Fearless Hero

“Yes, ma’am. He’s been alerted.”

“And he’s okay with it?”

“I would presume so. Have you spoken with him?”

“I just tried calling him, but I think he must have meetings all morning.”

“I see. Yes, the Speaker is a busy man. I wish him all the best though. I think he’d make a fine Vice President. You should be very proud of your dad.”

I forced a smile. “Thank you.”

“So, are you ready to go?”

“Yes. To the local library, please.”

“You want a donut or anything before you go?”

“Uhh…sure.”

* * *

In the car, I tried to eat the donut, but it was hard to swallow over the tightness in my throat. The dough tasted too sweet, and I hated the way it left my hands so sticky. But I forced myself to finish it before we made it to the library. All the while, Wallace tried to engage me in polite conversation. He was a friendly man, and I had a feeling he and my father would have gotten along well. He was the type of guy that I could imagine myself referring to as ‘uncle’ had I known him longer.

However, he wasn’t Brady, and I desperately wanted Brady back.

When we got to the library, I went to the front desk to request several study guides. The woman behind the desk stared at me for a moment, and I instantly felt myself growing paranoid.

Did she know something about yesterday? Had she seen me and Brady? Had the person who’d almost come toward the room we’d occupied mentioned something to a library worker—telling them to be on alert for the Speaker’s daughter and a tall and hot security guard because they had done filthy things on a library table in a back room?

After she retrieved the study guides, she didn’t hand them over right away. She continued staring at me, her eyes scrutinizing me in a way that made me want to run away and never come back.

Wallace stood off to the side, watching. He took several steps toward me, apparently catching on to the fact that something was wrong. “Everything all right?” he said from the sidelines.

“I’m sorry,” the woman behind the desk said. “But are you Speaker Harper’s daughter?”

Wallace was at my side in an instant.

I swallowed, my mouth having gone dry.

“I’m going to need you to keep your voice down,” Wallace said to the woman.

Her eyes widened and she nodded. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I just wanted to say how much I love your father. He’s done some excellent work around the community. I just wanted to say that I wish him the best of luck. I hope he’s chosen as Vice President. If he is, he has my vote!”

I breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh…Uhm…Thank you.”

As if that close run-in wasn’t enough, to torture myself further, my feet seemed to move as if they had minds of their own. It even took me a moment to realize that I was taking myself right back to the room Brady and I had carried out our sordid deeds the previous day. I wasn’t even sure why. I suppose there was a part of me hoping that he would be right inside that room, waiting for me. That he would relieve Wallace of his duty, and then take me to re-enact the previous day.

But once I got there, the room was empty.

“You like to be away from everyone, eh?” Wallace said, following behind me.

“Uhm, yeah,” I lied. “It’s less distracting back here.”

“I understand,” he said. “Especially if you’re being recognized now.”

I sighed and settled into the room, suddenly feeling awkward. I didn’t want Wallace in our special room, but I had so purposely walked here that I knew it would look weird if I suddenly changed my mind and headed to another area. So resigned, I took a seat at the table, trying to force from my mind the things Brady and I had done on that table. If I breathed in deeply enough, I thought I could still smell Brady’s scent.

“Well, this looks like a cozy spot,” Wallace said, settling into a chair on the opposite side. “Don’t mind me. You won’t even know I’m here.”