Chapter 8

The day had gone by slowly for FBI Special Agent Sally Roux. She was tired and hated having to deal with the local detectives. She looked over a report from Detective Gonzales. He was a piece of work. Normally, Sally didn’t mind working with men like Gonzales but on top of being a total control-freak…he clearly had some issues working with women. Sally recalled her conversation with him earlier that day.

“So you’re not going to let me in on the meeting?” Jerry Gonzales had asked through clenched teeth. He had wanted to sit on the FBI’s profiler meeting.

Sally stayed professional. The local detectives never liked it when FBI took over. She gave him her standard response, “Thank you again for all of your hard work. If we need your assistance, I’ll let you know.”

Sally had turned to leave when she heard Gonzales mutter, “Stupid bitch.”

Working in a field dominated by men, this wasn’t the first time she had been called a bitch and it wouldn’t be the last. She decided to ignore it. She made a mental note to keep an eye on Detective Gonzales. She wasn’t quite sure why, but there was something about Gonzales that she definitely didn’t like.

~AT THE HOME OF EVA LEWIS~

As day turned to dark, Eva told Joelynn she was going to the grocery store to buy some almond milk.

Joelynn reminded her, “Don’t forget we need Lucky Charms cereal too.”

Eva rolled her eyes, “You should stop eating that and start eating Raisin Bran or something.”

“Only old people eat Raisin Bran,” Joelynn joked and stuck out her tongue only to feel a pillow from the sofa hit her.

“Stop calling me old! Twenty-eight is not old!” Eva knew Joelynn was joking but they still liked to give one another a hard time. After she left, Joelynn went to her room and sat down in front of her laptop, staring at its screen. She was contemplating whether or not to check out the dating site Love Match. She looked out her window and noticed a car she didn’t recognize parked across the street.

Joelynn thought it was strange and closed her curtains. She sat back down and said, “Oh hell…desperate times call for desperate measures.” Joelynn typed in the web address for Love Match and waited for the site to load. A giant heart popped up on the screen asking her to register or log in. Joelynn clicked on the register button. The last guy she dated, James, didn’t seem too into her and they had broken up. It hadn’t been serious. Even Jacob hadn’t met him. Still, she hadn’t dated anyone since then and she was ready for the excitement that a new relationship would bring.

After watching Eva leave, the man parked across the street looked at his watch. It wasn’t yet nine. He watched the woman at the window. Her curtains were open and allowed him to see the soft glow of her computer screen. He ducked down when she stood by the window. His breath caught when she stared in his direction. Did she notice him? He wasn’t sure if he wanted her to or not. She closed the white curtains to her window and sat back down. He could see her shadow through the window’s curtains.

He leaned against his steering wheel. Where did Eva go? It was late but he didn’t care. He wanted to see her. He had decided that he wanted to meet with her today even if she wasn’t ready for him. He picked up his phone and checked for messages. He had a few that he started to respond to. He looked up at the window and then again at the empty driveway. He reminded himself, “Good things come to those that wait.” He would wait all night if he had to.

~AT THE HOME OF STELLA MEYERS~

Back at her home, Stella was nervous. It had been so long since she went out on an actual date. She hoped her friend would finally show up tonight. She still didn’t know his real identity. They only referred to one another by their usernames and his profile picture had been of a man skiing so she couldn’t see his face as it was covered in large goggles and a thick ski jacket. She bent down and smelled the flowers that were now on her kitchen table. Stella couldn’t help but smile.

“Stellaaaaa,” a young boy came into the kitchen carrying a math workbook. “Stella what time are you coming back home tonight?”

Stella looked at her younger brother, “I don’t know JB. Not too late. Don’t worry. Aunt Denise is going to come watch you while I’m gone.”

JB was Stella’s younger brother. He had light brown hair and big brown eyes. He was the sweetest kid Stella knew. “I still need someone to check my math homework.”

Stella laughed. “Denise is an accountant. I’m pretty sure she can help you with your math work.”

“Do you have to go?”

Stella couldn’t help but think JB was cute. Ever since their parents passed away in a car accident, he was very attached to her and didn’t like for her to leave him alone. She knew that he was afraid of losing her too.

“What’s the matter JB?”

He looked down and drew a circle in the carpeted floor with his big toe, “I don’t want you to go. My friend Billy said there’s a killer on the loose. What if something happens to you?”

Stella smiled, “Don’t worry JB. Nothing’s going to happen to me. I’m only going to go have some coffee with a friend. It’s the same friend that sent me the flowers on the table.” JB looked at the flowers and then sighed.

Stella continued, “Have you ever heard of a killer sending flowers before?”

JB shook his head.

Stella smiled, “There…you see? It’s fine. I’m just going to have coffee. I’ll be here when you wake up tomorrow morning.”

JB sighed again and looked up, “You promise?”

“I promise.”

JB held up his pinky to her, “Pinky swear.”

Stella laughed and crossed her pinky with his while saying, “I pinky swear.” This seemed to relieve JB because he hugged her and she kissed him on the cheek. “I love you baby brother.”

JB smiled, “I love you too Stella. Don’t forget your promise.” With that he ran to his room to finish up his homework.

The doorbell rang and Stella opened the door to her aunt Denise. When she saw Stella, she pretended to wolf whistle. Stella laughed. She was wearing a denim dress with dressy cowgirl boots. She thanked her aunt for watching JB and stepped outside to get into her car. When Stella arrived at the coffee shop fifteen minutes later, she checked for any messages from her friend. None so far. She hoped he didn’t stand her up again. She ordered a café mocha and sat down at a table when her phone buzzed.

“Hello sweetheart. I’m almost there.”

Stella blushed and texted, “I can’t wait to finally meet you.”

“Same here. I have a feeling we’re going to have some deadly wicked fun.”

Stella felt a slight chill run up her spine, “Deadly?”

She was about to respond when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She jumped up and turned to look into a pair of pale blue eyes. Her eyes widened in surprise. “You’re king27?” King27 was the username of Stella’s online friend.

The man smiled, “Please just call me Tom.”