Page 9 of Out of the Darkness

“Damn,” Melanie muttered. “I’m… I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say.”

“You don’t need to say anything, Mel. I’ve learned to live with the hand I was dealt, or at least, I’m trying to,” she replied. “Unfortunately, that’s not even the end of it.”

Melanie’s face fell, and her entire body sagged. “No.”

Madelyn nodded again. “At sixteen, I was finally pulled from the group home and placed with a family. They seemed really nice, and I was looking forward to a fresh start, to maybe finally getting to experience what it felt like to be loved and cared for. Unfortunately, on my second night there, the dad came into my room, saying that he wanted to ‘welcome me properly.’ I went to the police the next day to tell them what he had done, but they thought I was making it up due to my past. They thought I was searching for more attention like most foster kids did, and I was forced to deal with it for two more years until I turned eighteen and could leave. I may not have been the most well-behaved kid when I went into the system, but I didn’t deserve to be brushed off like that either.”

Melanie sighed, her face an unreadable mask. Madelyn knew that look. She had seen it a dozen times whenever Melanie had come back from a crime scene and had witnessed something so awful that she had to hide what she was truly feeling. It hadn’t been her intention to make Melanie feel that way now, but at least, now she knew the truth about why Madelyn didn’t trust law enforcement.

For several moments, the two of them said nothing as Madelyn allowed her to process the horror that was her life.

“No, you didn’t deserve that,” Melanie finally said after a while. “And I understand now why you don’t trust cops. You’ve been betrayed by them a lot over the years.”

“It’s why I’m so messed up,” she added under her breath.

“Hey,” she said gently, reaching across the island and covering her hand. “You are not messed up, Madelyn. You went through hell as a kid. Now, I may not be a mental health professional, but I think you are pretty damn normal, considering the trauma you went through.”

Madelyn laughed softly, struggling to keep the tears burning the backs of her eyes at bay. “Things don’t affect me like they should, Mel. That’s not normal. That’s why this stalker thing doesn’t even phase me. After everything I went through, it doesn’t seem nearly as bad or as dangerous.” She paused and licked her lips before meeting her friend's gaze. “This isn’t going to change anything, right? Between us?”

“Is that why you never told me this before? Because you thought it would change the way I see you?”

All Madelyn could do was shrug. It felt silly to admit it now, but that was exactly why she hadn’t said anything.

Melanie smiled at her before she rounded the island. While she couldn’t bring herself to look up at her friend, Melanie leaned over her back and wrapped her arms around Madelyn’s neck.

“Nothing you tell me about who you are or where you came from is going to change things, Madelyn,” she replied before pressing a rough kiss to Madelyn’s cheek. “I know the kind of person you are now, and you are stuck with me.”

Relief flooded Madelyn’s body down to her very soul. It was as if she could feel the weight of that fear being lifted off of her, making her feel lightheaded. She was beyond glad that her past didn’t change the way Melanie saw her; she didn’t know what she would do if she lost her best and only friend.

“Oh joy,” she teased, needing to lighten the mood before she burst into tears.

“Rude.” Melanie playfully slapped Madelyn’s shoulder before going serious once more. “And as for this stalker, I think I’m worried enough for the both of us. I’ve seen how these scenarios can play out.”

“Relax, Mel,” Madelyn told her, taking another sip of her coffee. “I hardly ever leave the house, and with this new security system in place, what more can this guy really do?”

Melanie pressed her lips together but didn’t say anything more on the matter.

Chapter Four

Madelyn

Madelyn stepped out of the shower, exhausted and ready for bed. She had been busy at the station the last few days, and it was starting to get to her. She loved her job and loved being able to help people in her own way, but lately, she had been doing almost triple the workload than she had been when she first started.

The powers that be at the station had finally decided to upgrade their system, which they had been in dire need of. However, the tech who had done the job messed up somewhere along the way and ended up deleting everything. All the files, all the electronic paperwork, the whole thing. It was complete chaos as everyone had to suddenly switch back to doing things old-school. Thankfully, they had hard copies of it all for just such an occasion, but now it was her job to re-digitize everything on top of all her usual daily tasks. She had been going to work earlier and staying later because of it. The OT was nice, but it was also becoming draining.

After brushing her teeth and washing her face, she hung her hair towel on the back of the bathroom door. She secured the towel around her body as she exited the bathroom and headed into her room in search of some pajamas.

Her queen-size bed took up the majority of the room with its old-fashioned metal bed frame, complete with a metal headboard and footboard. She had been meaning to upgrade it to something more modern, but she didn’t feel like it was much of a priority. Besides, she kind of liked the way the shiny silver glinted in the morning. She had it covered with a bright yellow comforter and gray sheets along with four fluffy pillows, giving the room a bright and cheerful look. It was a direct contrast to who she was as a person, but she loved the color.

White nightstands stood on either side of the bed, and a white dresser sat next to the bay window that overlooked the woods surrounding the property. In the bay window, she had a gray cushion and pale yellow throw blanket with a couple of throw pillows for when she had the time to sit there and read. The book she was currently working on sat on top of the throw blanket where she had left it the last time she had tried to read. Across from the window, she had an old wooden trunk that used to hold a TV, at least until it broke and she started using her laptop to watch her shows. The walk-in closet, the bathroom, and the door to the hallway were along the wall opposite the bed.

The room may not be anything special, but it was her favorite room in the house. It was where she felt safest and she spent most of her time when she was home. She was looking forward to finishing all the extra stuff at work so that she could start doing that again.

Yawning, Madelyn pulled a clean pair of underwear out of the dresser along with a sleep shirt and a pair of shorts. She had just set them both on top of the dresser so that she could get dressed when she suddenly heard the floor creak behind her. At the same time, the hair on the back of her neck stood on end, and she was overwhelmed by the feeling of someone else being in the room with her. The clothes she had in her hands dropped to the ground as she spun around, and that was when she saw him, standing just inside the bedroom door.

He was tall, taller than her door frame, which meant he must have had to duck to avoid hitting his head. He had a thick, muscular build hidden beneath baggy jeans and a dark, navy blue hoodie. His hands were balled into fists at his sides, the tops of which were covered with intricate tattoos. She recognized those tattoos, too, from the video she had received months ago and had saved to her phone because she was obviously demented. Her eyes widened in realization as she looked up at the face of her stalker for the first time, but the majority of it was shrouded by the hood he had pulled up over his head.

A heartbeat passed before he rushed her, and she attempted to leap over the bed to get away, but he was much faster than she was. His massive arms circled her middle, pinning her arms at her sides as she crashed back against his solid chest. The air whooshed from her lungs and her heart thudded a frantic beat as she struggled against his grasp, but he was far stronger than she was.

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