Page 9 of Prey

“Please.I promise I’ll be the best and hardest working pizza worker you’ll ever have,” I begged because I so desperately wanted to buy a car.

Judith warned that the financial leash would be cut when I turned twenty, and I’d have to be financially independent. That meant Riley Laws must find a job and start saving her money.

“I’m sorry,” she shook her head. “The advert clearly stated we wanted an applicant with experience working in a pizza kitchen.”

“Okay, thank you for your time,” I said before rushing out the door. I walked down the street to the Stop & Shop to ask for a job there, and like the Picassos, they took my details and said they’d contact me if something came up. While in there, I spotted Carly, the director of Hallen Hall, down the cereal aisle, and I quickly slipped away so she didn’t see me.

I confronted her earlier about the wordTRAITORbeing removed from my door, and she responded by looking at me as if I was insane.

“That’s strange. Perhaps it was mistaken identity,” she tried to console me, even though I interpreted her reaction as disbelief that someone would break into my room to writeTRAITORwith a red marker, then go back the following day to wipe it off.

Even to me, it seemed farfetched, so avoiding her to save face was my plan for the next few months since she appeared to be questioning my sanity. Or maybe she thought I did it myself for attention. A loner girl with no friends, who felt invisible, created a drama for attention.

Annika might do stupid things to ruffle people's feathers, mostly Gunner, and just for fun, but this was not Riley Laws’ style. Riley Laws was quiet and reflective, with the need to blend into the background.

My last stop before returning to my accommodation was Harvest Organic Store, a short walk down the street. I preferred a job on campus, but every other student desperate for a job likely thought the same thing. Perhaps I needed to look further afield in Gothenburg city center.

The fruit caught my eye, and as I started filling a paper bag with three oranges, a breathy voice said, “Hey,” behind me. I swung around to find, to my disappointment, Shaun looking sheepish but smiling as if his charm would make my knees go weak. “Sorry, I haven’t contacted you.”

I glanced behind me, feigning confusion. “Are you talking to me?”

“Yeah,” he rubbed his chin that only a few days ago would’ve driven me wild, but today, he’s a certified asshole.

How did I fall so quickly for this deceitful man? Upon reflection, it always returned to a hunger for affection, which could lead girls like me into hurtful or dangerous situations.

“I’m busy,” I snapped, moving out of his space toward the checkout.

“You don’t look that busy,” he pointed out as he followed behind, and I had a hunch that he was horny and wanted a girl to ejaculate into. “How about I take you out for a coffee?”

“No, thank you,” I replied brusquely so he’d get the message that I was uninterested.

I couldn’t forgive him for abandoning me on Saturday night at his stupid frat party, and I was left to walk home alone at night. A true gentleman never did that to a girl he respected, but I wasn’t dealing with a gentleman, and he made it clear that he didn’t respect me.

I filed in behind me at the checkout while I ignored him, hoping he would disappear. He was just as persistent last week when he approached me and played nice, eager to show me around. He asked questions about my private life, and I gave him my usual rehearsed answers.

“Let me buy you a coffee, Riley?” he insisted, and my cheeks burned because he said that in front of the checkout operator, who was pretending not to notice his attempt to pursue me.

“No, thank you.” I turned my back on him to show my disinterest and dislike of him being this close to me.

After the operator processed my oranges and I paid with my shrinking cash, I walked briskly out the door. Unfortunately, his heavy footsteps were hard on my tail, making me both nervous and annoyed.

I stalled and swung around, and he almost banged into me. “Don’t you know the meaning of the word no,” I snarled at his smiling face, obviously enjoying this.

“How are you getting home, Riley?” he asked smoothly.

“None of your business,” I growled as my feet stopped dead near the bus stop, and I started walking across the road so he couldn’t tell that was how I wasn’t returning to Hallen Hall.

“C’mon, Riley,please. Let me buy you a coffee as an apology.” Realizing that I had just stalled outside a café, I turned away, finding that this side of the road was nothing but cafes and eateries. So, I crossed the road again while he followed, pissed off at how uncomfortable he was making me.

“No,” I stood firm, looking him directly in the eyes. “No.”

Then I spotted my bus coming down the road, so I positioned myself in front of the bus stop again for a swift escape. His phone beeped as the bus closed in, and he quickly looked at the screen before gazing down the road. I didn’t see who he was searching for, but it only motivated me to distance myself from him.

Just as the bus pulled up, he seized my shoulders, turned me around to look at him, and then swept my hair back as I wrestled him off. I quickly jumped on the bus and sat at the window on his side so I could watch him. His head was down, his thumbs typing on his phone screen. Then, he glanced down the road again and gave a ‘thumbs up’ to whoever he was signaling.

I stretched my neck, trying to see who he was communicating with, but the angle at which the bus was parked reduced my viewing range.

As the bus finally drove away, Shaun waved to me with a smirk, holding a secret he refused to share. In a suppressed rage, I flicked him the bird, and that smile stretched wider, and I started to reconsider my motivations.

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