“And...what would these characteristics be, Detective Lewis?” I barely asked.

“This girl, the one who’s fingers we’ve found in the box, well, her name is Harper as well.”

I began to sway in my chair. Callum gripped my shoulder to keep me from falling forward.

“And the others?” I asked.

“There’s no need to burden you with this,” he said.

I was too far gone now. “No, please.”

“Well, there is a girl missing from Harlem that we realized could be your twin. Another missing from Flushing with the exact same color hair and,” he sighed again, “one went missing last week that shared the same street name and apartment number as yours.”

They’re probably dead and it’s all my fault. I reached for the trashcan by his desk and began dry heaving. I hadn’t had anything to eat in over twelve hours and my stomach had nothing to give.

“Oh my God!” I panted, trying to keep the tears from falling. “If it weren’t for me they’d be alive, wouldn’t they?” I asked Callum.

“No, Harper!” He said, “We don’t know that they’re dead.” But not even he believed that. I could hear the hesitation in his voice. “Nobody is responsible for those girls going missing,” he continued, “but John Bell.”

“Of course not!” Detective Lewis said at the same time as Callum. “No one is to blame but him, no one,” Lewis said when Callum was done. “Listen, we need you two to stay under the radar. That means no attending classes, no visiting friends he would know about.”

“Would he know about Charlie’s?” I asked Callum.

“I don’t see how. He’s not in The Ivories. There’d be no way he could find us.”

“Just in case,” Lewis said, I’ll have a patrol car out there throughout the night until we find this guy. We’ve checked all his known addresses and he’s not at any. No one seems to know who this guy is.”

“There’s one person,” I said absently.

“Who?” He asked.

“There was a man there the night John killed that woman. He was trying to get John to leave. I doubt he really knew John’s true nature. I have no idea how you’d find him but...”

“We’ll check the records for that night and see if he doesn’t come up. In the meantime, please stay out of sight.”

Callum and I both nodded.

“What else was in the box?” I asked.

“Um, I don’t really...”

“Please, Detective Lewis."

“Alright, video tapes of you and your husband sleeping.”

“How?” Callum asked.

“He must have set up surveillance video but all evidence has since been burned we suspect.”

I felt my face turn bright red from embarrassment, not that Callum and I did anything but, still, I felt an unbelievable invasion of privacy. My body felt sick at the thought that he watched us when we thought we were alone.

“Is that all?” I asked.

“No, there were letters inside addressed to you and your husband.”

“Can we read them?” Callum asked.

“They’re being processed. I’ve read them. Most of it was gibberish, basically he was letting you both know that he would never forgive Harper for not waiting for him and for marrying Callum. Also, he threatened both of your lives. I know, this is a lot and it is very serious. I want you both to know we’re working very hard to put him in custody.

“Also, we have video of him in your hall with the box in hand and a metal can of accelerant, breaking in to your apartment, and then leaving right after, smoke trailing behind him. Once he’s caught, he’s not coming out for a very long time.” Thank God our building had surveillance. “If we can link him to these missing girls, God willing, find them alive, he’ll never come out.”

Callum and I left the station together an hour later. I wanted a reprieve, wanted to run, wanted to hide. As we descended the steps to the street, I grabbed fistfuls of Callum’s shirt. It was all proving to be too much and I hated myself for bringing my baggage to Callum’s doorstep.

“Callum, I’m sorry I dragged you into all of this. I...I know you won’t but I wouldn’t blame you in the slightest if you wanted out.”

He grabbed my shoulders severely but not hard enough to hurt just strong enough to drive his point home. “No more talk like that. You hear me? No more. You’re my best friend,” he said, breaking his grasp and pulling me in tightly for a hug. “I love you, Harper. More than you could possibly know.” He spoke so low on the last part I barely heard him.

“Let’s get to Charlie’s,” he said but stopped short. “Wait, I’ve got to pick us up a few chargers for our stupid phones first. Then, we need to call our insurance company about the fire. I’m afraid that will be your job, love, because I have no idea who we go through.”

“God forbid something ever happen to me,” I said, not thinking.

He stopped short once more and glared at me fiercely. “Don’t say things like that, Harper.” He positioned himself in front of me and held my face in his hands. “If you left me, for whatever reason, it would be the death of me.” He let out a shuddering breath, and then gripped my hand, like he couldn’t stand the thought of breaking the touch.

Oh my God, I had it so bad. I loved him more than I thought I could ever love another. When we first met, it had been a new love, a genuine love but not as deep as it became with time. As the years passed, Callum became my everything. My happiness was tied to him in strands of transparent steel cables, nothing could break those ties except for Callum himself and I trusted him so implicitly. Callum was as selfless a man could be and in a world where an attribute of that caliber was more rare than a pink diamond, I clutched him tightly to my heart, fully aware of just how priceless he doubtlessly was.

Unexpectedly, as we walked to the phone store, I knew that time was as precious as his selflessness. I promised myself to reveal all despite the possible consequences.

“What are you thinking about?” He asked softly, as we held hands walking the sidewalk, like our lives weren’t in mortal danger or that our home hadn’t burnt to a crisp.

“I’m thinking,” I teased, “that tonight is going to be an amazing one.”

“Is that so?” He questioned, one brow strategically raised, his head cocked back a bit, adding a tiny, sexy oomph to the way he swung our hands.

I loved flirting with Callum. He was dynamite at it but he always kept it in check, like he was afraid to lead me on. Suddenly, I wasn’t so sure about my plan to reveal all but just as quickly, I steeled myself again. I had to do it. I needed to do it.

“Yes, most definitely,” I thought but also said out loud.

His cheeks pinkened a bit and he fought a smile, making him gorgeous and humble all in one blow. His teeth were white and perfect and, dang, if I hadn’t just heard a bell tinkle as the sun shone off them like a mirror. Damn, that boy is going to be the death of me. All my worries evaporated when he smiled at me and it was more than welcome. I tamped down all my irreverent thoughts, focused again on walking instead of tripping on the random crack in the sidewalk I always ended up falling over because I was too busy ogling my husband like a complete and utter goofball.

Chapter Fourteen

Electric Feel

Callum

Back at Charlie’s, Harper called the insurance company and arranged for an adjuster to come out. They would issue us a check on the spot the following Tuesday. That made both of us feel a heck of a lot better about getting our lives somewhat back to normal. We decided to get a new place as soon as possible but we’d put it in a different name not associated with us personally. Also, we wrote our professors and let them all know what was going on. Ninety percent of them were already aware and agreed to send our assignments to us via email until we returned so we wouldn’t get too far behind the progress of the other students.

We laid down around four in the afternoon, exhausted, but not even an hour later, our crew came piling in, in droves, and we knew that would be it on sleep. They came bearing gifts and by gifts, I mean a meal fit for a king and a ton of red wine to ‘take our minds off the fire’ but, the truth was, they just loved their wine as these ‘gifts’ were a Saturday night staple if the band didn’t have a gig.

Harper and I rarely drank and if we did, it was only a glass or two with dinner and we were set. I had no idea if Harper would partake that evening due to the stress. I hoped she wouldn’t. I needed her sober for my confession.

“Time for dinner!” Cherry called to the group as she laid a very large bowl of pasta in the center of the table. We all gathered around the presentation but before we sat, Cherry spoke up. “I think we should start a new tradition!” She announced to the group. “And Charlie’s in agreement. In fact, it was his idea. Charlie?”

Charlie stepped forward and wrapped a hand around Cherry’s. “I’m not sure why we never did this before as we’ve got an incredible amount to be thankful for but I just want to start off our meals in a prayer, if that’s okay with everyone?”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

“Lord, we are humbled by your generosity. You have given our entire family here tonight something to be truly thankful for. We thank you for this food. We thank you for our health and life. For all this, we thank you and ask that you continue to watch over each one of us, especially Callum and Harper as they are going through a particularly harsh time. In Your name, we pray.”

“Amen,” the group sounded and it was abruptly obvious that hearts were lighter, eyes brighter.

“Let the merriment begin!” Charlie sang.

We both got caught in group conversation until very late at night as the wine poured freely and the food was plentiful or maybe it was that I was nervous and avoiding the inevitable. Enough! I told myself. I stood up when Cherry left her seat to join Charlie at his end of the table, leaving the seat next to Harper vacant. I practically sprinted to the empty chair and sat beside her, eager to profess it all. I noticed a rather full glass of wine beside Harper’s plate and hoped it was Cherry’s.

“Hey,” I said with a wink.

“Hey,” she said back, boldly threading her hand with mine. “I thought you’d never come over here.”

“Why? Did you have something you wanted to say to me?” I asked, a brow cocked over one eye.

“I have an unbelievable amount I’d like to say to you,” she said, bringing her mouth to my ear, “but nothing I can say here.”

I shuddered, making her laugh sexily in my ear. An incredible warmth spread from her mouth to my ear and down my neck.

I leaned into her ear and whispered, “Then what are we still doing here?”

She leaned back a bit, taken aback at how open we were being.

“Lead the way, Callum.”

I picked up her hand and lead her to the window that opened to the balcony garden that Cherry had grown for Charlie. I scooped my arm behind her knees, reveling at her sharp intake of breath, and sat on the sill before working our bodies through. I swung my legs over and stood up, still holding Harper. Her mouth was open slightly in curiosity. I slid her body down mine to set her upright again. If I’m doing this, I’m doing this. No turning back.