Read with BonusRead with Bonus

One

Sitting against Dena on the now turned over couch, Raina bit her lip, worrying it until she felt the taste of blood in her mouth. She had called her sister and her husband over and they had came almost immediately, then they had called the cops.

She watched the officers walked around her apartment, snapping pictures and taking notes of the thing they saw. According to them, the intruder and her attacker were possibly the same person, and they had entered her place from climbing in through the window she had left open.

Raina believed in ventilation, and that had almost cost her, because of she had been at home sleeping when the man came here, she would probably be long dead.

Captain Steve Newport of the NHPD walked to them and Raina looked up at him. “Whoever the intruder is, they’re long gone right now.” he said.

Raina looked at him with a frown, wondering if that was all he had to say about what had happened tonight.

“So no have no idea who did this?” Dena asked beside her and she sighed. She was as frustrated about the whole thing as she was.

“No, we don’t. At least, not yet, Mrs. Amberson.” Steve said, looking from Dena to her husband.

Larry Amberson was a doctor, but with friends in the high places. He had gone to college with Steve, and so that was the reason he was here with them instead of just the normal officers who responded to calls like this.

Dena shook her head. “I don’t get it. Why would someone come after you? Attempt to murder you. That’s just not right.” She said as she looked at Raina. She had been crying since she came and Raina wasn’t sure who was here for who.

Steve lifted his shoulder in a shrug. “That’s a stretch, don’t you think? I mean it’s just a mugging gone wrong.” He said.

It was Raina’s turn to scoff. “Just mugging?” she raised her hands in a helpless gesture. “I already told you everything that happened tonight, and you still think that? That man was a pro. He did everything professionally.” She said.

She caught Steve rolling his eyes. “Trust me, if this was a professional, then you wouldn’t be here by now.”

Raina scoffed, not believing her ears right now. She knew she had to do something to help herself, because these people couldn’t protect her or keep her safe.

Raina clenched her fists, feeling frustration boil beneath her skin as she sat on the edge of the couch. She glanced at Dena, who had been sniffling, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.

Larry stood behind them, pacing the living room in long strides, his face tight with anger. The house felt suffocating, a reminder of how quickly everything had spiraled out of control.

Captain Steve Newport scribbled something on his notepad, his expression a mix of indifference and mild irritation. It was as if he felt like they were disturbing him. He was the one who wasn’t taking this seriously, not Raina. It was clear to her that she was dealing with something much bigger than a random break-in, but he didn’t seem to want to listen.

“I don’t know what else you want me to say, Ms. McNamara,” Steve said, sounding tired. “I get it… this was scary, but that’s all it was. Scary. If someone wanted you dead, you wouldn’t have made it out of that alley.” He tucked his pen behind his ear, clearly done with the conversation.

This must be some kind of joke, Raina thought as she looked at the man. He was obviously not interested in being here, and was just probably here because his friend, if Raina could call Larry that, had called him here.

Raina’s jaw tightened. “Scary? That man didn’t just try to scare me. He was there to kill me. He knew what he was doing, and if I hadn’t fought him off, I wouldn’t be here.” She said.

Steve let out a sigh and rubbed his temple as if the situation was giving him a headache. “Look, we’re gonna keep looking into it, alright? But I’m telling you, this looks like a burglary gone wrong. Don’t work yourself up over nothing.”

Larry stopped pacing and looked sharply at Steve. “She’s not working herself up over nothing,” he said, his voice calm but firm. “We all know Raina’s not some amateur when it comes to these things. You need to look into it.”

Steve shrugged again, clearly unwilling to change his stance. “I’ll keep you updated if anything comes up,” he said before turning to leave.

After he left, Raina swallowed the lump in her throat, one she wasn’t sure what caused it, whether fear or anger.

She had never felt so vulnerable. Not in all her years as an investigative journalist, even when she had been in dangerous situations before.

Dena finally broke the silence, her voice shaky as she spoke. “Raina, what are you going to do? I don’t want you staying here by yourself. What if he comes back?”

Right now, there were too many what-ifs, going through Raina’s head. What if this was because of what she had found?

What if they were after the files she had?

What if they won’t stop until they ended her life?

What if…

“You need to have someone that will protect you, Raina. If the police aren’t going to take this seriously, then you need to be prepared.” Larry said, his voice interrupting her thoughts.

She nodded. “Yes, but what do I do? As you can see, I could barely make it out of that attack. The wounds you treated are testaments for that.” She said, looking at him.

Larry sighed with a nod. “Well, I know someone. We were golf buddies back in college, before he left for the military and I went to med school. He’s now a private security specialist. He own his security firm. I’ll talk to him and see what he can do. But first, you’re coming with us.” He said.

Raina shook her head. “No way, that’s not going to happen,” she said and when Larry and Dena frowned, she explained. “I can’t put you in danger. What if the man is still around somewhere? I don’t want you hurt. I’m sure this is about the RavenTech case I’m working on.

“I’m going to check myself into a hotel until I can meet with that man you spoke of. All I need you both to do is follow me back to my office so that I can grab my laptop and some files,” she said.

With a nod, Dena offered to pack her a bag, and Larry started to put things back in place. She said there, still dried eyes, but seriously wanting to cry.

Previous Chapter
Next Chapter