Page 87 of Make No Mistake

“Jay, please.”

“He knows you’re here.”

Those were not the words I’d been expecting. “What?”

I could hear the envelope slapping his hand, or leg. “There was a note left in the window. He knows you’re here. He knows you haven’t stopped looking for him.”

“So?”

“He said this was his final warning.”

Confusion passed over my fear. “What does that mean?”

“I have no idea, Mac. I don’t know what’s going on in that lunatic’s mind. I don’t know what he’s planning or why he left the note. Why he left it in that window. If he’s watching you, he knows what room you’re sleeping in. Why would he put it in that window?” His voice faded. He was scared. I could feel it in the air. Neither of us knew what to do.

His questions mirrored my own.

Was this worth it? Was getting attacked and now hunted worth the blog and the interviews? My heart said yes. I may have helped prevent other attacks. My brain was starting to doubt though.

With each passing second, my heart rate sped up. My breathing was becoming more rapid. My chest was so heavy. I grasped at my shirt but couldn’t escape the feeling of something pressing down on me.

“Mac?” His voice sounded concerned, but so far away.

I licked my lips, but my mouth was so dry.

Tears were filling my eyes and I had no control.

It was like I was watching my body from the outside. Things were happening, but I wasn’t registering why. I tried to swallow but ended up holding my breath. My lungs burned for air, but my chest refused to inflate.

I was stuck.

I was drowning.

“Mac!” Arms were around me. “Mac, breathe!” He began shaking me, but it was like it was happening to someone else.

He pounded on my back until suddenly my body remembered how to inhale. I took one gasping breath before the sobs escaped.

“Mac. You’re having a panic attack. I need you to focus. Just breathe for me.”

His words didn’t make sense. I didn’t have panic attacks. Aubrey did, but never me.

He slapped my back with more force than necessary. I gasped in another lungful of air.

“Mckayla!” He was up against me, but he sounded so far away.

I went from standing to floating through the air, then I was sitting on something soft. My back was pushed forward until my head rested between my knees. There was something terribly confusing about my body moving without me controlling it.

Pounding on my back continued.

“Breathe!”

A sudden gasp filled the silent air.

This lasted for hours. Maybe seconds or minutes. Everything hurt, and I didn’t want to feel anymore.

“Mckayla!”

I was shaking.