INTRUSION (Whitney Holmes Series) (16 page)

“
Maybe that was his real job and he sort of followed you to the movies.”

“
Eww, this gets creepier and creepier!”

“
I don’t know if we will ever know the complete truth, Whitney.”

“
Dad, I have to tell you something. The day that you were discharged from the hospital, I was walking home with Chanda. He offered us a ride and I said no and instead Chanda and I went to 7-Eleven for a Slurpee.”

“
Oh my. Thank goodness you and Chanda didn’t get in the car with him. No telling what he would have done.”

“
What happens now?” I asked. I was shaking.

“
He is eighteen, so, he will go to jail, I assume, unless he goes to a psychiatric facility. But stalking is a felony. Either way, he’s going to be confined for some time.”

“
Do I have to go to court?”

“
No. We don’t have to go to trial since he confessed,” Dad said.

“
I am so glad,” I said, sniffling.

“
How long will he be in jail or a facility?” I asked.

“
I hope for a long time,” Dad said. “Laws on stalking are getting stricter, and he was a definite stalker.”

I felt relief now, I couldn’t believe it was all over, my chest felt tight still.

“Was the steak poisoned that he threw to Gretchen?”

“
I don’t know. I didn’t hear back.”

I went over and hugged my dad.

“Did he hit you with his car, Dad? Was he the hit and run driver, too?”

“
He didn’t confess to that. He seems to have an alibi for that night. I guess it was just a coincidence that you were being stalked and I suppose that the hit and run was someone else,” my father said.

“
Are you going to get rid of your gun, now?” I asked.

“
No, there are still bad guys out there and I want to at least have the same chances they have to protect my family and I enjoy our little time together at the desert teaching you to shoot,” he said.

“
I would never had been able to use the gun like you did, dad, I am so proud of you,” I said.

“
Are we going to stay in Tae Kwon Do?” Jordan asked.

“
Yes, we should all be able to protect ourselves,” my mom said.

“
I am going to join it with you this Saturday. We do have the family plan,” my father said.

We lazed around most of the day. I kept getting little twinges of anxiety, just from force of habit, but then I would remember it was probably all over and relax. Chanda came over that night and I took her to my room. I told her how it was Ted who had been bothering me.

Her mouth dropped open in shock. “I think his parents abused him,” Chanda said. “Well, I know there was a lot of yelling by his mom.”

“
That’s no excuse,” I said.

“
Of course not, I was just saying,” she said. “Maybe that’s how he ended up to be such a sicko.”

“
Think about if we never went to the movies,” I said.

“
I was thinking about that. It is weird how some choices in your life can make such a huge difference.”

“
I wonder if the actual first time he noticed me was when he hung the pizza coupon on our doorknob.”

“
Wow, you mean before that?”

“
Way before. You know, I never noticed him at school. Not ever.”

“
Me neither.”

“
Chanda, I am not going to be afraid to do stuff anymore. I mean, I was terrified of going over your house in the dark, but I am going to be stronger now,” I said.

“
Well, it helps that Ted is locked up,” she said. “I mean, what can he do to you now?”

I laughed for the first time in a long time. “Yes, that helps a lot,” I said.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

I had some of the beautiful summer left to enjoy. Chanda and I went to the beach and we even took the bus. I tried so hard to not be afraid, but there were some weirdos on the bus who creeped me out.

When summer was almost over, my mom and I went to the movies, to the very same theater where Ted said he had seen me and Chanda. Mom said I needed to go there for closure. I thought it was unnecessary, but I went with her anyway.

I didn’t realize how frightened I had become of just everyday things like going to the movies. When the movie was over, I was really glad. I was afraid to be in the dark, but not with my mom sitting there with me.

“
Your father and I have been talking about sending you to someone you can speak to about your fears,” she said in the car.

“
You mean like a psychiatrist?” I asked.

“
No, like a counselor or a psychologist,” my mom said.

“
I think I just need time. This whole ordeal happened all during Spring of my sophomore year. That is a long time,” I said.

“
That is why we think you need to talk to someone about it,” my mom said.

“
Maybe,” I said.

I knew one good thing: We got Gretchen out of that whole experience. She was an important member of our family now.

“I will talk to someone if you want,” I said.

“
That’s my girl,” my mom said.

She started the car and we drove off. I sat there, thinking. Maybe talking to someone about how afraid I was would be good. I still kept my window shut and curtains closed. Some part of me didn’t believe that it was all over.

We read in the newspaper that Ted got three years in jail, which could mean he would be out in a year and a half. Maybe that was why I still felt scared. Hopefully, he would have some training on how to be a better person.

I was going to be the best Tae Kwon Do expert and I wasn’t going to let this kid scare me. I had Gretchen and my family and hopefully, his family would move away. It made me uneasy that his parents’ house was right behind Chanda’s, even though they had never done anything to me.

School started and I was a heroine of sorts for a while. Of course, lots of people came up to me saying that they knew Ted was a creep all along. I was thankful that Ted didn’t do any more damage to me, other than the mental anguish he put me and my family through.

I started seeing a counselor named Debby. She was very kind and we got a lot of things worked out. Debby said that people in jail didn’t like stalkers, so Ted would have a difficult time in there. This made me sad. I didn’t expect to feel sorry for my stalker. I wanted him to have a better life than he had at home. There was nothing I could do about it.

I got a letter one day from the penitentiary. It was from Ted. I was shocked and I was shaking when I opened it. All it said was, “Sorry,” in his own handwriting. Well, I was sorry, too. Sorry that the guy ever laid eyes on me and my family.

My brothers both got black belts at the same time I got a blue belt.

It’s been a while since it all happened. I met a boy in my history class. His name was Kevin. He was very nice and understanding. Sometimes, we would talk at lunch and do our history homework together. I was shy about going out with him, but his parents drove us to fun places and they were nice to me, too.

After months of constant worrying about being watched, threatened, and stalked, I was finally going on with my life and that was all I could do, to just make myself believe that I was safe.

I didn’t sleep with my mom again, but Gretchen was my bedtime buddy in my room and I trusted her to warn me of danger.  She was much better than a gun, to me.

I also knew that my dad had the handgun if he needed it, and that he used it responsibly because of his former Navy career and his recent handgun training. Martial arts gave me extra confidence whenever I went anywhere. And the boys, too.

Things were better all around, but I never wanted to feel that kind of sickening fear again, the kind that wrapped around my throat and made me feel like I needed to scream, but couldn’t.

I hoped that my ordeal was really over. It was going to be a long road back to the girl I used to be. I missed that old me, the one who never wondered if someone was watching me.

The End

~~~~~

Coming soon!

Like Touching the Sun

Whitney Holmes Series #2

~~~~~

Also available:

Honeymoon With the Enemy

Kaitlyn’s Secrets #1

by Elaine Babich

(read on for a sample)

I was beginning to think I had done something stupid.

I was regretting I had ever married Danny. He seemed to have changed. He was so different than the boy I had dated. I needed help, but I was in New Hampshire on my honeymoon and hoping I would make it home alive.

It all started the day after our first night together. I thought it was heavenly. We both were virgins and fumbled around a lot and laughed, but we got the job done. I can’t say I saw stars and fireworks, but I was in love, so it didn’t matter.

The next day, I started to notice the change in Danny. He was quiet and not talking. When I asked what was wrong, he snapped at me, which was out of character for him. The previous year, he had treated me so kindly when my friend was dying, that I was sort of shocked at his reaction.

The first night of our marriage, we stayed at the Anaheim Hilton. The next day, Danny was unusually quiet. I hoped I hadn’t done anything to make him mad. I had never seen Danny mad except at his brother Alex and that wasn’t a good thing.

Our plans were to take a flight to New Hampshire for the rest of our two-week honeymoon. We had packed our clothes the night before, so there wasn’t much to do but drive out to LAX airport the next day. I was nervous because Danny was acting so funny. We parked our car in an overnight parking lot. Our flight was at six o’ clock in the morning and LAX was a zoo.

When we got to the terminal, there were people everywhere. I had only one suitcase and so did Danny. I had my purse which was full of my pills (I have epilepsy) and books to read if I had time. My purse was heavy and I tried to hurry after Danny, who was walking very fast. We went through the security check, and their machine threw a fit because I had on an underwire bra. I quickly unhooked my bra, slid the straps off my shoulders, and pulled it out through the front of my shirt, putting the bra into a bin with my shoes. We eventually got through security and to the right terminal. We sat down in the seats that are hooked together.

I smiled at Danny and he smiled back. I felt better. Maybe he was just tired. I hadn’t ever seen him quite so early in the morning. Although, I would think he was used to being tired. As a firefighter, he had to work for two days in a row, and then he got two days off.

“Are you excited to go back to seeing all your old friends?” Danny asked me.

“
I don’t really have that many. I sent all of them texts before the wedding, but most of them are going out of town because New Hampshire schools are not in session this week.”

“
Well, we have each other,” Danny said as he kissed my hand. That made me feel better.

Then Danny got that frown on his face and put my hand down.

“What?” I asked him.

“
Nothing,” he said.

I didn’t know him to be so moody.

Our flight was called, and Danny grabbed his computer and his bag as I grabbed my purse and my luggage. When we got to the plane, they said they had to take our luggage. The plane wasn’t big enough for it to go on. I was sure glad I had put my medicine in my purse. Danny was angry. He didn’t want to check our bags. I asked the flight attendant if we had to pay for the luggage being boarded. She said no. I told Danny, and he nodded his head.

We found our seats, and I sat by the window. Danny was right next to me. The plane was medium sized, so it had three seats on each side.

I don’t normally like to sit by the window, but I didn’t want to make waves with Danny being so grouchy. The flight took off and I fell asleep. I woke up when the flight attendant gave us something to drink. Danny told me I was snoring a little bit. No one had ever told me I snored. I wondered if I was getting a cold.

The flight was three and a half hours. It was difficult not to get bored. I tried sleeping again. Danny said we could watch a movie. I said that I didn’t feel like it. He watched the movie by himself. I read for a while. Finally, the pilot said we were at our destination.

We landed in Atlanta, Georgia. I was hungry and told Danny that I would like to get something to eat. He said of course we would, so that ended the matter.