“Shit.” All Noah wanted to do was get Lexi out of here. She was seriously freaked out, had seen someone he assumed looked like the asshole who’d beaten and raped her. She’d told him right after she’d found out he’d been released he was being monitored twenty-four hours a day and was still in La Jolla. It was time for him to start making some phone calls, himself.
He walked her over to a bench against a building and made her sit down. It worried him how easy she just went along with him. “I’m sorry, honey, but we can’t leave. This is a good place to wait. No one can sneak up behind us, it’s well-lit and we can see the police officers right there at the front gate.” Lexi didn’t say anything. He grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. “Come on, Lexi, snap out of it. Hey!” he said sharply. “You’re stronger than this. You didn’t let him win last time. Don’t let him win this time. Don’t let him in your head.”
She blinked a couple of times and he saw the tears build in her eyes. “Please, honey, don’t cry. Please.” He gathered her up in his arms, sat her on his lap and rocked her, humming a song quietly under his breath. It worked because he felt her body relax against him.
While they sat there, he listened to what people around them were saying. A couple of kids had gone into the woods to make out and had found a dead body. The rumor was that it was a woman from town that had been missing for a little over a week. Some unkind people weren’t surprised. It seemed she was always spreading her legs for any man that came around. They were saying that she must’ve been beaten pretty badly, based on the bruising the kids had seen.
That was when Noah noticed the missing posters hung up around where they sat. He took a moment to study the woman. Long, brown hair with blonde highlights, slim, most likely in her thirties. Noah squinted at the picture. It looked like—no, it can’t be. From this distance, the missing woman looked like Lexi. Noah wanted to get up and get a closer look but with Lexi finally calmed down, he didn’t want to disturb her. It would have to wait.
*
Lexi sat wrapped in Noah’s arms staring blankly at the garbage can. Anthony was here. How was that possible? Was it really him? What was his plan? Was he just toying with her? She’d spent so much time working on getting through what had happened. Yet, the first time I see him, I completely freak out. She felt like a failure. She needed to be stronger. With her mind spinning, she went back through everything she had learned after her attack.
*
After waiting for an hour, the police finally spoke with Noah and Lexi. It wasn’t until he had to give his name that he thought of the fact it might get into the papers. In the past, the first thought would’ve always been, ‘How is this going to be publicized?’ Now, it was all about Lexi. While they were talking to the officer, Noah inched closer to the picture. Sure enough, the missing woman resembled Lexi. That wasn’t good. If this Anthony-asshole was still in La Jolla, how could this be happening?
He didn’t like to throw his fame around, but he didn’t want Lexi to go to the restroom by herself, and was able to get a female officer to accompany her. He took the time to fill in the officer with what he knew about Anthony Maldono and what had happened to Lexi in La Jolla.
“I’m not sure there is a connection, Mr. Matthews.” The officer dismissed his concerns a little too easily.
“Neither am I, but I had to tell you just in case. Lexi had an incident a few weeks ago. Someone put a hole in her radiator. She thought it was just kids playing a trick but now I’m not so sure.” He ran his hand through this hair and put his cap back on. “She thought she saw someone on the side of the road when she broke down but when she went back the next day she didn’t find any footprints. Then tonight she thought she saw the guy who is supposed to be in La Jolla with an ankle monitor and we find out a woman was discovered beaten, dead, and most likely raped like Lexi was?” The bile rose in this throat.
“I’ll add it to the reports. Here’s my card with my number. Or you can call the station and ask for George Perkins. I know I don’t have jurisdiction where you both live, but it could come in handy. Let me know if anything else happens.” He cleared his throat. “Oh, and would you mind signing this for my wife? She had such a crush on you when we met. I got a tattoo on my arm, like you have. She thought it was so romantic. Still gets her. Whenever she’s pissed at me, I just flash the tattoo and she melts.” He laughed and slapped his hand on Noah’s back.
Noah smiled. “Sure, what’s her name?”
“Chelsea. Chelsea Perkins.”
Noah quickly signed something while keeping an eye out for Lexi. “Here you go. Can I take her home now?” He nodded towards Lexi.