100. The Cops (Part 2)

Continued...

"I don't know—wild animals, or whatever lurks in that forest," Rose deflected. Sheesh, that was close. Though even she couldn't understand what she was trying to hide or why.

"Did you see the face of this stranger in your house?" the male officer asked, his eyes scanning the living room for any more clues they might have missed.

"No. If I had, I wouldn't have thought it was Jake, would I?"

"Smart aleck," the lady officer muttered under her breath.

"So you say he exited through that door, which was unlocked, and then you followed after him through the same route?"

"Yes."

"And then?"

"Then I ran and ran, but after a while, I realized it wasn't Jake. When I tried to turn back, he set a tree on fire. It was burning furiously. I'm sure it would still be burning. If you just go a little deeper, I'm sure you'll find it."

"I think a tree on fire, as huge as you say, would be hard to miss—even from here. Unless, of course, you'd be happy to take us there?" The man was actually polite. Not something Rose could say about his grumpy partner.

"No, I am not going back in there."

"Thought so," the woman murmured.

"So after the tree, he attacked you? Did he hurt you?" The male officer looked genuinely concerned.

"N-No, not really. He just stood there watching me." Saying it out loud now felt awkward. Whereas when she was there, it felt like a full-on assault.

"A stranger who got inside your home, lured you into the woods, set a tree on fire, and then just stood there to watch you? That's what you're saying?"

"YES. It's not my fault he didn't hurt me. It sounds like your partner here wanted me to get hurt."

"No, no, that's not what she means. It's just that in these kinds of cases, the perp usually tries to attack and manages to do a lot of damage. But we're glad you're okay."

"He lunged at me, if that's what you guys want to hear. But I was fast. I ran and made it back here."

"So he didn't follow you?"

"He did. He just didn't catch me. And then when I tried to get inside my house, someone had locked it from the inside."

"So you say there was someone else in the house?"

"No. None that I know of."

The officers exchanged a glance and started writing furiously. A word flitted to Rose's ears—"a possible accomplice."

Somehow, Rose knew that wasn't true. He didn't look like the type to be big on teamwork.

"How did you get in, then? The door is unharmed. Did you use the front door? I thought you said you locked it first thing when you got in."

"See, now that's the tricky part. I got in through the same back door."

"You had a key then?"

"No. I—he—it just opened, okay?"

"The door unlocked on its own?"

"Yes—no. I don't know what happened."

"You're not making much sense, Miss."

"Look, he stood behind me, and when he twisted the handle, the door opened." She rushed out the words before she could second-guess herself.

"He who?"

"He—the stalker! Who else?"

"You're saying the stalker opened the door for you? I thought you said he tried attacking you?"

"I know. It's confusing for me too. But I'm only telling you exactly what happened."

The officers looked skeptical. Rose knew she shouldn't have said that part. Now they thought she was lying.

"Well, if he has a key to your back door, I suggest you change the locks."

He didn't use a key—

You know what? If that's what they believe, let them be. I can't explain how he opened the lock in any rational way, anyway.

"And I suggest you call your uncle or stay somewhere else tonight, just to be extra careful."

"Can't you guys leave some protection outside, like a patrol car?"

The woman chuckled. "Look, nothing has been proven yet. With no signs of forced entry, we can't report this as a serious threat. And not to mention, your story has quite a few holes in it."

"Hey-

"Are you sure she's not drunk? Shouldn't we at least check?" The female officer turned to her partner, deliberately ignoring Rose, who was still standing right in front of her.

"She looks sober to me," the older officer replied, his voice in a whisper.

Yup. Shouldn't have involved the cops at all.

Rose scoffed, crossing her arms. "She is standing right here. And she hasn't had a drink in a while, thank you very much."

The officers exchanged a glance before the man sighed, flipping his notepad shut.

"Alright, miss. We'll keep a lookout. It would've helped if you'd gotten a good look at his face, but since we have nothing to go on, there's not much we can do."

He tucked the notepad into his pocket. "Just sit tight, don't stay alone if you can help it, and if anything happens again, call us."

"Yeah, like that helped me a lot tonight," Rose muttered under her breath, unable to stop the sarcasm from slipping out.

Before his partner could bite back a response, the male officer raised a hand. "Stop. She's just anxious. I'm sure she's grateful for our help, right, miss?" 

His tone carried an underlying warning, though the man looked harmless. 

Then again, after seeing Him everyone pales in comparison now in regards to exuding danger. The guy was her walking nightmare, literally.

Rose sighed heavily, the weight of everything pressing down on her shoulders. "Yeah, I am. You guys can leave now." Her voice was flat, drained of energy.

Without another word, the officers nodded and made their way toward the door, leaving Rose alone once again in the suffocating silence of her home.

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Wow can't believe we are at a 100 chapter mark! its been a fun time writing for you guys, though the book doesn't have a single comment or any reviews at all, does make me a little sad. lemme know if i should keep writing 

thnx, ciao!