Page 43 of Fallen Princess: Shadow Stalker

Asher chuckles, “She has a point, mate. No one wants your ugly mug.”

A quick smile emerges on my face, remembering the banter we used to have.

“That’s fine, Eden,” I interrupt. “I speak on behalf of Haze since this is his place, but you have a bedroom here with your name on it if you have a change of heart.”

She picks up Storm’s empty food bowl from the floor and rinses it in the sink.

“I appreciate the gesture….”

She stops talking abruptly, and her eyes move cautiously toward her mobile, silently vibrating a notification on the counter where we sit. There’s something off about how her whole body freezes as if she’s not anticipating what’s in that text message. I lean over to view the screen, but it's face down.

“You alright, luv?” Asher also noticed her unusual stance.

Callum’s busy scrolling through his phone and focused elsewhere, but looks up after hearing Asher’s voice of concern.

“Yeah,” she sighs as if she has been holding her breath and quickly straightens her back. “Just caught me off guard, that’s all. No need to make an issue of it.”

She quickly relaxes and leaves the bowl on the dishrack, pats her wet hands down over her thighs, and retrieves her phone.

Her reply is way too defensive which warrants my concern.

There’s a slight twitch of her jaw as she hesitates to look at the screen. Her eyes remain wide and wary.

I cast a quick glance at the other two. They look just as confused as me.

“Oh,” her shoulders immediately relax as if whatever bothered her a second ago dissipated. “It’s Catalina. She’s made an appointment for Storm’s physio with a vet here in LA. It’s this morning. That was fast,” she looks up at us to catch the three of us staring straight at her.

If she notices the millions of questions on our faces about what just happened, she ignores them.

“Uhmm,” she looks at me. “I know we’re supposed to work this morning, but Storm needs his physio every day; otherwise, the joints in his back hips freeze up, and it becomes painful for him. I’ll make sure his next appointments are in the afternoons.”

“It’s fine, Eden,” I say. “We can continue working on the material we already have and update you later.”

She smiles at me and then clicks her tongue, bringing Storm to his attention.

“I’ll see you boys later then,” she tells us. And I watch her leave, and the dog follows her out.

“What the hell was that?”

“I reckon being in LA isn’t giving her the greatest vibes. She’s made it clear that she wants to go back to the desert as soon as we wrap up the demo tracks.”

“We know she was hounded and bullied by the media, maybe she’s scared they pull the same shit if she reappears here.”

“It’s been ten years,” Callum scoffs. “No one’s going to be interested in some fallen pop princess who’s been out of the limelight longer than she was in it.”

“Maybe best not put it in such a harsh way if the topic comes up,” Asher explains. “Telling her she’s ahas-beenisn’t exactly motivational.”

Well, whatever it is, I hope she lasts long enough to make the bloody demos before she quits. Right now I have my doubts that she can pull this through. Despite the strong façade she shows with her brassy mouth and attitude, unpeel her layers, and I see a very vulnerable, twitchy individual.

Chapter 12

I need to toneit down with the others. Otherwise, they will start to suspect something’s not right. The last thing I need them to know is my fear of this stalker who made it clear last night that they are still around and have been watching me all these years.

Once upon a time, I considered disappearing altogether to live in another country. But returning to LA is the only way to regain my strength and face all my fears head-on. I’ve come to realize I can’t erase myself.

So, I’m determined to pursue this music venture. It’s an opportunity to erase the past, not myself, and move forward.

“Hey, girlie,” I turn to see the white Cayenne pull up on the curve outside the vet practice where I just dropped Storm off. The dark window’s down, and Brittney’s leaning her body towards the passenger side.

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