Page 72 of James

Laura brought the conversation to an end and immediately dialed Suzie's number. The conversation with her sister mirrored the one she had just had with their father, until Suzie suggested she call James for help.

“You know I’m not going to do that.” Laura’s forehead scrunched, the pounding headache that started to form now like a battle ram against her skull.

“He could at least fix your window for you. I’m sure he would if you asked.” Suzie coaxed.

“Drop it, sis,” Laura insisted.

“Fine, be that way,” Suzie snapped, her voice beginning to tremble with the threat of tears. “But I’m going to say one more thing first. You act like doing all this yourself is proving something, that it means you’re strong.” Her voice began to rise even as it cracked. “Well, take it from someone who’s done all this by herself for a long time. Doing it by yourself doesn’t mean you’re strong. It just means you’re alone! And there’s nothing noble about that!”

Dead air in her ear.

Laura’s thumb hovered over the call back button, but she put the phone aside. Further discussion would only throw fuel on the fire.

“Sometimes it’s better to give people time,”she whispered to herself, alone in her broken home, and waited for the police.

Less than fifteen minutes later, Detectives Cagney and Stone arrived together followed a few minutes after by a crime scene tech.

Laura led the detectives into her front room, showing them the shattered window and the brick with the threatening note tied around it. Det. Cagney's expression tightened as he examined the scene. “This is what I meant about witness intimidation. They’re trying to scare you before you’ve made a formal statement.” He crossed his hands behind his back, drew in a breath and held it before slowly releasing it. “Please tell me you’re not going to back out now.”

“No way,” Laura replied. Her muscles tightened, and she ignored the skull-splitting headache. “I won’t let something this silly scare me off.”

Det. Stone chimed in, “Do you have anyone you could stay with for a while? What about your friend, Mr. Black?” Her voice deepened, and she edged forward into Laura’s personal space. “It would be a good idea to be somewhere Donatelli’s people won't now to look for you.”

Laura hesitated, her thoughts briefly drifting to James. “No, I can’t stay with family, because I don’t want to take any chances with them being hurt. James and I… it’s complicated right now. I don’t feel right calling him. I’ll be fine here, really.”

As they awaited the crime scene technician, Laura's fingerprints were taken to rule them out on the note. The technician assured her that she could clean up the broken glass, apologizing for adding to her mess. Det. Cagney excused himself to question the neighbors, hoping to gather any potential leads. Unfortunately, the occupantsof the neighboring duplex were away on an extended vacation. Det. Stone remained by Laura's side, offering support. Obviously concerned about the exposed window, she asked if Laura had plywood to board it up.

“I’ll call my landlord,” Laura said and sighed. One more brick in the wall of her bad day.

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

As the detectives prepared to leave, a familiar truck pulled up, and Laura's heart skipped a beat when she saw James stepping out of the vehicle with plywood sticking up in the back. Det. Stone spotted him first, “Mr. Black, your timing couldn’t be better. I see Ms. Turner decided to call you after all.”

Laura turned around and started to tell him to leave, but she realized she didn’t want to discuss their relationship in front of the detectives. She tried to smile and thanked him for coming so quickly. Avoiding eye contact, she asked in a low tone, “Who called you?”

“Suzie did. She was worried. I was, too, when she told me what’s been happening.” James held up a hand. “Before you go off on me, at least let me board up your window. Please?”

She turned away and licked her lips. “All right. It is starting to get chilly inside,” she acquiesced.

The detectives bid their farewells, with Det. Cagney reminding Laura of her appointment the following day.Laura assured them she would be there, and the detectives departed together.

Meanwhile, James took measurements of the window, his brows furrowed with concentration as he prepared to cut the plywood. Fighting the pull he had on her, Laura decided to let him handle it and retreated inside to tackle the task of cleaning up the mess and changing her clothes.

As she busied herself with sweeping up the broken glass, a knock on the door startled her. With relief, Laura realized it must be James. She welcomed him inside, and he immediately insisted on helping her with the remaining pieces of shattered glass. Side by side, they carefully cleared away the debris.

When they were done, Laura offered him a drink and they moved into the kitchen. The tension between them was palpable.

Their fingers brushed once when James accepted his glass of lemon water, and Laura sucked in an audible breath, as if zapped by electricity.

“I miss you, Laura,” James admitted and took a long pull of his drink.

Laura pressed her lips together, as her eyes lingered on his working throat as he swallowed. “I miss you, too, James,” she whispered softly and dropped her gaze.

“I can’t stop thinking about you. When Suzie called, all I could focus on was getting over here as quickly as possible. I almost forgot the plywood.”

Laura couldn’t help but chuckle a little, but she quickly composed herself. “Things haven’t changed for me, James. I still can’t be what you need. I can’t trust myself with you or with love.”

James's face fell, and he finished his water in onebig gulp. “Fine, forget I ever said that word. But let me help you now, Laura, please?”

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