugh!” she scoffs, making the most girly sound I’ve ever heard. “They are not!”
Grinning, I grab her hand to lead her out of the room, and she trails after me, that tantalizing bottom lip jutted out into a small pout as she glowers at me.
I won’t act like making her scream that loud doesn’t have pride and satisfaction filling my chest, but I also know, deep down, whoever threw the object didn’t do so because of her screams.
I have a bad feeling burning in the pit of my stomach like acid. There’s only one culprit on my mind, and there’s no doubt it’s the same person on Rev’s mind, too.
We make our way down to the first floor, then head down thehallway toward the side of the building. When we reach the exit, I stop.
“Wait here. This door automatically locks, so I’ll tap three times so you know it’s me. I’ll be right back.”
She looks ready to argue, and I settle a stern look on her face.
“If he’s out there, the last person I’m going to let him see is you.”
Sighing, she relents and nods, taking a small step back, uneasy and back to worrying her bottom lip.
I step out into an empty alleyway, though it provides only a small amount of relief. I hardly feel the icy air nipping at my exposed skin as I quickly beeline straight for the black object right below my window.
I pick it up without even looking, only registering that it’s hard and compact as I jog back to the door.
I knock three times, and the moment she pushes it open to let me through, she’s glancing down over my form, as if to check for injuries, concern twisting her features.
“Was he out there?”
“If he was, I’d be covered in blood,” I answer seriously. “No one was out there. Just this.”
It’s a black box no bigger than the size of my palm. Her trembling hands reach for it, and after hesitating for a second, she pops it open with ease. Inside is a small, rectangular notecard with five words scribed across it in blocky handwriting.
But my attention is firmly elsewhere, my blood running cold. There’s another object beneath the note, several splotches of crimson soaking through the thin, white paper.
Foreboding fills the air as Rev and I glance at each other with a knowing look, both of us having the same thought. If that’s blood, then whatever is beneath the paper will likely give me fucking nightmares.
With trembling fingers, she slides away the paper, only for the stained parchment to float to the floor and her hand to slap over her mouth. She instantly snaps the box shut, but we both very clearly saw what was inside.
“Jesus fuckingChrist,” I spit, fury punching me right in the chest as I grab it from her hold.
