Page 6 of Out of the Darkness

Melanie nodded. “Yeah, I already ordered your chicken club with avocado too.”

She beamed at her friend, reaching for the glass and then taking a sip. “You know me so well,” she stated, setting it back down on the table.

“Yeah, I do. And I have to be at the station in an hour.” Melanie dug into her bag and pulled out a manilla folder with a case number across the top corner. “So, we need to go through this.”

“Oh! Is that the report on David’s attack?” Madelyn asked as she reached across the table to grab the file. She was more than a little excited to finally find out what had crawled up David’s ass.

Melanie slapped her hand away before settling back in her seat and flipping the file open. However, the small smile that played across her lips didn’t go unnoticed, letting Madelyn know that she was just playing around. To an extent. “Yes. It is.”

Madelyn laughed and shook her head. She should have known better than to try to take one of Melanie’s files in the first place. The girl had always been particular about them and was a little OCD in that regard. She was the only person in the station who didn’t ask Madelyn to retrieve files for her or fix and edit reports as she preferred to do them herself. Madelyn didn’t fault her for it; it was just one of her many quirks.

“According to the report, the assailant cut the power and waited for David in the basement,” Melanie read from the file. “It says the guy slammed his head against the wall, dazing him. He then threatened him and punched him a couple of times before…” Madelyn watched as Melanie winced. It was odd to see her wince like that. Because she was a cop, she had seen a lot over the years, but this clearly got to her. “Before he stabbed him with a Phillips head screwdriver where the sun doesn’t shine. Ouch.”

Madelyn cringed herself at her friend's words, remembering exactly where David had been stabbed. The guy may be a jerk, but he hadn’t deserved that. She wouldn’t wish that on her worst enemy. It was no wonder the guy was pissed.

“David went on to say that the guy did leave him his cell phone so that he could call for help,” Melanie continued. “And, of course, he was gone before they arrived.”

“Oh, how nice of him,” Madelyn muttered sarcastically. That part was a little surprising though. Why would the guy risk David calling the police and identifying him? Why not just kill him? She wasn’t complaining. It wasn’t like she wished for David’s death, she was just surprised was all.

“Right?” Melanie agreed before shaking her head and closing the file on the table in front of her. “But, I still don’t see how or why David can blame you for this. Especially since he didn’t even mention you in the report at all. It still doesn’t make any sense. ”

Madelyn chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully. After a thorough debate with herself in the car on the drive over, she had decided that it was probably best if at least one other person knew about the fact that she had a stalker, just in case anything happened to her. However, she was still unclear as to how to bring it up.

“It makes sense if the guy was trying to get David away from me,” Madelyn replied reluctantly. “If he was trying to get David to back off so he could have me all to himself.”

Melanie’s eyebrows raised as a look of confusion crossed her features. “What on earth would make you think that?”

With a heavy sigh, Madelyn dug into her purse. She had wanted to be sure the same guy sending her the notes was the same one who attacked David. The first note had taken credit for it, but she didn’t have any proof. Even now, she didn’t have any, but she did have a strong feeling deep in her gut that was telling her that it was the same person.

“I found this in my car the day I went to see David in the hospital,” Madelyn explained, handing the folded piece of paper over to Melanie.

Just as Melanie took the note and began to read, the waiter came by to drop off their food. Madelyn thanked him and picked a fry off her plate before quickly popping it into her mouth. She didn’t know how Melanie was going to react to this, but she had a feeling she wasn’t going to be happy about it. Especially since Madelyn didn’t tell her about it when she first found the note.

“Okay, why the fuck am I just now hearing about this?” Melanie asked her after a while, confirming Madelyn’s suspicions that she was upset. Madelyn could see the anger and irritation on her face clear as day, her fist tightening around the letter.

She shrugged, deciding not to admit to the fact that she almost didn’t tell her at all. She was trying to be better about opening up to Melanie, but she was used to dealing with things on her own. It was still a work in progress.

“I honestly thought it was a prank,” she replied. “I thought maybe David had one of his friends put it there to really drive the whole thing home.”

Melanie scoffed. “And now you don’t think so.”

It wasn’t a question, but Madelyn shook her head anyway. “No, I don’t. I’ve received a few more letters like that one along with some gifts over the last couple of days.”

“What kind of gifts?”

“A couple of hand-carved wooden doves,” she answered honestly, fighting a small smile at the memory of what she had found earlier. “And a monster dildo on my bed this morning.”

Melanie, however, didn’t find this nearly as funny as she did and raised her voice so much that it drew the attention of other patrons on the patio. “He was in your house? Madelyn!”

“Relax, Mel. It’s not a big deal,” she said softly, trying to defuse the situation.

Melanie’s face completely deadpanned, and she looked at Madelyn as if she had lost her damn mind. “How the fuck is any of this not a big deal? This guy is stalking you.”

“But he hasn’t even tried to hurt me, and he’s obviously had several opportunities to do so.”

Madelyn wasn’t sure why she was suddenly defending the guy. It was surprising even to herself. Not to mention a bit stupid. Melanie was only trying to help, trying to get more information, but she just didn’t feel like this guy was a threat. At least, not to her.

“Are you forgetting that he put David in the hospital? That he nearly castrated the guy? And this right here?”—Melanie waved the note in her hand—“makes it sound like he’s going to turn you into some kind of sex slave. Saying you belong to him and shit.”

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