Diana rolled her eyes. Of course Bobby wouldn’t let the moment go without commenting. “Louis is my friend.”
“He might be your friend, but you are his obsession.”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Right.”
Diana walked down the row of wood and chicken wire that formed individual storage lockers and stopped in front of hers. What a mess. She’d been meaning to sort through the jumble of boxes jamming her space, but with Sylvie’s wedding and move to Madison, Diana’s last semester of grad school, and the fact that she hadn’t been ready to face much of anything the past few months, she hadn’t been down here since Christmas.
She unlocked the door and edged inside, a strand of spiderweb tickling her face. Wiping it clear, she moved several boxes before she came to the suitcase… and the pair of file boxes underneath.
She felt a little nauseated.
After her experience last fall, she hadn’t been able to look at the files she’d compiled. She’d merely shoveled the material into the boxes and stacked them down here. The thought of sharing the same living space with them, many of which had notes written in Professor Bertram’s hand, repulsed her. Even now the thought of them brought back memories of that cabin, the darkness, the burn of the ropes on her wrists…
Bobby plucked the suitcase off the pile and eyed the file boxes. “Let me guess. Files on Dryden?”
“To prepare for tomorrow. Is that a problem?”
“No. It’s smart.” He hoisted the closest box to his hip and carried it and the suitcase out of the storage room.
For a moment, Diana just stood there, listening to the scuff of his footsteps climbing the stairs. She’d been ready for him to try to protect her from the horrors in those files the way he’d tried to shield her from Dryden. Instead, he’d called her smart. Go figure. Maybe there was hope after all.
Diana reached for the second file box. Just as her fingers touched cardboard, the room plunged into darkness.
She froze, then blinked, straining to see something besides colored spots swimming in endless black. But there was nothing. Her chest grew tight.
“Bobby?” she called.
No answer.
“Bobby? Are you there?” Her voice trembled.
She was being stupid. Childish. The power had gone out. It happened occasionally. Nothing out of the ordinar—
A shuffling sound came from behind her.
Diana spun around. “Bobby? Is that you?”
No answer.
Diana’s legs quivered. Was someone there? Watching her? Waiting until…
No, no, no.
She was thinking about the cabin in the woods. About the shadow in the corner. Watching her. Waiting.
No one’s there.
No one’s there.
No one’s there.
She was in her own apartment building and the electricity had gone out.
That’s all it was.
That’s all.
Legs shaking so badly she could barely stand, Diana lowered herself into an uneasy squat, her back pressed against the remaining file box. Darkness closed around her, heavy and thick as a blanket.
She remembered every excruciating moment she’d lain tied up in that cabin last fall. The burn of the ropes against her wrists. The terrible thirst that parched her mouth and throat. The emptiness opening like a chasm inside her.
Expanding until there was nothing left.
No tears.
No strength.
No hope.
Another sound reached her. Faint at first, then growing louder.
Footsteps.
Diana covered her mouth with both hands. The trembling in her legs spread through her whole body. Her breath roared in her ears, yet oxygen never seemed to make it to her lungs.
Don’t let this happen again.
Please.
“Where’s the electrical box?”
Diana jumped at the sound of Bobby’s voice. A whimper stuck in her throat.
“Diana? Are you okay?”
“I’m good. I’m fine.” Her face felt hot and for a second, she was glad it was dark and Bobby couldn’t see her. She made herself breathe. In and out. In and out. Her pulse pounded loudly in her ears.
“Diana? The electrical box?” he repeated.
“I… I don’t know. Maybe in the laundry room?”
Bobby’s shoes scraped lightly in the darkness, moving away from her now. Toward the door. Out into the hall.
He couldn’t leave her. Not in here. Not in the darkness.
Where the killer could be watching.
No, no, no.
The lights flickered on, then held.
She blinked, the sudden illumination blinding. Tears surged in her eyes and spilled down her cheeks.
Bobby stepped around the corner. “Diana. What’s—”
She gasped in a sob.
He rushed to her side and took her in his arms. “It’s okay. It’s okay.”
Her body dissolved as if the muscle holding her upright had turned to quivering goo and she couldn’t stand without Bobby’s support.
Bobby
“I’m here. Everything’s going to be all right now.” Bobby hugged Diana and stroked her hair.
Her panic when the lights went out had caught him by surprise, but it probably shouldn’t have. People who’d survived less than Diana had suffered from flashbacks. He just wished he hadn’t left her alone in the basement.
“It was… it was like… I know it’s stupid, but I was back in that cabin again, Bobby. And he was watching me. Planning what he was going to do.”
“It’s okay now. You’re safe.”
“He kept saying he didn’t want to do it… He didn’t want to… But he did. He wanted to do all of it. I could feel it.”
“He’s dead, Diana. He’ll never hurt you again.”
Bobby had wanted to hold her like this six months ago, after he’d gotten out of the hospital, but he hadn’t gotten the chance. He’d known just what it would feel like. Her trembling. Him strong enough to take on the world.
Just the way it felt right now.
“You don’t have to be afraid. Never again. I’m here now. I’ll take care of you. You never have to worry about anything ever again.”
Diana’s body went rigid. She pushed back from him, jolting out of his arms.
“What’s wrong?”
“This…” She motioned to the two of them. “Us… Me.”
“It’s okay. Everything—”
“Will be okay. Yeah, I know. But it won’t.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know. I mean, I do know. I’m not sure how to explain. It just… it won’t.” Eyes filling with tears, she picked up the remaining file box and walked out of the storeroom and up the stairs.
Bobby followed, feeling as if he’d had his guts kicked out all over again.
Mercifully, it didn’t take long for Diana to throw some clothing in her suitcase, and they were on their way.
Bobby drove the dozen blocks to the hotel in silence. He hadn’t wanted to accept that what he and Diana had was over, but obviously it was time he did. The sooner he got her checked in and away from him, the better. It wouldn’t remove her from his thoughts, but at least she wouldn’t be by his side, his old feelings chafing like a pair of ill-fitting shoes too expensive to throw away.
Bobby parked outside the downtown hotel Sylvie and Bryce had chosen, and helped Diana lug her suitcase and file boxes inside. He placed them on a bellboy’s cart while Diana checked in, then they wheeled their way into an elevator and through a hall to her room, unloaded the boxes, and Bobby prepared to make his exit.