I roll my eyes, shoving my icy fingers into the pockets of my coat, “He’s not Voldemort, you can say his name.”

He chuckles, his black hair whipping into his handsome face, “How can you be certain? Have you ever seen him and Voldemort in the same room?”

I shake my head, moving past him to go inside, “It was good to see you. Oh and in case you forgot, I still demolished you at Potter Trivia.” He gawks, “Demolished me? You won by a single fucking point.” I laugh, my first genuine laugh in what feels like forever as I open up the door, the burst of warm air soothing my chilled bones.

“Hey Layla, I know you probably don’t want to hear this right now, but whatever is going on with Liam… he doesn’t mean it, okay? He would never hurt you. He’s crazy about you. No pun intended.”

My heart stills in my chest, “What?”

His eyes widen slightly as he runs his fingers through his hair uncomfortably, “Oh shit, my phone.”

“Your phone is not ringing.”

He doesn’t even pretend to answer the imaginary phone call as he brings it up to his ear. Giving me a small wave before turning the opposite direction.

Fat chance.

Just as I start off towards him I feel a set of small hands grip my arm, turning to meet Ava’s annoyed face. “Dude, where have you been? Come on, people are glaring.” My chest tightens as she tugs me inside, Brandon’s retreating frame getting smaller and further away as he heads back down the sidewalk.

What the fuck did he mean by that?

As we order and settle in at the table, I struggle to pay attention to what Ava is saying. Ninety percent of it comprises of nagging me about remaining in my house with everything going on. It might seem illogical to most sure, but I don’t want to leave. It feels like letting him win. She fumes, and I cringe inwardly, imagining how pissed she’d be if she didn’t have the watered-down version.

He won the minute I enjoyed his touch. I allowed myself to get attached to a stranger that has violated me in all the most meaningful ways.

“I was doing some thinking and I don’t think it’s a coincidence Liam only shows back up after your stalker surfaces.” She mutters before popping a crouton in her mouth. I nod, as if I hadn’t already considered that a trillion times. With the dead end I met with the private investigator, the way he’s been acting and now Brandon’s offhand comment it’s…alarming. “He was with me last night when the house was attacked.”

She rolls her eyes, “The guy is loaded, Lay. He can afford to pay someone to send a few texts or throw a bottle at a chick’s house. Plus, his hot friend was here earlier. Guy kept looking at me weird, like he wanted to say something, but couldn’t. I’ve been around them both before and he was normal, ish.”

I groan, setting my drink down a little too hard, “No shit, Ava, I was trying to talk to him when you yanked me inside the damn restaurant.” She worries her bottom lip as if she’s just now realizing I was speaking to someone out there.

Or at least trying to.

By the time I leave the restaurant, I’m even more emotionally exhausted than before. Ava refused to let go of me until I swore to meet her again next week at her house for the girl’s night she’s been requesting since this all started. I’m only halfway down the block before I stop dead in my tracks. A car with blacked-out windows too dark to see the occupant rolls down the road a little too slowly for comfort. If that wasn’t reason to be anxious enough on its own, the music pouring from the slightly cracked windows sends adrenaline coursing through my veins.

“Although we’re apart

You’re a part of my heart

And tonight

You belong

To me.”

No.

Anxiety, fear and no small amount of…something else strikes my body like a live wire. My mind jumps into overdrive, forcing me to pump my legs hard against the pavement as I break into a sprint. The unusual emptiness of the street only serves to further mock my helplessness. My lungs are burning by the time I dart into the dimly lit parking garage, not stopping despite my screaming muscles until I’m slamming and locking the doors of my car. I lean my head back against the headrest, trying to catch my breath, although I’m relatively sure he didn’t follow me. Just another game, another tactic to chip away at what little sanity I’m clinging to.

I scream as I catch a glimpse of something in the backseat, my fingers fumbling with the door handle in my attempt to free myself. As the walls of the garage grow closer and closer, I fall from my car onto the cold oil-stained concrete. Shoving myself as far from the car as I can until my back hits the half wall separating the upper and lower levels. My watery eyes focus on the backseat, the face there…spinning? Slowly rising on shaking legs, I take a few small steps closer to my car, releasing all the air from my lungs.

It’s a mask… his mask.

I jerk open the back door, watching in horror as it dangles from the ceiling of my car. Swaying and spinning like the taunt that it is. I jerk it down, not paying any mind to the way it takes some of the tan fabric lining with it.

Why would he give me this? Proof? Scarier yet… why doesn’t he feel like he needs it anymore?

I toss it into the backseat, putting as much distance between it and myself before turning the key in the ignition. I scream yet again, my nerves shot to shit as my stereo blares to life. Certainly not the way I left it.