Page 3 of Crimson Promises
The library door swung open with a rattle, hitting the metal button of the automatic opener as a student breezed past. I squeezed through the door before it could swing shut behind me. The evening chill embraced me, urging me to clasp my jacket tighter. At times like this, I was grateful for long hair as an additional barrier.But damn, do I wish I took the car today.I need a warm shower, stat.Money had always been tight growing up, but Dad’s recent promotion let him get me set up somewhere more secure—a building off-campus with a doorman rather than the dorms. When I left Cannon Beach for college, Dad passed down his old Nissan. It spent most of its time in underground parking, only emerging on rainy days since the loft was just a few blocks from campus. Usually, I preferred to put on my sneakers, blast music on my AirPods, and treat myself to a matcha latte before walking to class. Not the right decision to have made this morning.Serves me right for not checking the weather before I left.
The school grounds were deserted. Everyone was either still in the library studying or out partying, making the most out of their college experience. The moonlight cut a path across the quad from the library to Fire Lane. Heat brushed the base of my skull, a feeling that made my flesh pimple with goosebumps. I wasn’t alone. Or at least that’s what it felt like.
Every dark crevice looked spooky. Every person who passed by was suspicious. I left the headphones in my ears but killed the music. Behind me, I heard someone step into a puddle. I peeked to check. I could have sworn I saw a swath of onyx hair in a window’s reflection, the image jolting me with childhood memories and nostalgia. But when I checked, no one was there.Creepy. I picked up the pace to a brisk walk.
Keeping my eyes fixed ahead, I swung my backpack around and felt inside for a slim barrel. Loose change slid from one side to another with each step.
A stocky figure emerged from a covered stoop. He wore a leather duster that reached his ankles. A few strands of brown uncut hair were combed over to cover his balding head. Whether it was greasy or wet from the rain, I couldn’t tell.
“Hiya dar-uh-ling. What are you doing out on your lonesome in this weather?” Disgusto leered.
I tried to walk around him, saying nothing. With my hand still in the bag.Where was that damn thing?
He mirrored my steps, preventing me from passing.
“I have a place where you can come warm your body.” His gaze traveled from my head to my toe, undressing me with his eyes.Oh god, oh god, oh god.
“Come on, dar-uh-ling. We both know that you want to.” He extended his finger to reach for my chin.
I stepped back and took a swift, calculated gaze at my surroundings.Fuck, there isn’t anyone else around.Disgusto took me looking away as an invitation to come closer. He reeked of stale body odor and metallic sweat. I did my best to force down the bile crawling up my throat.
Finally, I grasped a keyring with a small cylinder at its end. I shot my hand out of the bag and held the pepper spray in my right hand, ready. I took another step back, shifted my weight onto the balls of my feet, and aimed.
“Argh. My eyes!” He wailed. “You bitch. You are going to pay for that.” One hand yanked on my hair, then clamped onto my throat, squeezing, while the other covered his swollen eyelids.
Shit.I gave him a swift knee to the groin, causing Disgusto to let go of my hair. He took a few steps back. My neck felt like it was on fire. I tried to knee him in the balls again, grazing his pants.I pivoted around him and ran straight home. My heart pounded, and blood thrummed in my ears with each stride.
Relief washed through me when I recognized the familiar mirrored building. I slowed only when I caught sight of Victor, the doorman; with his salt and pepper goatee and thick eyebrows, he was the grandfather I never had. After living here for the past six months, he had come to mean a lot to me.
His lips pursed when he realized how out of breath I was. “Alright there, Ms. James?”
I rested my hands on my thighs and put my head between my legs.Just need thirty seconds.When I felt like I could successfully get air to my lungs, I stood straight and nodded. “I was just on my way home from the library and didn’t want to get completely drenched by the rain.”
Victor looked at my sopping sweater and then back at me.
“I did my best to avoid the puddles but got soaked anyway.” I shrugged my shoulders. He didn’t need to know about Disgusto back there. Victor would probably call my dad. The last thing I needed was to be dragged to Cannon Beach before I had any sort of college experience. “How’s your evening going, Vic?”
“It’s Victor to you, missy.” He smirked. “It’s been a quiet evening with the rain and all.” He glanced at the wall clock that hung above the concierge’s desk. “Almost done with my shift. Luckily, I avoided dinner tonight. Darlene wanted to try making a vegan chili. Going to pass by A&W on the way home; I’m starving.” Victor patted his stomach. “I’m more of a meat and potatoes guy, if you know what I mean.”
I gave Victor a half-smile. Darlene and Victor, I learned, had been married for thirty-four years and had two kids. One was married and lived on the East Coast with two children, while the youngest was finishing law school in California.
“Would it kill you to diversify your diet? Poor Darlene is just trying to keep you healthy,” I said. “Got any new pictures of the grandkids?”
“You bet.” He pulled out his smartphone, held it at arm’s length in front of his face, and frowned.
“What’s wrong?”
“Damn technology never works. It’s supposed to open when it sees my face!”
I held my hand for the phone, clicked the ‘Try Again’ button, and held it closer to his face. “There, that should do it.”
“Aha. You kids are so much better at these things.”
“Next time, you can type in your password.”
“I have a password?” His eyebrows pinched together.
“Never mind.” My shoulders shook with laughter.
