Who's boss?

"He looks normal. Handsome even." I state as our man gets handed the bowling ball.

"Don't they all? And why the fuck are you still hunched over? Take that fucking hat off. You're drawing attention to us."

I do as he says and cross my arms.

"I was going for the whole Sherlock Holmes vibe."

"You give off a creepy I-just-ate-a-child vibe." He replies, causing me to chuckle.

"What?"

"Nothinh, just remembered when Himari said something about eating children for lunch, or was it dinner."

He shakes his head with an eye roll.

"I wouldn't be surprised. That girl can be scary. All tiny people are."

"Don't let her hear you call her tiny."

"He's flirting with a girl who's probably half his age."

I whip around to glance at the man, and still.

"That is my coworker! That's Alicia! And she is half his age."

"She sexy."

Satisfied by his grunt of pain, I retract my fist.

He rubs his arm and glares at me.

"We have to warn her. She could be in danger."

"Look, Tequila. We aren't sure he's–"

"The rapist, I know. You've drilled that into my head since the house. You told me about his reputation though, and Alicia does not need more problems right now."

On our drive over, Aaron filled me in on everything.

Blond hair and grey eyes, Joshua Delaney, thirty-six and single is actually a stunner.

Explains why someone like Alicia will be susceptible to his flirting.

He has garnered numerous attention for his misdemeanours and vile habit of abusing every partner he's had.

He's found it hard to hold down a job with his propensity to be dishonest.

There are many posts he's made on social media that speak volumes about the type of person he is.

All in all, Joshua Delaney is not a person I would want anyone to be close with, much less a friend.

Joshua stands and extends a hand to Alicia. She grabs it with a blush, following suit.

He says something to his group of friends and they jeer.

Alicia's face tightens and her blush intensifies.

One of Joshua's friends makes a crude gesture and the others guffaw. Joshua looks like he is restraining himself because of Alicia. He definitely would've laughed along, were she absent.

They begin to head towards the exit so I rise.

"What do you think you are doing?"

"Following them." I deadpan.

"No. We can't just confront him. I know the guy in red over there."

He points at the only black man in the group of misfits that are still laughing their asses off.

"I can get him to squeal."

That would take a lot of time. Alicia and Joshua are almost at the door and I can't let them out my sight.

"You do that. I'll follow Joshua. I need to make sure he doesn't hurt Alicia."

I turn on my heels, glad his protests are drowned out by the cheering of the crew few tables away.

I follow the duo at a reasonable distance and drink in Joshua's moves.

From tucking a stubborn strand of her hair behind her ear, to shyly removing a lint from her coat, he seems like the perfect gentleman. Alicia really shouldn't fall for that.

They settle on a bench under the nearest streetlight and he takes her hand in his.

A bug buzzes near my right ear and it twitches.

I walk until I am close enough to listen in, but remain unnoticed, and lean on the pretty mailbox there.

"Your eyes were the first things I noticed about you. Your voice was the next." He begins, leaning in.

"Oh, stop it Josh." She says giggling.

"You blush a lot, you know?" He has a French accent; one he is laying on thick.

"Yeah, I do. I hate it really. I look like a tomato."

He shakes his head and brushes a thumb on her face.

"You look like a goddess."

She laughs.

Deep, throaty and assured.

Very unlike the shy girl she was moments ago.

My brows furrow.

"You insist on doing this every time, Joshua. Don't you get tired?"

"Of course not Al. I love reminiscing about how we met. You were so innocent, so gullible." His hands trail the valley between her breasts as he speaks.

She swats them away and throws her head back in laughter.

"You enjoyed taking advantage of the fact, did you not? Why are we here, Josh? You know we can't be seen together."

She looks around, and satisfied with her findings, leans in.

"That Aaron Fletcher has been snooping around."

He steeples his hands and leans back.

"Oh I know about the young Fletcher. Divine just sent me a text. The boy is at the alley, trying to threaten him into spilling the beans, but he is not my issue right now. The girl, I heard she is recovering her memories. She was said to have screamed the name 'Chao' in her nap."

"Of course we aren't here because you missed me. Your sources were right. She is remembering bits and pieces. I won't let it get out of hand though. I will deal with her perfectly."

The shrill sound of a ringing phone breaks the quiet atmosphere and my heart goes into overdrive.

I pull my phone out immediately and set it on silent, thankful for the ringing phone. It would've been a different story, had it been mine.

"Hey, Annalise! What's wrong... you had a nightmare? Oh no, sweet girl, don't worry. Aunt Alicia will chase all the bad guys away. I'm on my way." Alicia coos into her phone.

My blood runs cold. Annalise? Memories?

"Well, she's awake." She says, getting up. "It's really fun manipulating the chit's mind. She thinks I'm an actual angel and I get to feel like a god."

Joshua chuckles but doesn't make any move to get up.

"I'll tell the boss he's safe. You take care of the situation well enough and I just might recommend you for a promotion."

"Fuck off, Josh. We both know you think only of yourself." She says, walking away.

"Say hi to Mark and Sam for me!" He hollers after her retreating figure.

I choke on my tears. Mark and Samantha George are Annalise George's parents.

What is Alicia thinking playing this dangerous game?

Who exactly is Joshua Delaney and who is this boss?

One thing is for sure though, this 'boss' raped Annalise George, and the fucker will pay for it.