eight

CHAPTER - 8

Joseph brushed hair from her face and traced the line of

her jaw back to her chin, holding it between his thumb and forefinger like a precious jewel. He couldn't bear to see her like this. And he vowed to do anything and everything in his power to help her, no matter the cost.

He had to keep her safe.

"I don't know either," he said, his thumb brushing over the skin beneath her lips. "But I promise nothing will happen to you. Not while I'm around." He smiled at her, knowing his promise was too big. But it felt true.

The heaving of her body became only a soft rhythm the skin beneath her lips. "But I promise nothing will happen to you. Not while I'm around." He smiled at her, knowing his promise was too big. But it felt true.

The heaving of her body became only a soft rhythm as her tears subsided. Joseph's thumb inched upward and rubbed softly across her bottom lip. She leaned forward. He pulled her mouth closer and her lips were inches away from his when, without warning, the bedroom door swung open.

Jenn slipped his phone in his front left pocket then

shoved his notes in a lockbox. He ascended the

long-winding stairs to the main floor of his home. He shouldn't have left Prerna alone for so long. If it weren't for an emergency project that required his immediate attention, he would've driven to her house hours ago.

On his way to his g as he remembered the allergy pills. Ricah, Prerna's cat, had for the longest three hours of Jenn's life been his cat. His mother adopted Ricah two years ago when

Jenn's house was finished and she felt he needed a companion to help give life to the big, empty mansion.

age, Jenn turned, doubling back

What she didn't realize was how much work her son

went through to be comfortable in his own home. And a cat would not have helped, even if Jenn hadn't been strangely severely allergic. Most things in the world didn't affect Jenn's health, and he'd always thanked the vitamins for that, but even Zyrtec only put a dent in the allergic reaction Jenn had to Ricah. Prerna insisted on taking the cat in lieu of him being abandoned at a

shelter.

Jenn rushed through his kitchen, searching various

cabinets and drawers before he found the small bottle

of Zyrtec pills in the drawer filled with miscellaneous items including, but not limited to: an assortment of tools, nearly a thousand pennies, and a small black velvet box containing Prerna's birthday present.

He opened the pill bottle and took out a pil, then returned the bottle and closed the drawer. He popped the dry, chalky pill in his mouth and swallowed as he backtracked through the living room towards the west corridor exit leading to his gArage.

Pulling his keys from his front right jean pocket, he continued down the darkened hallway leading to his

gPrernage.

As he went through the exit, he flipped on the lights in the gArbage and locked his door behind him with the ten-digit passcode. He slid into his Honda Civic Hybrid and brought it to life with the push of a button. Almost silently, the engine hummed and the lights beamed. He plugged in his phone, put on his favorite Frank Sinatra album and felt his muscles relax ever so slightly as a small portion of the stress released from his body and floated away.

Letting out a slow, deep breath, he put the car in reverse and pressed a button on the dash. The gPrernage door opened and he exited through the main gate.

As he drove, his eyes drifted from the road to his rearview mirror around every turn. He'd be at Prerna's in less than fifteen minutes at this time of night. At this point, getting her back safely was his only priority.

His mind flicked back to Boston. Prerna's arm

intertwined his own sweaty, uncomfortable one. Then she flew away from him. On her hands and knees in the street. Shoved with a force so great he couldn't react. As they realized the oncoming danger rapidly approaching, an unseen force yanked her back to

the sidewalk where she was safe. Terrified out of her

mind, but safe.

That's all he wanted for her then, and now.

Jenn left the car on as he popped the trunk and

hurried to the front door of Prerna's smal1, brown brick

and white trimmed duplex. Little flower decals decorated the bottom of the gold-painted wooden door. Knowing Prerna, it must have been the handiwork of her friend, Richa Frost. It hadn't been there weeks ago; the last time he'd visited.

Jenn's fist pounded on the door, staring at the decals claiming this building to be a home. But it was a home that could no longer be Prerna's. How innocent they looked. How wrong it would be to assume Prerna was just as pure and childlike.

"Prerna, it's me. Open up," Jenn said, adjusting his glasses.

He looked through his side of the peephole. In the tiny glass circle, he saw his reflection. A short, scrawny boy with slicked-back black hair and dark blue eyes framed behind black-rimmed glasses. His black leather jacket shined under the moonlit sky and was

almost to0 warm to wear in the middle of the summer.

But he never went anywhere without it.

"How can I be sure it's you?" Prerna yelled through the door, a playfulness in her voice.

"Well, for starters, you could look through the peephole," Jenn said. "Which you've already done."

The locks unlatched and the door swung open. Prerna stared at Jenn.

"You're no fun." She smiled at him, then tugged on his shirt to bring him inside. "I had to disable the alarm."

Jenn entered and Prerna shut the door behind him. While the rest of her home was dark, she lit up underneath the dome light in the entryway.