Page 30 of Villainous Intent

I spun around, my eyes darted from the smoke detector to the vent, from the mirror to the lamp base, any place a camera might have been hidden.

I dropped to my hands and knees, checking the underside of the nightstand. I ran my fingers along the frame of the bed. I tore my room apart, looking for the bug, the lens, the wire.

I flinched when my phone buzzed again.

Stop looking, Annie. There are no cameras inside.

Yet.

I stared at the screen. I knew I shouldn’t engage. I should not respond under any circumstances.

Then how do you know what I’m doing?

Because I know you. You’re sweeping the room. You’re checking the vents. You’re wondering if I’m under the bed.

Is this Cipher?

I knew it was a waste of pixels to ask.

Do you really have to ask?

You’re stalking me.

I’m observing a person of interest.

It’s a felony.

And?

I sank onto the edge of the bed, my heart hammering. But beneath the panic and outrage, something else was uncoiling. The wine had left a trail of heat in my throat that spread downward, settling low.

He’s watching me.

I looked at the curtains. They were closed now, but the weight of his gaze still felt heavy. He was out there, in the dark, his attention focused on me.

“This is sick,” I whispered to the silence. “You are sick, Bishop.” But my body didn’t care about the diagnosis. I pressed my thighs together, shocked at how wet I was.

I glared at the curtains I had just frantically yanked shut. Hiding in the dark pulled me right back to being a terrified ten-year-old girl. I refused to be that trembling woman anymore. If Cipher wanted to violate my privacy, if he wanted to watch me unravel from afar, he was going to have to look me dead in the eye while he did it.

I marched over and grabbed the edges of the fabric, ripping the curtains wide open.

I raised my hand and extended my middle finger toward the glass. “I see you, motherfucker.”

My phone buzzed instantly.

Brat.

I’m not playing with you. You need to stop stalking me right now.

Interesting request from someone who’s been stalking me for months

My fingers froze over the keyboard. What?

I’m just returning the favor, Annie. NotAKeeperJustACasualObserver. That’s you, isn’t it?

My phone almost slipped from my numb fingers.

And on the VillainVixen forum... User: KeeperOfRules