Page 112 of Cruel Delights
Tonight.
I switch apps. Instead of the spy app that records and tracks Lyra, I bring up the app I’m using for the cameras I’ve placed in her bedroom.
She slams shut the door, visibly furious from her confrontation with Grady. Her belongings get discarded on the floor as she shoots toward her desk. She grabs her laptop and then moves to sit on her bed. The second she’s able to log on, her fingers fly on the keyboard.
My head tilts to the left in curiosity. “What are you looking up?”
I squint trying to read what’s entered into the internet search box.
Raskova family St. Petersburg, Russia
She clicks go, chewing on her lip in wait. A cool sensation blows through me watching her scroll through the search results. She’s following up on what Grady told her.
Lyra’s investigating me.
A rare, though slight, grin briefly comes to my face. “So my little lamb really does believe it. That I am her poison.”
25Lyra
Time is Running Out - JPOLND
It’s hard to say what’s more cause for concern. My lack of prospects at another job, or the fact that my ex friend/fuck buddy believes I’m unaware he’s following me everywhere. To my job interviews. My shifts at the Velvet Piano. Even the smaller errands I run. Grady tags along in secret.
The problem is, he’s not very discreet.
After a few days, he confronted me outside my apartment building again. I told him if he doesn’t stop, I’ll be forced to get a restraining order.
He’s convinced I’ve intentionally dropped him in favor of Kaden. “Mr. Doctor” as he calls him. He’s gone so far as to insinuate Kaden had something to do with Maximillion’s death.
Imani thinks he’s gotten too comfortable crossing lines and overstepping my boundaries. That he doesn’t respect me when I tell him to back off.
As I make my way to my favorite spot at the cemetery, I can’t help thinking she’s right. Grady feels like he’s known me for so long he doesn’t have to take my word seriously. My fault for not putting my foot down sooner.
I’ll have to do better at asserting myself. Something I’ve always struggled with doing.
The huge elm tree at the top of the grassy knoll welcomes me with long, leafy branches that might as well be open arms. I plop down into the grass and enjoy the view in front of me.
Rows upon rows upon rows of gravestones and the haunting stone monuments of angels that have chipped over time.
In the distance, the outline of big city buildings serves as a backdrop.
A soft sigh soughs out of me and I consider how to proceed.
It wasn’t that long ago I came up here to write obituaries. I was broke and struggling, but my life was mundane and predictable. Between my gig at theEaston Times, the piano lessons I gave, and my Cyber Fans, I got by. I had enough for my medsandmy weed. Grady was only an occasional lay, and I spent most of my free time chilling in my room.
So much has changed since then. I can barely register how things snowballed to this point.
Kaden’s my boyfriend. I duel at the Velvet Piano. The police are investigating the murder of a former coworker and my drug-addicted ex is stalking me.
That doesn’t touch on the other stuff that’s happened, like Jael’s disappearance and my failed audition at the opera house.
It’s my next stop after an hour of deep-thinking on the grassy knoll. I bid farewell to the dead and reenter the world of the living.
Usually, I’d stop by Strictly Pleasures to visit Imani, but I skip that detour and head straight to the opera house. The brilliant domed structure encapsulates me with a bereft sense of longing. I stand outside the cascading steps like a lost puppy and stare up at the landmark.
Kaden has told me he’ll help secure me another audition, though I don’t know how he’ll pull it off. It can’t possibly be with Fyodor. After you elbow a guy in the stomach, relations tend to sour.
I turn away from the building pondering the thought that maybe it’s for the best. I hadn’t earned my audition based on merit. It was a handout because Kaden was interested in me.