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“Are you going to explain what this has to do with me?” I asked.
“Your scent is the same as hers.” He stared with an intense gaze. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he had the look of a man coveting something. “And as impossible as I thought it to be, I’ve recently learned that some do find love again.”
“You mean…me?” I pointed at my chest.
He nodded.
No. No, no, no.“You said you wouldn’t bother me again after tonight.”
“I did.”
“But now you’re saying you think—”
“That you are my second chance,” he said. “If so, I could never walk away from such a rare gift.”
I squirmed on the couch, trying to think of something—anything—to discourage him from entertaining this insane idea. On the other hand, I didn’t want to rile the man up. He wasn’t right in the head, and I wanted to live.
With a sympathetic voice, I said, “I bet you miss her, your Anna, but I don’t know why you’d think I’m her replacement. Sounds like she was very special.”
“You understand me well, Masie. The chances of you being such a rare gem, one as special as Anna, are close to impossible. Which is why I must divine the truth: If I had not shown up last evening, what would you have done?”
“I don’t understand the question.” Suddenly, I heard sirens outside.
He pointed toward the front door. “Answer the question, Masie. They are but a minute away, and I will not be leaving until I have my answer. I will kill them all if I must, but youwillanswer me.” He walked over and bent down in front of me, putting us almost nose to nose.
I stared into his eyes.So beautiful…My mind drifted into a state of utter calmness, like a soft, warm blanket had been wrapped around my thoughts.
“What would you have done?” he repeated.
“Don’t know. Died, I guess.”
“You would’ve forfeited your life?” he hissed in my face, his pale eyes narrowing with disgust.
I suddenly snapped out of my momentary blip.
“Thisis what you were contemplating when I entered the bar?” he added.
I’d set him off. I needed to correct course if I wanted to make it through this. “I was…I was gonna kill him.”
His face relaxed, and he stood up straight, staring down his nose at me. “And if he had died by your hand, how would you have felt about it?”
He seemed calmer with my last answer, so I kept going. “I would’ve felt relieved. Safe. Alive.”
“And if you had to face his family, who would most certainly accuse you of taking their sweet angel from this world?”
Why was he asking me all this?
“I would’ve told them that their son was a piece of shit who murdered Deedee and therefore deserved what he got. I would’ve told them that he tried pushin’ his finger inside me while I was serving him suds, and he laughed about it. That was who their son was, and the world is better off without him.”
My captor’s face contorted into a hard mask, as if trying to hide his reaction. “He…penetrated you?”
“Tried. You were there. You saw it happen.” And why did my story surprise him? Didn’t he know who he’d murdered last night? Tall Guy was a monster.
“I did not. Very fortunate for me, I suppose. I would have been compelled to kill him in front of your patrons and then dispose of them, too.” He clicked his tongue. “Witnesses.”
I wasn’t sure if I should take him seriously, but I did wonder about his comment. “What do you mean you didn’t see? I saw you there.”
“When I arrived, I witnessed you hitting that man in the face with your tray. Later, I returned to speak with you and caught him lurking in the parking lot. He attacked your friend.”
