CHAPTER 4

 

Chapter 4

The stupid, stubborn ice cube fell back in the glass and some of the orange juice splashed on the pristine, satin tablecloth making a visible splotch. She cursed under her breath, reaching out for a napkin and wiping off the drops while rolling her eyes at her clumsiness.

“Dammit!”

“Can I get you anything else, madam?” A young waitress suddenly appeared out of nowhere, startling Lisa and making her jump in her seat.

“Oh, no, no… thank you.” Lisa quickly put her hand on the wet spot trying to hide it for some reason, as the 20-something year old flashed her a radiant smile and nodded in understanding. “I’m just waiting for my friend, I think we’ll order some food when she gets here.”

‘If she ever gets here, that is.’ Lisa thought, her patience seriously wearing thinner than her favorite pair of jeans.

“Perfect, sounds great!” The girl’s smile got even broader and she refilled Lisa’s glass with water before turning and leaving her all alone again.

Janet was late.

Like really late. Thirty minutes late, to be precise.

Lisa growled something softly once again and looked out the window. She was sitting at a small table in the private room of a high-end café that guaranteed the guests a peaceful time without being disturbed by any prying eyes. And normally she would love that kind of a slow, no muss no fuss morning, just sipping on her coffee and watching people as they went about their day, but…

…but it was not that kind of day. No, Lisa was all jittery and annoyed because if there was one thing that never failed to drive her up the wall, it was waiting.

She took another sip of her juice still looking through the rain-streaked window, watching the city shroud in a veil of mist and melancholy and it felt like a perfect reflection of her soul.

It didn’t rain very often in Los Angeles, but when it did, it always made her feel like there was a heavy weight pressing down on her, clouding her thoughts.

And to top it all off, she wasn’t even all the way sure why Janet had asked her to meet in the first place. It wasn’t like they had been all that chummy during the last couple of years.

No, Lisa actually couldn’t even remember the last time they had spoken coherently, let alone recall all those fountains of laughter and joy or the spontaneous adventures that, as everyone knew, went hand in hand with a good and honest friendship.

She scoffed and rolled her eyes.

No, they hadn’t been friends in any shape or form for a long time, and whatever connection they once had was now nothing more than a distant memory, blurred and faded with time.

During the many break-ups that Michael and Lisa had gone through, Janet would often side with her, chewing her brother out while trying to cheer Lisa up. They would go out partying, they hung out, spoke on the phone and at some point in her life, Lisa actually considered her as a very, very close friend.

However, everything had shifted in the blink of an eye when she and Michael parted ways for the final and definitive time.

And so, she and her former sister-in-law hadn't spoken or met at all since then and there had been no contact whatsoever until last week, when Janet unexpectedly called Lisa and suggested they grab a cup of coffee together.

Lisa reluctantly agreed not knowing what to make of that but in all honesty was quite curious what seemed so urgent.

Was Michael okay? Had something happened to him? Or to Katherine? And what about his kids?

And now, there she sat in the café Janet insisted was the latest hotspot, after making Lisa drive through all the god-awful LA traffic, only to keep her waiting for a good thirty... no, actually forty minutes now.

‘Just great. Thanks so much.’

It wasn’t like Lisa had any plans that day but still.

Earlier she had driven Ben to his soccer game while Riley was still at her friend’s place after a sleepover she had been so excited about, and Lisa ended up all alone at home anyway.  But hey! She wasn’t all that lame… she could have easily found something to do!!

Matt was also at a training session, so he was out. But there was still Lockwood, persistently hounding her ever since some photos of her and her new 'friend' had leaked and appeared in several tabloid magazines.

Phone calls, texts, flowers… you name it. He seemed resolved to get her back but after the fundraiser Lisa had to admit Matt actually might have been exactly what the doctor had ordered. Literally. 

Yet, she was cautious this time, still taking it very, very slow.

After Michael had ditched her on the dance floor, leaving her emotions in a tangled mess, Matt must have picked up on her vibe or something.

Without making a big deal out of it, he just rolled with the punches and seemed to be doing his best to make sure the rest of the night didn’t totally suck.

And honestly, that was no small feat.

No matter how hard Lisa tried to keep it together, her emotions were like a wild storm crashing through what should have been a fun night.

But if she owed the guy anything, it was making sure he didn’t have to suffer through a shitty night with a shitty date over something shitty he wasn’t even involved in.

Lisa and Matt stuck around the fundraiser for a few more hours, with Matt scoring two tickets and backstage passes to a Green Day concert in the auction and by the time two a.m. rolled around, they decided to call it a night and finally hit the road.

The drive home?

Awkward as hell.

Lisa could see it coming from a mile away and then, as they pulled up in front of her house, there it really was…

Matt turned to her, searching her eyes and oh, man, she knew that look.

He wanted to kiss her.

That’s what people usually do after a first date, right?

She took a deep breath as he leaned in, closing the gap between them but while their bodies were mere inches apart, she felt as if they were worlds away.

Her mind drifted as she closed her eyes, arms awkwardly hanging at her sides.

Lisa felt his hands cup her face, slow and hesitant and a second later, his lips brushed hers in a soft, and very tentative kiss.

Yet, instead of butterflies, all she could feel was a wave of tears welling up and ready to spill.

She squeezed her eyes shut even more.

Rooted to the spot, Lisa couldn’t move, couldn’t pull away, couldn’t do anything but let her head spin and then, before she knew it, a low, desperate whimper slipped out, making Matt quickly pull back from the bumbling kiss.

Just a complete shitshow… No, she wasn't ready for this. Not after a night like that. It was just too much.

Matt seemed to catch on and quickly backed off all the way, clearing his throat awkwardly and running his hand through his hair.

Silence.

A long and awkward one.

A minute later, they both started apologizing, each insisting it wasn’t the other’s fault and the whole thing just got even more awkward.

By the time they were done tripping over their endless apologies, Lisa figured a quick peck on the cheek and a hasty exit was the only way to salvage what was left of her dignity. She thanked him again, grabbed her purse and jacket, and practically bolted out of the car, making a beeline for her front door.

She couldn’t wait to get home but of course, her plan quickly fell apart when she couldn’t find her keys in the endless mess of her purse.

She stood in front of her door, back to the car, cursing every tissue, hand sanitizer, and stray mint that spilled onto the ground while she dug through her bag.

As she heard the car drive away slowly, tears began to well up in her eyes, this time already streaming down her face.

Then finally, Lisa found her keys and unlocked the door, slipping inside. She closed it softly behind her, and leaned against it, letting herself finally break down completely.

She slid down, her back pressed against the door and burst into tears. A well-adjusted teenager would have handled the situation better.

So you can imagine her utter shock when Matt actually called the next day thanking her for a great night and asking if she would join him at the Green Day concert.

The guy was a keeper, really.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry, I’m so damn late!” Lisa heard a familiar voice that yanked her back into reality and looked up.

Janet! Finally!

“Hey!” Lisa stood up and they hugged as if it was and had always been the most natural thing between them. “You made me wonder if I got the address of this place right.”

“I know, I’m so sorry. I got stuck in the studio and then the stupid traffic… aargh. This city is going to be the death of me one day, I swear.”

Janet took off her jacket, sat down and reached out for the glass jar pouring herself some water with a loud sigh.

“Gee, you look great, girl.” Janet said, took a big gulp, then smiled warmly and grabbed Lisa’s hand from across the table. “How have you been?”

“Oh, pretty good. How about you?” Lisa returned the smile but slowly withdrew her hand. “I heard you’ve been working on a new album. That’s great!”

“Yeah, we’re already wrapping it up! I’m pretty excited. After everything that's happened this year, being holed up in a studio tinkering with both old and new songs feels like a blast.”

“Oh I bet.”

“Gosh, I’m starving. Hey, how about we ignore the merciless daily recommended calorie intake and we order pretty much everything from the menu?! I haven’t eaten in forever and we have so much catching up to do, anyway!”

Lisa smiled, Janet’s genuine excitement sweet and contagious.

“Yeah, what the hell! I’m actually pretty hungry, too!” She laughed and grabbed the leather-bound menu opening it and looking at the first page with an amused expression on her face, almost forgetting the grueling forty minutes she had spent waiting.

It didn’t take long and the tantalizing aroma of freshly brewed coffee mingling with the sweet fragrance of freshly baked pastries filled the air while Lisa and Janet found themselves having an amazing morning, nibbling at all the delicious food and laughing like crazy.

“Gee, he really pissed in your pool?!” Janet tried suppressing a laugh so much she almost snorted her coffee out of her nose.

“Yeah… ridiculous.” Lisa chuckled and shook her head in embarrassment. “The guy was such a weasel. I just couldn’t with him. He kept shooting my fancy 20-year old Macallan, then he stumbled out of the house, staggering there for a while, totally shitfaced and then, when I started worrying he might fall into the pool and drown, he just unzipped his pants and pissed in it. Unfuckingbelievable.” She finished and took a sip of her coffee while Janet doubled over in laughter.

“Oh my god, Lisa, where do you get these guys?!”

“I don’t know, man. They seem to be drawn to me like moths to a flame.”

It was true. The men lingering nearby had been, to put it mildly, questionable. Yet, in a way, it made sense to her.

After all, beggars couldn’t be choosers, as they said, right?

The law of attraction could have been merciless but worked every time.

And so, when she wrote the lyrics of the chorus to ‘Turbulence', she had laid bare her true state of mind without holding back.

She had been worn out and there had been nothing left for anybody else…

 

She curled up into a ball, burying her face in a pillow, and let out a desperate sob that she tried to muffle, though the pillow didn’t do much to contain the storm brewing inside her.

She wanted to scream, smash things, punch a hole in the wall — anything to release the tidal wave of frustration that seemed to be drowning her.

She had done it.

She had actually broken things off with him, this time for real.

The irony wasn’t lost on her. Just two weeks ago, she had been on cloud nine, grinning like an idiot, living in the delusion that everything between them was finally perfect.

Yeah, right.

Dream on, Lisa.

Now, while lying in her old bed at Graceland, with tears streaming down her face, the reality of their breakup hit her like a sledgehammer.

The happy memories they had shared were now shards of glass, cutting into her with every thought.

This time, though, she was too exhausted to even think about trying to piece them back together.

The pain was overwhelming and she had no clue how she would ever fill the void Michael had left behind.

Every corner of her mind echoed with memories of him — the laughter, the whispered promises, the moments that once felt so eternal.

How was she supposed to move on from something that had consumed her whole damn life?

 

It all started to crumble that morning at Hidden Hills.

She stood in her bedroom, leaning against the wall, clutching a cup of coffee, watching him neatly fold his clothes into his gym bag.

He was supposed to leave for New York for a few days, and she already missed him, even though he was still right there in front of her.

The night before had been just perfect — an amazing dinner followed by some seriously steamy lovemaking.

Absolute bliss.

Well, actually there was this tiny, nagging question gnawing at her… something Lisa had been meaning to ask but was too scared to bring up.

She knew she had to, though — it was now or never.

“Mike?” She tried to sound casual, sipping her coffee to steady her nerves. “It’s my mom’s birthday soon and…”

He looked up from his bag, raising an eyebrow.

“Look, I know you guys aren’t exactly best of friends…”

“That’s an understatement.” He cut in, suspicion already clouding his face.

Okay, he wasn’t going like this, but so what? They were together, and she had bent over backwards for him more times than she could actually count.

“I know, I know…” She flashed him her cutest smile, the one that usually melted him. “But… um… you guys do have one thing in common.”

“Oh really?” He tilted his head, almost amused. “And that would be…?”

“Me…”

Did she just see his expression soften?

He cleared his throat and crossed his arms, not defensively but like he was actually considering it. “Go on…”

“Well, um…” She put her empty cup down, shifting nervously. “We’re having a birthday party for her at Graceland, and I thought it would be nice if you could come and maybe… you know… try to bury the hatchet?”

As soon as she said it, he groaned, clearly not thrilled. His brow furrowed, and his eyes narrowed slightly.

“When is it again?” He asked a minute later.

Sweet! Looked like he was about to cave!

“Next Saturday. You’ll be back by then, right?” She said, beaming, but his face fell.

“Ah, shoot… I’m flying straight to Zurich from New York… didn’t I tell you?” He took a step back and gave her that sweet, innocent smile he always used when trying to bamboozle her, the one she had learned to approach with extreme caution.

Her shoulders tensed.

“Zurich?”

“Yeah…” He swallowed, and Lisa suddenly got this weird gut feeling that something was way off.

She watched him straighten up, his demeanor shifting to that cold, distant mode she knew too well.

“I’m going to check out a house there.” He stated with that unmistakable “My way or the highway” tone of finality.

And not just any highway — the 101 Highway, with his ranch fading in the rearview mirror.

Buh-bye…

Lisa’s stomach twisted, but instead of blowing up, she bit her tongue and waited.

She watched him hesitate, his hands buried deep in his pockets, his gaze fixed on the carpet as if it might reveal the answers he was searching for.

Silence.

Deep and heartbreaking.

Tears were already brimming in her eyes as she took a few steps towards him, though she kept a safe distance.

“Are you actually telling me here you’re moving to Switzerland?”

He shrugged, still avoiding any eye contact, and it felt like she had just been sucker-punched.

Lisa stumbled back, her hand flying to her mouth in disbelief.

There they were again — same shit, different day.

And once again, she wasn’t even a blip on his radar when he made his decisions. His plans were all about him, never about them.

Lisa drew in a shaky breath, turning away as the silence in the room became suffocating. She fought to steady her trembling hands, to push back the tidal wave of anger and heartbreak, but all she could do was grip the table and close her eyes to stop the tears.

“Lisa… nothing’s definite.” His voice was weak, barely above a whisper as he zipped up his bag. “I haven’t bought it yet. I just… you know how toxic this city is. I’m not sure I want my kids growing up here. I need to get out. You gotta understand.”

No, she didn’t.

Nausea swept over her, and she closed her eyes again, pinching the bridge of her nose.

Without looking at him, she whispered, “Then get out, Michael.”

Her mouth went dry, and her hands shook uncontrollably.

“What?”

She slowly turned to face him, her tear-streaked eyes now blazing with anger.

“I said get out! Leave the country if you want, but more importantly, get out of my life for good! I can’t believe I fell for your bullshit again, you selfish jerk!!”

She was seconds away from throwing the mug at him but held back. Painting the walls was such a pain in the ass.

“Lisa! Why are you freaking out? This has nothing to do with you!”

She gasped. There it was. He had just said it. Nothing to do with her.

“Exactly…” Her voice cracked, defeated.

He stared at her, dumbfounded, then shook his head. “Look, I… I gotta go. I’ll call you when I land, okay?”

“Don’t.”

Michael opened his mouth to say something but clearly thought better of it.

Without another word, he grabbed his bag and walked out, muttering under his breath, leaving her standing there, empty and hollow.

Yeah, Michael didn’t do conflict.

Running away was more of his thing.

Lisa stood frozen, feeling the air in the room get sucked out along with him.

As the door clicked shut, she sank to the floor, and the tears she had been holding back finally broke free…

 

“Lisa… what in the world? Are you okay?” Her oh-so-sympathetic mother peeked her head in through the door, her perfectly arched brows furrowing at the sight of her daughter curled up in a ball, sobbing and shaking like a leaf on the massive bed.

Great. Just what she needed.

“I’m fine… I’ll be down in a bit.” Lisa mumbled, hastily wiping away her tears with the back of her hand.

“We just cut the cake, and I saved you a piece. Are you crying?”

Lisa let out a helpless chuckle, finding her mother’s question absurd.

What did it look like she was doing?

Yes, she was crying, alright!

What was the point in putting up a front anymore?

Lisa sniffled, and then the dam broke. The floodgates opened wide as she started bawling, no holds barred this time, the weight of everything she had been bottling up finally crashing down on her.

Priscilla, looking equal parts shocked and confused — well, as shocked as someone with so much Botox only could — quickly closed the door and rushed to the bed.

She sat down next to Lisa and started stroking her hair in that soothing, motherly way that Lisa had once found comforting …

Once…

“What’s wrong, Lisa? Talk to me…”

“It’s… it’s my birth…birthday…” Lisa choked out, barely able to speak through her sobs. “My birthday gift to… to you.”

“What is? What are you talking about?”

“I ended it with Michael.” Lisa finally blurted out, her voice cracking as fresh tears streamed down her face and soaked the pillow. “For good. Forever.”

There was a pause.

A heavy, deliberate pause, as Priscilla seemed to let the words sink in.

When she finally spoke, her voice was soft and full of that motherly concern, though there was a subtle hint of satisfaction she couldn’t quite hide.

“Oh, Lisa, baby… I don’t know what happened, but maybe it’s for the best. Look at you. Look at what he’s done to you again.”

Yeah, forget the jewelry or her favorite Chanel perfume. This was the best gift Lisa could have given her mother, and somewhere underneath that concerned expression, Priscilla was surely doing a little victory dance.

But maybe she was right.

And maybe she had been right all along.

Michael wasn’t the man for her. Never had been.

When he had tried calling her from New York, Lisa had thought, more than once, about giving it another shot.

Of course, she had.

Michael was like a drug she just couldn’t quit, no matter how many times she told herself she was done.

But then she had heard through some mutual friends that Michael had found a surrogate for his third child, and apparently, the woman was already four months along.

The news struck her with the force of a tidal wave, pulling the ground out from under her. It was the final blow, the one that tore through her defenses, leaving her utterly devastated.

Her heart clenched, and a cold numbness spread through her, as if every ounce of trust she had ever had, had been ripped away, leaving nothing but a hollow ache and feeling as though she had been betrayed in the deepest, most unforgivable way.

And so, that weekend, in her old room at Graceland, after crying herself dry for hours on end, she made a decision.

A real, conscious decision.

She wasn’t going to let him hurt her ever again.

The very next day, she changed her phone number, and just like that, she stepped into a new chapter of her life — a life without Michael.

Sure, she was limping into it, bruised and aching, but she was moving forward…

 

The brunch turned out just perfect. Having already tried the amazing creamy scrambled eggs with melted cheese, Lisa now moved on to the freshly sliced fruits, still deciding whether another small slice of the artisanal bread was a good idea.

Of course it was.

And the conversation flowed so naturally, as if there had never been a few years of zero contact that, at times, almost felt like animosity.

“Sounds about right. Hey, but I heard about a certain handsome gentleman. Hmmm? Spill the beans. Who is he? Is it serious??" Janet asked, flashing Lisa a mischievous grin and winking at her.

“Yeah, there might be someone.” Lisa mumbled light-heartedly and shrugged while spreading a little bit of butter on the enticing slice of bread. She wasn’t all the way sure if she really wanted to discuss Matt with Jan.

Yes, the whole morning had been great and felt like the good old times but Janet was still Michael’s sister and Lisa wasn’t sure how much information she could volunteer. Not that she cared what he thought about her social life but still...

Ahem..

Right…

… but still, she had learned the hard way that when it came to Michael, there had never been any harm in being just a little cautious.

“I saw your photo in the National Enquirer! Damn he looks fine!” Janet smiled and took a bite of a cookie raising an eyebrow, obviously waiting for more juicy details.

Nope, she wasn’t going to get any.

“He’s a great guy. It’s just… it’s nothing serious just yet, you know.” Lisa replied carefully, fudging the issue, her eyes now fixed on the bread in front of her. “I need to think twice before I invite someone over. Do you know how expensive it is to have your pool cleaned these days??!”

Hoping to get Janet off her case, Lisa gave her a half-smile and tried turning the conversation back to her.

“What about you? Still seeing that producer guy?”

“Yes, yes… we’re old news. Just smooth sailing. No spicy scandals.” Janet shrugged. “Damn, the chocolate chip cookie is to die for!!”

Lisa smiled and looked out the window again. It seemed they were finally done with the third degree.

The rain had stopped and she watched as the sky began to clear, parting the heavy clouds like a curtain, revealing the golden hues of the sun.

“Hey, um…” Janet spoke again and looked at Lisa. “I actually invited you here for a reason. I…”

Lisa blinked. So there was an agenda after all.

“I…I wanted to thank you personally for testifying and helping Michael. I doubt he has done it, thanking you that is, you know. He’s a dumbass, I know he wanted to talk to you but I also know how easily he can get distracted so I wanted to make sure you know how much we all appreciate you stepping in. Thanks, Lisa. You have no idea how elated mom was. She also wanted me to tell you she would love for you to drop by at Hayvenhurst any time you feel like it.” Janet cleared her throat and took a sip of her coffee. “She misses you a lot. We all do.”

Lisa took a second to process the current situation before a genuine smile tugged at the corners of her lips and this time it was her who reached out and grabbed Jan’s hand squeezing it lightly.

“No reason to thank me, really. I was happy to help and it wasn’t anything difficult. I just told the truth. And your ‘dumbass brother’ as you put it, has already talked to me.” Lisa smiled and withdrew her hand only to grab her coffee mug. Her tone turned more serious. “I’m just glad he is free and can go on with his life now.”

“Yeah, me too, Lisa, me too. Um, wow, so you guys talked?”

“Yeah, we met at a fundraiser a few weeks ago. Talked a little. He looked better than the last time I had seen him. Is he… um… doing better?”

“Yeah, I think he is. Geez, you have no idea how terrible it was. The whole thing. All the lies and made-up stories, all the disgusting graphic details that they made us listen to, only to have Tom discard them all together during every single cross-examination.. but… but you know as they say, what has been heard cannot be unheard.” Janet took a deep breath and played with her fork, and Lisa could see tears welling up in her eyes. Then she swallowed and continued. “For the first time in my life I started doubting Michael would land on his feet like he always used to, you know. He was a wreck. Refused to eat, didn’t sleep, spent all his time obsessing about everyone in his vicinity. It was awful.”

Lisa’s heart sank and as she listened to the painful narrative, her eyes glistened with unshed tears as well. During the trial she had often been glued to the TV watching the updates on the case and thought about him, about how he must have been feeling.

And every time she woke up at night she wondered if he was awake too, knowing how bad his insomnia could get.

But! She hid it from the world very well, didn’t she?

The indifferent, barky ex-wife.

“So, um… yeah, I guess I’m pretty surprised you met him out in public. He’s still not himself yet. I know I fuss too much but I also know he’s off most of the prescription drugs now and I just hope he won’t fall off the wagon again, is all.”

“Hey…” Lisa said and leaned closer with a reassuring smile. “The worst is over now. He’ll be fine. He’s got his kids and all the family.”

“Lisa…” Jan looked into her eyes and sighed with a little frown. “You know what kind of people he surrounds himself with.”

Did she ever. All the leeches sucking him dry, stealing from him, manipulating him. And he had always let them, inviting them into his life, usually with nothing but a wide smile on his face.

Lisa nodded silently.

The waitress appeared at their table asking if they needed anything else and Lisa jumped up when she looked at her watch and noticed what time it was.

“Shit!! Damn. Jan, I’m so sorry. I gotta go! I totally forgot!! I need to pick up Ben, the game's probably over by now.. He’s gonna kill me.”

“Oh, no worries. I kept you waiting, then talked your ear off.” Janet grinned and took her purse. “It’s on me, of course. Hey… but before you go, there’s one more thing. I have a little listening party for my new album in about three weeks, A-list guests, good food and drinks and I would love for you to come, if you have time. I mean it. Take your handsome man or whoever you want. Not the pool-pissing guy, though.” Janet chuckled and handed her an envelope with the invitation while Lisa was putting on her leather jacket.

“Wow, that sounds great. I… I’ll try to make it.” Then she paused.

Would Michael be there too? And could she muster the courage to casually ask Janet about it, slipping the question in as if it was nothing out of the ordinary?

She quickly weighed the options and then chickened out. He didn’t care about her, so why should she?

He had left her in the middle of a dance floor looking like someone who was not interested in seeing her ever again.

And she knew his MO very well. If he got hurt, you were out.

Lisa drew in a deep breath and erased the question from her mind immediately.

“Thanks, I’ll do my best to be there.”

 

An hour later Lisa pulled up in front of her house and looked at the annoyed teenager in the rear-view mirror. She couldn’t help but chuckle at him as he sat there covered in mud, his arms folded over his chest with a frown on his face.

“Stop being so dramatic. I didn’t make you wait that long.” She tried in a conciliatory tone but he turned his head and looked out again.

“I was the last kid there!!” Ben huffed and unfastened his seat belt.

“Okay, okay… for the millionth time I am sorry, it will never happen again and I love you very much, okay?” She said but his expression didn’t change. She rolled her eyes suppressing another smile. “Hey, why don’t you run upstairs, take a shower and get changed while I make you spaghetti and meatballs?”

She knew this one never failed. She watched him as he weighed the pros and cons of giving in before he flashed her a broad smile and nodded.

“Okay!!” He jumped out of the car and she saw him run to the front door pulling out his keys and she smiled again.

Some men were easy to figure out, all you needed was pasta, good ground beef, tomatoes and cheese… and some were a bit more complicated. Dangerous. Unavailable. And fateful.

She followed Ben inside the house and made her way to the living room to check her answering machine and her mail.

She pressed the play button and half listened to her mother rant about something completely irrelevant while flipping through the envelopes she had been deliberately ignoring for a while now. Bank statements, a tax notice, some bills, an invitation to a birthday party and then a dirty, light pink envelope without any address, any sender information, nothing.

Weird.

She tore it open and took out a little note. The ink was smudged and handwriting erratic. Lisa narrowed her eyes and looked at it closely.

 

My love,

I see everything. Your every move, every breath — perfect. I adore every little thing you do. Soon, you’ll understand.

I’m always near, closer than you think. Waiting, watching. No one will ever take you from me. We’ll be together soon.

 

She gasped and threw the note onto the floor, her hand flying to cover her mouth in shock.

What the fuck was that??!!