Page 42 of Aftermath
I sat in the back seat and watched out the window as the sun set on the ride home. By car, it only took twelve minutes to get to my apartment, a walk that would have taken me at least forty minutes.
“Thank you,” I said when the man pulled up, and I hopped out the car.
I hurried down the alley and inside, anxiety washing over me. What if they’d waited and watched what door I went in? Could they guess I lived alone?
Every horrible thought crossed my mind, motivating my steps to quicken.
I typed in the pin on the keypad, but a red light flashed, locking me out. I tried again, and it failed.
Not now. Please, not now.
I glanced over my shoulder, realizing the car was still sitting at the end of the alley. A lump formed in my stomach, and I tried again.
Still nothing.
I heard the sound of a car door and swallowed hard. Sweat beaded on my forehead, and I pushed on the door, hoping it might budge. My hands found the door handle and turned it over and over, but nothing happened.
Please, please, let this work.
I risked a glance back and saw the man approaching from his car.
Maybe I deserved this. Maybe it was karma for what I had done.
My fist pounded on the door, and I tugged at the handle again. The door was firmly locked in place.
I pounded once more, and a hand on my shoulder startled me, causing me to jump back. I raised my hands instinctively, not ready to go down without a fight.
“Woah there,” the driver said with a smile. “You forgot this.”
He held up a purse.
I instantly glanced down and around myself and saw my own was missing.
“Thank you,” I said softly, taking the bag from him.My heart was still pounding in my ears as he walked back to his car. The door flung open, and Mallory stood wide eyed in the entry.
“What on Earth are you doing out here?” she asked. “And why are you trying to break our door?”
“The pin didn’t work,” I said.
“Because I had it changed today. The lock company called and said their system had been tampered with, so I opted to change to a new code. You would know that if you’d checked your texts,” she muttered.
I looked down at my phone and realized I had multiple missed ones. At least ten were from Mallory wondering why I wasn’t home and to tell me about the pin change.
“I’m sorry,” I sighed. “Long day.”
“Where were you?” she asked. “I thought it was your day off.”She moved back to let me in and followed me up the stairs.
“It was,” I answered.I unlocked my apartment and pushed inside, hearing greetings from Alonzo and Birdie.
“You know your lease said no pets,” Mallory grumbled at the animals.
“If you throw them out, I go with them,” I reminded her.
“You’re still avoiding the question,” she pushed.
I set down my bag and phone and made my way to the kitchen to scour for any form of leftovers I could find for dinner.“I’m not avoiding,” I answered.
“Then where were you?” she pushed.
