Page 89 of Stalker

Disgrace.

Before I left, I let my phone slip from my grasp and crash onto the floor of the guest house foyer, fully aware of Dane’s watchful eyes and ears through my electronics and the cameras in the house.

As I was about to step out, I caught sight of my reflection in the mirror behind the door. The vacant expression in my eyes held me captive for a moment.

I didn’t even recognize myself.

I saw only a distorted person in the mirror, a mere shadow of who I thought I was that morning. My eyes fell to my neck, immediately captured by the skull, its haunting black eyes seeming to peer into my soul likehewas seeing everything, too.

With my blood covered hand, I forcefully tore the black ribbon from my neck and let it fall onto the floor next to my phone.

The girl who put the collar on that morning, eager to let someone claim her, was dead.

The girl I forced myself to be for years, bending myself into smaller pieces of myself to appease those around me, was dead.

Peyton Everett was dead.

I would never be the same.

Chapter 31 – Lincoln

With every step I took through the house, my feet seemed to sink deeper into the floor, as if invisible anchors weighed them down. I was bone fucking weary and just wanted to crawl into bed beside Peyton and sleep with her wrapped around me.

MyPeyton.

She put my necklace on. Witnessing her carefully clasping the skull pendant around her neck, a surge of electricity coursed through my chest. Something that felt a lot like what I imagined love to feel like, though I wouldn’t know. I had never loved or been loved before.

But I was ready to lay it all out for her.

At first, there would be complications when I revealed myself to her. I was sure of it. She’d balk at it simply because she was going to feel duped. But she’d come around to it eventually, I’d make sure of it.

I’d also make sure to lock the fucking necklace first, reminding her of her vow tome.

“So you think she’s going to freak when she finds out what you did to her fuck boy?” Tamen asked, following me up the stairs, and I looked over my shoulder to glare at him.

The tracker on Peyton’s phone confirmed that she was in the guest house, but I couldn’t let my guard down. I needed to ensure that he didn’t expose me before I could make my move and come clean first hand. I was so busy cleaning up messes and putting out fires today that I didn’t have a second of time to check in on her since our morning fun without Tamen looking in over my shoulder. And knowing my pretty little Puppet, there was no guarantee she wouldn’t be doing something naughty if I randomly opened my cameras and I wouldn’t give him the privilege of seeing that.

I’d hate to have to remove his eyeballs, too. Two sets in two days was a bit much.

Turning back around at the top of the stairs, I stopped, with one foot in midair, as something caught my eye on the floor.

Crimson.

“Is that—?” Tamen asked as he nodded to the trail across the floor leading down the hallway. “Blood.”

“Peyton!” I pulled my gun and walked down the hall, following the trail as my stomach turned violently. I could feel it in my gut that she was hurt, like a new sense that had just revealed itself.

As I turned the corner, my chest seized up in agony when I saw the trail disappearing into my office, where the door was ajar. “Oh, fuck.” Tamen groaned, following me as I took off running toward it.

“Pey—” As I pushed the door open all the way and walked in, a chill ran down my spine and I couldn’t help but shiver at the sight in front of me.

The mask I wore during our chase in the corn maze ended up abandoned on the ground, right next to the cabinet where I storedDane’s clothes. The door was open and the cuffs I used on her hung askew off the shelf.

I turned and my attention was drawn to the computer screens at my desk. Most of them were dark, but the one in the middle stood out with its cracked glass, resembling a spider’s web. The glass orb paperweight laid on the desk covered in blood with jagged broken edges.

I shook the mouse to wake up the system and died inside when the video of Peyton’s assault lit up the broken screen. “No.” I whispered, haunted by what I knew happened.

And then I ran.

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