Page 36 of Something to Believe In
He finished clearing a drawer, then hurried to the front door to see what had been dropped off.
A small box lay on the front stoop, a red bow tied around it. He looked around, then brought the box inside. He looked back at the camera footage to see if there was a face showing that he could send to Mitch. They had been careful to conceal their face. Which meant they must know he had cameras.
He called Mitch.
"Hey, Axel, how can I help you?"
"Someone just dropped off a box on the front porch. They got into a white car. A sedan, like a Corolla or something. But they concealed their face. Did you notice anyone lurking about while you were installing cameras today?"
"Hmm. No, I didn't notice anything suspicious. I also didn't notice a white car. That black car that was speeding up and down your street yesterday went by several times."
Axel bit his bottom lip. "Okay. Thank you."
"What's in the box?"
"I didn't open it yet."
"Are you concerned about the contents?"
He swallowed. "I don't know. So far it hasn't been anything more threatening than a rose."
Mitch responded. "True. If you're worried about it, I can come and take a look at it."
Axel took a deep breath. "I can open it. I'll let you know if it's concerning. But the way the person concealed their face while approaching tells me they know I now have cameras."
"It isn't as though I hid while installing them, so it's highly likely they drove by."
"Okay. I'll let you know what I find."
He ended the call and pulled the ribbon on the box. Before lifting the lid, he stopped and held it to his ear to see if he heard ticking.
Mads came down the hall and watched him. She crossed her arms in front of her. "Another package?"
"Yep."
She took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay. Did you see them on your camera?"
"Sort of. Whoever it is knows about the cameras. They wore a hoodie and kept their head down."
He pulled up the video to show her. She watched quietly, then he asked her. "Do you recognize that hoodie? Does Dickbag Doug have one like that?"
"No, and I don't know. I've never seen it if he has one."
Axel tucked his phone into his pocket and lifted the top on the box. Inside was a key and a note. The key was not attached to a key ring; it didn't have anything on it to give a clue as to what it opened. The note said, "You've been a bad boy, Axel. If you're going to be bad, come and be bad with me."
His brows rose as he looked at the handwriting. He didn't recognize it, and he didn't really know what it meant that he'd been bad.
Mads stood watching from across the room. "Do I want to know?"
He shrugged and turned the note so she could see it. She inched forward and read it. Her face was unreadable.
Her eyes looked into his and stared. "Does she mean you've been bad because of me? Someone followed us last night and keyed your car. Someone now knows you have cameras."
His stomach knotted. She was right, of course. "I don't know, Mads."
He watched her throat constrict as she swallowed. He didn't know what to say. He stepped toward her and watched her tense up. He set the box on the coffee table and wrapped his arms around Mads. Relief flooded him when her arms wrapped around his waist. He kissed the top of her head, then stepped back.
"How about on our way out, I drop this off at Mitch's? Let's see what he thinks."
