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“What?” Olivia asks, bending over to look at the screen. My heart drops when her eyes widen, but she shakes it off. Olivia can fool many people with her blasé attitude, but she can’t fool me. I know her too well to see when she’s internally freaking out. Even when her eyes dart to mine, and she locks her feelings up behind a tall brick wall—I know when she’s scared. And right now, she’s fucking terrified. It sends shivers down my spine and tightens my muscles.
“What? Am I in serious danger?” I ask in a low voice, nervously bouncing my leg.
“Don’t fucking panic,” Carter grunts, shoving Olivia from the screen.
“Yeah, that’s what you tell a victim of stalking,” she huffs, rolling her eyes. “Don’t panic,” she mocks his deep voice with a roll of her eyes.
Carter side-eyes her with an arctic glare, gritting his teeth so hard the veins in his jaw pop out. She doesn’t seem to notice, though, probably used to his attitude since they’ve worked side-by-side for years. Olivia continues pacing the room without a retort, muttering about what an idiot Carter is.
“As I was saying,” Carter grumbles, running a hand down his drooping face.
“Then what is it?” I interrupt in a panic, feeling like my heart is about to explode out of my chest.
Carter sighs, running a hand down his face. “Listen, Little West. We were able to trace the email.”
“That’s good news, right?” I ask with hope filling me.
“In normal circumstances, yes. But it’s tracing back to your phone like it’s coming directly from it. Like you sent it, and that’s not fucking possible.” Carter’s eyes fill with sympathy, taking me back to the first time I got several Polaroids sent directly to my brothers at West Records. Carter came immediately, taking them from me to examine every inch of them for a clue. One he never found. Whoever they are, they’ve taken great care in keeping themselves hidden from detection—up until now, though.
“That doesn’t make any sense,” I breathe, feeling the walls closing in on me from all sides, ready to smother the breaths from my lungs. “There’s no way that it could be coming from my phone. I didn’t send it to myself.” How could they— “Holy mother of fucking shit.”
“What?” Olivia asks, crossing her arms.
“My phone… I just… I lost it and had to replace it. You don’t think?” I stare at her with my mouth hanging open and thoughts swiftly moving through my brain at hyper speed.
Someone stole my fucking phone and used it against me. If they knew how to get into it, then they probably got into my security app, gained access to my cameras, and even worse—they came to my fucking sanctuary.
So, who the fuck did it? And why? I don’t understand this person’s obsession with me. I’m no one—just a woman trying to live her life to the fullest and raise my daughter right. It’s insane to think someone would follow me, taking my picture from the shadows.
“You mean to fucking tell me you lost your goddamn phone? You have a stalker out there watching every move you make, and you just—”
“Shut the fuck up, Carter,” Olivia growls, staring at him like he’s the devil’s spawn.
But his words. He’s fucking right. I’ve been so naive in thinking my stalker would forever hold back and be happy taking pictures of me for the rest of my life. Stupid fucking idiot. I’ve watched that show where he follows the girl around, watching from the street through her windows. Jesus, if I end up in a plexiglass room—I’m murdering everyone.
“Listen, they’ve obviously spoofed your location and your new phone’s IP address. We don’t know how they’re doing it, but we’ll find out.” Olivia’s eyes shine with determination when she finally halts her pacing and slams a hand down onto the desk. “I swear, River. We will find out who has been doing this to you and throw their asses in jail.”
I rub a finger over my temple, soothing the headache pounding in my skull. “But why now? It’s never escalated like this. It’s always been photographs of us in the mail. So, what has changed?” I can’t for the life of me figure out what the hell has changed, bringing my stalker out of the woodwork.
“We’re not for sure, but we have a theory,” Olivia gripes, balling her fingers into a fist. “It seems whoever your stalker is, doesn’t like the fact the guys are back in your life. Look at the x’s over their faces. It’s a clear sign they want them gone and away from you.”
“Fuck,” I mutter, swallowing the lump forming in my throat.
“Sorry, Little West. I’m keeping a close eye on it. Nothing is going to fucking happen to you. You fucking understand that?” Carter asks through gritted teeth, slowly rising to his feet. He looms over my seated body with a protective spark lighting in his eyes. “Keep vigilant. Lock your doors and keep your cameras on. Don’t answer the door for strangers. How’s your security holding up? I obviously need to have a fucking talk with the guards stationed at your house.” He raises a brow, giving me a no-nonsense look.
I snort. “Yes, Dad. I still have my guard at the gate. I have video surveillance on the inside and outside of my house.” I’ve done everything imaginable to protect Lyric and myself from harm, including building my house with a gate and off the beaten path. Fuck. “But…do you think it’s going to get worse?” A thick knot of nerves twists in my stomach when they silently communicate with their eyes.
Finally, Olivia heaves a big breath and shrugs. “This isn’t our area of expertise. But from what we’ve studied, stalkers never just disappear. We can only assume it’s going to get worse, River.”
“But you fucking have us, Little West. Veritas, your damn brothers, and even those assholes won’t let anything happen to you. You’ve taken every precaution necessary to maintain your safety and Lyric’s,” Carter adamantly vows. “Besides, when you look over your shoulder now, you’ll have a friend every step of the goddamn way. There’s no way I’m letting you walk out of this room without a discreet security detail.”
“I…”
“You will take my fucking gift, and you will like it. Tom will follow you everywhere. You won’t even know he’s fucking there half the time. Get the fuck over it. We’re here to protect you and my little niece. I actually like your fucking faces. So…” he trails off after growling his words and clenches his fists.
“Okay,” I say in agreement.
Olivia rests her hand on my shoulder, squeezing softly. Her comforting gesture does little to calm my rampant nerves running amok inside me. But it’s nice knowing I have more people in my corner as this escalates.
