Read Part One Here.

Read Part Two Here.

Read Part Three Here.

When Eva awoke, Ford was still asleep beside her. Getting up from bed, she grabbed her phone off of the charger and walked to the door where her robe was hanging. Slipping on the robe, she entered the kitchen and started the coffee pot, then looked at her phone to see if any calls or messages had come in while she slept. A message from an unknown number was in her inbox, and without thinking of who it could be, she opened it:

I see you’re with someone new. I’d hate for anything to happen to him.

Fear began to take over, and suddenly, there was a hand on her shoulder. Quickly turning around, Eva punched the being as hard as she could.

“What the hell?!” Ford yelled, holding his nose. Blood was dripping between his fingers.

“FORD! Oh my God, I am so sorry…” Eva said, apologetically as she grabbed a paper towel and moved his hands away, placing them on his nose gently.

“What were you thinkin’?” he asked.

“Well, once we stop your bleeding, I’ll show you the text on my phone. I have something to talk to you about,” she responded.

After explaining to Ford that she had once been kidnapped and that she’d changed her name when she was finally free of this monster, Ford understood why she was so on-guard constantly. He agreed that they needed to seek police advice on the text. Eva worried that David would go after her family like he had promised when he left the letter in her apartment. But lives were at stake, and she had to take action. A quick stop at her apartment to gather the letter, then Eva and Ford headed to the police station.

Police cars were parked neatly in their spots as Eva arrived at the station. Police officers were walking in and out of the building to their cars or offices. This is where she felt the safest; this is where she felt secure. Nothing could happen to Ford while she was here, but what about her brother? She wiped her worries aside and exited the car, taking a slow walk inside to a desk where a woman sat behind, what Eva assumed was bulletproof glass.

“Can I help you, ma’am?” The woman asked as she took a sip of black coffee from a very old mug.

“Yes, I’d like to file a report,” Eva responded, handing the letter and her phone through a small block in the glass.

“What’s the nature of the report?” The woman asked, staring at the items but not touching them.

“I am being stalked by someone who once kidnapped me,” Eva said quietly, looking around at the other civilians who were sitting in hard plastic chairs in the hallway nearby.

“Okay, ma’am. What’s your name? I’ll have an officer come to you.” The woman typed something on her computer and asked the question without even looking up from her screen.

“Eva Harrisburg….”

“Okay, have a seat, Mrs. Eva. An officer will be by soon to assist you.”

Eva grabbed her belongings, and she and Ford sat down in the row of plastic chairs, trying to avoid sitting next to someone else. Even though she felt secure, she wasn’t sure if David had someone else working with him. Despite being in a police station, it could only take one second for someone to grab a knife out of their purse or pocket and slice her or Ford with it. She was still being cautious, and Ford held her hand tightly as if to tell her he would protect her.

“Eva!” A voice yelled out from a doorway.

They stood up and walked toward the voice to discover a small, round man standing in the doorway near where the woman sat at the desk. He ushered them into another long hallway, and finally into a small room surrounded by cement bricks and a door that locked behind them. Eva assumed this is where criminals got interviewed for crimes like murder—locked in with cameras all around, waiting for a confession.

“My name is detective Henry Peterson. Please have a seat. I hear you’re possibly getting harassed? Anita, at the front desk, said you’d been kidnapped before?”

Eva responded, “Yes, I was kidnapped a few years ago and held against my will. I was tortured and manipulated. I escaped, and now the same man is after me again. I have a letter, and a text that I know are both from him. Though the letter isn’t in his handwriting and the text is anonymous. I assume it tracks to a burner phone.”

“Okay…do you know the man’s name?” The officer asked, writing down the information Eva had just told him.

The officer looked exhausted–like he’d been at work too long. Maybe he had a busy night and got stuck working this case, Eva thought. She felt bad that she might be the reason why someone wasn’t able to have breakfast with their family this morning, but it was for a good reason.

“David, in the letter, he threatened my brother’s life,” Eva said with a serious tone.

“Well, we will definitely look into everything and see if we can track down the source of where this text came from, and maybe find some information on the letter like a fingerprint. But for now, there’s not really much we can do. I’m sorry ma’am.” The officer could sense that Eva wasn’t going to like his answer and tightened up his body stance to brace for the impact.

“I’m sorry, I don’t understand. This man has threatened the life of my brother, and maybe the life of my boyfriend and you expect to tell me that there’s not much you can do?” Eva yelled. “I’M IN DANGER!”

“Ma’am, my suggestion is that you contact your brother and see if he’s okay. Have him come down here and file a report. I am going to make copies of this letter and screenshot the text and print it off. Then I suggest that you go the range just a few blocks from here and get in some target practice with some of their guns, and inquire about getting your concealed carry license. You can open carry until that comes in. Buy a gun and protect yourself. I understand that there is a danger to your lives, so I will have extra patrols around all of your houses until then. But you’re better protected if you have your own weapon in the spur of the moment. You may not have your phone within reach if there is an attack. This David guy could be a real threat to you, and we will look up all of the information we have on him.” The officer replied, earnestly.

Ford and Eva left the station after giving the officer some more information on what Eva knew about David and some of the things she had gone through. Ford kept quiet the whole time they were talking, taking everything in. He didn’t know how Eva had been tortured, but it made sense, now, why she was so drawn away from him, and why she was so secretive. Despite everything, Ford knew he loved Eva, and he looked at her with a new admiration. This woman was strong and resilient, and they would get through this.