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“Eh, no worries. I get it all the time. Tell me about her… him… whoever.” The woman whipped back her head and took another gulp of her vodka soda. “I’m Debbie, by the way. But you can call me Deb.”
“Hey, Deb. I’m Ashley. And my friend’s name is Tara. She’s—”
“Tall, blonde, gorgeous face, and rocking body?” Deb finished for her.
Ashley nodded. “Yeah… how’d you know? You’ve seen her?”
“Some chick named Tara was mumbling to herself in the girl’s restroom earlier tonight. Said she’s meeting a Declan. Told her not to, man. Told her not to. I thought she was smart enough to turn around and leave, but given how you’re here, I’m gonna go on a whim and say she went off with him. Stupid, stupid girl.” She took another sip of her drink.
“What’s wrong with Declan? Why should she stay away from him?”
“None of my business, man. Tried to warn them, tried to warn them all, but they’re all either too stupid or too lovesick to listen to me. I’m getting too old for this shit.”
“Deb!”
“What, dude? Mellow out. What’s your problem?”
“My problem is that you know something about this Declan dude, and I need you to tell me what the hell is going on before my best friend gets hurt!”
She’s his sister, Ashley had found out. And Declan had been a patient at Carlisle Psychiatric, a mental hospital reserved for the most troubled souls. Turned out, he wasn’t new to this game. He’d been down this path before, with other girls, stalked them, lured them, seduced them, trapped them. He wasn’t well, a psychological disorder of some sort. And not only that, he was dangerous, far more dangerous than Ashley could ever expect. If she wanted to see both Tara and herself alive, she couldn’t go after this man alone. She needed Deb, and she needed the cops.
Deb promised she’d take Ashley over to Declan’s apartment in the morning.
“But what if he kills her before then?!” Ashley screamed.
“Don’t worry, he won’t. I know my brother. He likes to take this… um… slow. Besides, you really think I’m gonna let the cops see me when I’m high as a kite? My mother would turn over in her grave if she knew both her fucked-up kids are in prison.”
After Ashley called Deb a cab to take her home to sober up, she began to make her way back to her own apartment. She’d expected to come home with Tara, change into their pajamas, and watch scary movies all night. Now, she’d be lucky if she could even sleep. And she couldn’t just run off to the cops. She’d promised Deb. She’s her last hope if she wanted to find her friend.
Her mind spiraled with confusion on what to do. She couldn’t just climb into bed and pretend like everything’s okay, especially not when someone she cared about was potentially getting hurt.
As Ashley stepped into her apartment, she kicked her shoes off and slouched on the couch. Tara’s sunflower pillow was sitting beside her, staring at her, mocking her, like she was an evil friend for just sitting here.
“Don’t look at me like that,” Ashley muttered, turning the pillow over. “I did what I could.” She threw her hands in the air. “I need some fresh air.”
She quick ran into her closet to change out of her insanely-tight dress, threw a cozy sweater and some leggings on, and headed back out the door. For the city that never sleeps, a lot of places seemed to close awfully early as she strolled toward Central Park. The night was unusually quiet, the wind was breezy, and despite the occasional honks and gunfire, New York City was as normal as it usually got.
“Here, little birdy!” She whistled as she walked down to the pond.
The night was getting chillier with each step, and she knew she had to turn around soon before things got too dangerous… and she didn’t mean the cold. But when she reached the bottom step, she found out that she wasn’t alone. She didn’t expect anyone else to be here, especially not on a Friday night, but guess she wasn’t the only one with the same idea.
“Sorry, I didn’t know anyone else was down here,” she muttered shyly as she turned around to walk back up the stairs.
“Ashley?” The person called out, a male voice. “Ashley, is that you?”
Ashley turned around, inching her pepper spray out from her pocket and ready to attack, when she came face-to-face with none other than the man of her dreams, Mark Roth.
“Ashley!” Mark said again as he walked closer to her. “I thought that was you. You go to my gym. I see you in my spin class every week. How’s it going?”
“Hey, Mark.” Ashley’s face blushed red, and she turned her head away. “Not much, I guess. Just needed some air.”
“Yeah, I feel you. There’s a bench over there.” He pointed over to their right. “Come sit down with me. Let’s talk.”
Ashley’s body shivered when Mark took her hand. She’d always dreamt about this moment, but that was it. Just a dream. She didn’t think he would ever be here with her, touching her, holding her hand. She remained speechless when he led her over to the bench. The crusty leaves and sprinkling of snow weren’t enough to bother either of them. And when she sat down, she made sure to keep her distance. She didn’t want him to think she was too eager to be there.
“So, what’s up?” he asked.
Ashley looked at him with a confused look. “What do you mean?”
