Tyler’s hands shook as he pulled out his phone. He didn’t care about playing it cool anymore. Didn’t care about seeming desperate or overeager. He needed to know Brooke was okay.
Hey. Just wanted to say dinner last night was great. Thanks for having me over.
He hit send before he could second-guess the message. It was weak and generic, not what he wanted to say. But it was something, a way to check on her without alarming her.
He stared at the screen, willing her to respond. Thirty seconds. A minute. Two minutes.
Nothing.
She’s at work,he reminded himself.Probably busy with the lunch crowd. She’ll respond when she can.
But the panic didn’t ease.
Tyler folded the note carefully and shoved it in his pocket, then climbed back in the truck. He needed to get lunch. Robert and Sue were expecting it. And sitting there obsessing over a threatening note wasn’t going to help anything.
I’ll swing by the coffee shop. See if I can see her through the window. Maybe check the alley for her car.
Driving past the alley, her SUV was right where it should be. That eased the pounding in his heart a little. He took a left to drive in front of the building. He couldn’t see inside the window, but the door opened as someone went in. They did look busy. Maybe he should stop and pick up bagel or croissant sandwiches instead. He’d heard they were good from Irma Brew.
Get a grip, Tyler,he told himself as he kept going up Grand Avenue. He drove toward Riverside Subs on autopilot, his mind racing. The note was typed. Generic. It might have been from Henry, but it could’ve come from anyone. But someone had put it on his truck in the middle of the day, in a public parking lot, without being seen.
Or maybe they had been seen. Maybe someone noticed but didn’t think anything of it. A piece of paper on a windshield could be a flyer, an advertisement, anything.
Tyler stopped at a red light and checked his phone again.
Still nothing from Brooke.
His chest felt tight. He forced himself to breathe. She was fine. She was at work. It’s busy, he’d seen that with his own eyes. She’d text back when she had a chance.
Movement caught his eye. It was a sheriff’s SUV. Deputy Adam Boverman sat in the driver’s seat, watching Tyler.
Their eyes met. Adam didn’t look away, didn’t pretend he wasn’t watching. Just sat there, obvious and unapologetic.
Tyler’s grip tightened on the steering wheel. Had Adam put the note on his truck? Was this some kind of intimidation tactic, trying to scare him into leaving town or confessing to something he didn’t do?
But even as the thought formed, Tyler dismissed it. Adam was a lot of things—obsessive, convinced of Tyler’s guilt, inappropriate in his pursuit of Brooke—but he wasn’t subtle. If Adam wanted to threaten Tyler, he’d do it face to face, with his badge visible and his authority clear.
This note was different. Sneakier. Someone who wanted to stay hidden.
Could be Henry, but if so, why stop by the shop this morning with some lame story of ordering oil?
The light turned green, and Tyler drove on, leaving Adam in his rearview mirror.
Maybe Adam had seen something. Maybe he’d been watching the shop, watching Tyler, and had noticed someone messing with his truck.
Tyler almost turned around, almost pulled over to ask. But what was the point? Adam would either deny seeing anything or use it as another reason Tyler was guilty.People are threatening you because they know what you did.
Not worth it.
Tyler pulled into Riverside Subs, placed the order, and checked his phone while he waited.
Still nothing.
The panic was building now, irrational but impossible to shake. The note saidwho’s next,and all he could think about was Brooke, about someone watching them last night, seeing them together, and deciding she was a target.
His phone buzzed.
Tyler nearly dropped it as he pulled it out of his pocket.
