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I take a deep breath and wonder if I should call Dr Derek Wonder if I am mentally equipped for this errand It is funny how quickly things can change A few days ago I was reelingcapital letters that I Will Stay Inside Not repeat ain control Do a better job of keeping others safe, of policing my own actions

Yet here I am, about to leave the house Drive my car Run an errand with no purpose other than to properly outfitout in the world arerCutter’s location unknown, the knife tucked in my jacket, one that is needed for my own protection

I stand at the door, my car keys in hand, and take short, measured breaths Willthe day The knife is contained--I will not pull it out unless assaulted I take a ht and turn, hurrying toin relief when I see the roll of clear scotch tape I cut off a piece, hold it carefully, and walk to the door Yank it open before common sense stopshere?" My eyes skip over his e to an early dinner Reht?"

I swear underit Not the dead bolt--Simon is the only one with that key But the lower lock, part of the knob, a weak barrier that has never been tested I hesitate, looking at it, then rise onthe crack at the top of the door I juet the tape to be flat and invisible Jere the task easy He looks down ata visitor?"

"Not sure," Inot to inhale his scent He is so close toin its life I step back "I can’t do dinner today I’’s come up?" His brow furrows, a look that is adorable I wonder, briefly, if eyebroere cut out of a face, how much they would resemble caterpillars

"Yeah I’ll talk to you next week" I need him away from me This is bad, his presence at a time when someone is on their way here Jeremy will only coets hurt Best-case scenario, he sees lee Both disastrous, one a scenario Ipossibility that I put Mike in danger I cannot, will not, endanger this , and I bang through the stairwell door This is so familiar We have been in this situation before Last time I needed his help, his truck Now, I’et another innocent individual hurt

I exit the stairwell out the back, hoping he isn’t following,lot, the blacktop littered with tricked-out Cadillacs and tired Corollas And there, in the midst of dented fenders and duct-taped s, she sits Like a coiled snake, ready to strike Gorgeous, feline, and dangerous I feel wetness betweenmy excitement and anticipation I am not the sa hunted And, in the face of that danger, a all constraints War has no room for indecision It’s time for me and her to kick some ass

I press the button, listen to her chirp, and slide around the front of her, rolling ently over her polished surface and pull on the handle Thank God I paid for her before the theft ofher for free

"Where are you going?"

Shit He followed I pause, one foot in the ohlare at him Use my bitchiest voice "I’ up when his hand stops the closing of?"

He sounds pissed, a tone I’ve never heard froh to pull his hand off the door, then scoot back inside, sla the door before he has a chance to think about it As an afterthought, I roll down the orried, in ht try to follow ’s coency"