Vigilant

“I’d just left Marked, the tattoo parlor on Arbor Street. When I got home, they attacked.”

“Who attacked you?”

Ari told her story to Bryson and Nick. Slowly sharing the terrible details. She fought back tears, unwilling to seem weak in front of either of them, because she already felt exposed enough. This was not how she wanted to reveal herself to Nick.

“Tell me about the Vigilante,” Bryson asked.

“He came out of nowhere. I didn’t even realize it was him until I was in the house.”

“This makes the second time he’s been at a crime scene with you and Jace. Any idea why?”

“No,” she shook her head. “None.”

“Maybe he has a fixation with you,” Nick suggested. “It can’t be a coincidence.”

“I don’t think he’s fixated on me. He’s never approached me or anything.” Lie. Maybe he didn’t start a conversation, but he actively saved her life that first time. The box came to mind but she didn’t mention it. She was protecting him, she knew that, but why not? He protected her.

“Maybe he’s been after Jace this whole time?” She thought back to some of the things Jace had said during the fight. “Maybe all this is about something else? He said he knew information but the Vigilante didn’t seem to care.”

Bryson flipped through a report on the desk. “Jace doesn’t have any known gang affiliations, but it’s possible. The robberies do have a crime-ring feel about them.”

The detective asked Ari some other questions about the incident. Had she seen any of the other men? He told her that the one backing up Jace had been taken to the hospital and then into custody. Jace himself had been unconscious when the police arrived, the mystery man having knocked him out.

“Any last thing you can tell us?” Bryson asked as she and Nick stood at the door.

“No, not that I can think of,” she said. But there was one other thing. One thing she kept to herself. The mystery man moved sleek and quiet, like a cat. Ari knew only one other person like that.

FIFTEEN

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Ari said. The early morning air cooled her cheeks and she wished for a cup of coffee. What she really wanted was to be back in her bed, but this terrible day of all days had just begun, and looked to only get worse. She took a day off after the attack in her front yard but that was all Ari could afford. Hope had skipped her first counseling appointment and Maria’s funeral was scheduled for later in the day. At 8:00 a.m., the day was already heading downhill.

Hope’s grandmother shook her head. A tight scarf wrapped her curler-covered hair and she wore a pink, flowered robe. “She was in her bed last night. I checked after I watched the Late Show. She must have snuck out after that.”

“I’m going to have to report this,” Ari said with a sigh. So much for second chances. Or third. Or fourth.

“I know, Ms. Grant. That girl just can’t seem to control herself.”

“Any idea where she went?”

“No ma’am, she don’t tell me anything.”

“Let me know if you hear from her,” Ari said fruitlessly. Her grandmother was sweet but no way she’d turn Hope in. She added, “I don’t want her to get hurt or anything.”

“I will. I have your number. She’ll be okay.”

Ari shook her head. “No, I’m not sure she will. I don’t know if you are aware of this but I’m going to a funeral today for a client. She was murdered and dumped by her killer. We have no idea who did it which means a murderer is loose on the street and he could be preying on girls like Hope. If you hear from her, please encourage her to come home.”

Ari left the apartment and returned to her car. During daylight, the housing project felt a little less scary, only kids and mothers were out now, heading to school. Still, Ari looked cautiously around making sure no one was following her.

Jace had been arrested, or would be if he ever woke up. The sound of his head hitting the pavement during the fight echoed in Ari’s memory. And the mystery man. She couldn’t get him out of her head, either. Was he a stalker? Her protector? Both? She knew whom to ask. She knew who taught the boys in this city how to battle like that. She just hadn’t gotten up the nerve to do so yet.

In the car, Ari dialed the number for Apprehension Services and gave them Hope’s description and the details for the arrest warrant. There was little now she could do for her but wait.

* * *

The funeral went on for hours. The room became unbearably warm and everyone in the church was borderline hysterical. This was not Ari’s first funeral for a client but they never got any easier. She sat in the back, fanning herself with a thick paper program, listening as the minister talked about the trials of sin. So far, he’d been speaking for close to thirty minutes and showed little sign of stopping. She’d talked to Maria’s mother and family already but they looked at her with judgment and disdain. She wasn’t welcome there, but it was her responsibility to come. Plus, she’d cared for Maria.

“You want to get out of here?” she heard from the row behind hers. She knew the voice and it set her skin on edge. Davis. The curse of a successful one-night stand was the involuntary reaction the body had to triggers. His voice was a trigger. Conjuring imagines inappropriate for a church, much less a funeral.