Page 24 of The Life She Had

I make my way carefully down the stairs, gun in hand. At the bottom, the front-door rug is askew. My laptop lies atop it.

I flip on the living room light. There’s glass on the floor. Blood smears continue to the back door.

As I stand there, staring at the bloodied footprints, Daisy comes back in, huffing and wincing, hand to her side. She’s barefoot, and blood smears in her wake as she jogs toward me. I quickly swing the gun behind me, out of sight.

“Are you okay?” she says. “Did he—?” Her gaze travels up and down me, dressed in my chemise.

“I’m fine,” I say, carefully, my brain still processing. “What happened?”

“I came in to use the bathroom,” she says. “Then I heard footsteps overhead. I went to the stairs to let you know it was just me down here, and someone came barreling down and knocked me flying. I managed to get that”—she points at the laptop—“before he took off. I followed... and accidentally discovered how he broke in.”

A wry twist of a smile as she points at the broken glass. She lifts her foot to examine the damage and then continues, “I followed him out, but the glass slowed me down enough that I lost him.”

“You’re okay?” I ask, a little belatedly.

“I think so. If you have bandages, I’ll look after my foot while you call the police.”

I nod toward the upstairs bathroom. She gingerly makes her way around the glass and heads up. I stand there, surveying the scene as my heart thuds.

This is no random break-in.

I can’t callthe police, but I do need to notify someone, or it’ll seem suspicious. And the person I need to notify is the last person I want to run to: Liam. But if I don’t tell him and he finds out, that will only make things worse.

So I make that damn call, as hard as it is.

Save me, Liam. Protect me.

I wrap up the story with, “It seems that when Daisy startled the intruder by coming inside, he grabbed my laptop and ran. But she got that back, so the only damage is a broken window. Is it going to look suspicious if I don’t call it in?”

“Not if you notified me and I advised you against bothering to file a report.”

“That’s what I thought.” I pause. “It is just a random break-in, right? Someone looking to pawn my laptop for drug money?”

Silence.

“It can’t be Aaron,” I say, a little sharper. “You’ve made sure of that.”

“I’m handling Aaron as best I can, but he isn’t the only trouble you face, is he?”

And whose fault is that?I want to snap the words, but I know how to walk this balance beam. There are times I can call him out, like a normal girlfriend, and there are times when I’d best just keep my bitch mouth shut, as Aaron always said.

Liam knows he’s the cause of the other “trouble I face,” because he set the damn thing in motion himself. That was the point. Lure me in, trap me and then come to my aid, setting himself up as my protector.

“It was just a break-in,” I say, firmly now. “Probably one of my damn neighbors looking for dope, which is another reason I don’t want to report it. And I really am fine, thanks to my houseguest.”

“Well, then, I’m glad she’s there. Maybe you shouldn’t be in too big of a rush to get rid of her. While I’m sure it’s uncomfortable having a stranger there, think of her as a watchdog. A small and ferocious stray terrier.”

I have to laugh at the image, which strangely fits.

You think I should let her stay? Well, it’s not my first choice, but if you insist, I guess I have no option but to keep her around.

He continues, “You know, I was already thinking it’d be good to have her do some work around your place.”

“You’ve said that. I’m still considering it.”

“Maybe, though, you don’t need to be there.”

“What?”

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