Chapter 7 - A Shadow on the Street
Night fell over Chicago again.
The streetlights flickered on,
casting long shadows across our living room.
I kept the blinds tightly drawn,
but I couldn't stop looking through the cracks.
Around midnight,
I saw it.
A silver sedan pulled up across the street.
It didn't park in a designated spot.
It just idled there,
its headlights turned off.
The windows were tinted,
so I couldn't see the driver.
But I knew.
Linda was watching us.
She was letting us know that a new lock wouldn't stop her presence.
Megan was resting on the couch,
wrapped in a different blanket now,
a green one.
She saw me staring out the window.
"Is she there?"
she asked,
her voice trembling.
"No,"
I lied,
closing the blinds completely.
"Just a delivery car."
I didn't want her to panic.
Her blood pressure needed to stay low for the baby.
But my own heart was hammering against my ribs.
I sat on the floor next to the couch,
holding her hand.
We didn't turn on the TV.
We didn't talk.
We just listened to the engine idling outside,
May you like
a low,
menacing rumble that lasted for an hour before finally driving away.
