“We’ll meet you at the track,” she said.
I nodded as Roman handed Caden’s car seat to me and whispered, “Remember that she gets really worried about everything at the end of the pregnancy. She was the same with Caden. Remember she called the doctor almost daily? I know you’d never let anything happen to Caden. Besides us, you’re the one I trust most with him.”
I coughed to clear my throat as unexpected emotion rolled through me. I hadn’t realized how much I needed to hear that from him. Harper’s anger had taken me by surprise; we’d been close since I met her. I’d thought she knew I’d never take a risk with Caden.
I strapped Caden in, let Ava take a picture, closed the door, and walked around the hood of the car.
“Kiernan,” Harper shouted. She stood at the passenger side of her car. Her hand was rubbing quick circles over her stomach. “I’m sorry. I know you love Caden and would never do anything that would get him hurt.”
I smiled, even though I didn’t feel it, and folded myself into the driver’s seat.
“Ready, little man?”
“Yes!”
6
Caroline
One Friday a month, I opened the office for only a half day and spent the rest of the day doing the stuff I’d neglected while I worked. It was my day to run errands, clean the house, and catch up on any shows sitting on my DVR. I let the hot water run down my back while I made a to-do list in my mind. I wiped away the water from my eyes and bent back my head to rinse the conditioner from my hair.
I shut off the water and wrapped a fluffy towel around myself before stepping out onto the bath mat. The music playing from my laptop was set on a low volume. I bent at the waist and wrapped another towel around my hair to soak up some of the excess water before I attempted to dry it.
I sang softly with the song, walking to my bedroom dresser, and pulled out a bra and panties. The towel dropped to the ground, and I stepped into the soft silk underwear and put on the bra. I turned to my computer when it dinged with a message alert.
I yelped as photos of me getting out of the shower started flooding the screen. Stark naked. Then photos of me wrapping the towel around myself, walking into the bedroom, dropping the towel, putting on my bra and panties. One photo after another. One last photo popped up. It was of me again, staring at the laptop with tears in my eyes. I could see the fear and confusion written across my face.
A black window appeared in the center of the laptop screen. Green text was typing out in front of my eyes. I covered my mouth with my hand as I read the message.
You’re so beautiful.
If you don’t do what I want, these go on the internet.
I slammed the lid of my laptop closed and placed a hand over my heart as I tried to breathe through the panic welling up inside my chest. Each breath was harder than the last. I ran to my dresser and pulled out the first pair of leggings and T-shirt my hands touched, and I pulled them on and slipped into flip flops.
I hesitated before reaching for my laptop, but I had to. And I needed to be fast. I wasn’t sure if the images would disappear, or what happened when I closed the laptop, but maybe if I hurried to the police station, they could track them or something. The only knowledge I had of tracing cybercrimes came from television shows, and I didn’t know if those were accurate or dramatized for television purposes. I only hoped they could make this stop before anything else happened.
I grabbed the laptop with shaking hands and grabbed my purse on the way out the door. I sped the entire way to the station, not caring that my wet hair was curling against my temples and a wild, tangled mess in the back. I didn’t care that I had never been seen in public in such disarray in my entire life. I slammed into a parking spot and got out of the car before running into the station and stopping at the front desk, completely out of breath.
An older man in an officer’s uniform sat behind the desk, his large, round belly pressing against the edge. A mug of coffee was off to the side, sitting next to a fast food bag. Two men in plainclothes were standing near the desk, leaning against a wood-paneled wall, talking and looking over a manila file folder. I didn’t know who to ask for, but I needed someone to help me.
The man behind the front desk looked me up and down, and I saw him dismiss me before I even said a word. “What can I do for you?” he asked in a monotone voice. His gaze was directed at me, but he was looking right through me.
“I was getting out of the shower, listening to music on my laptop…” I took a deep breath as tears threatened, but I was determined to hold them at bay. My nose stung. “Pictures of me and a message popped up. Pictures of me naked,” I whispered and glanced at the two men off to the side, who were now staring at me and watching this interaction.
“Pictures you posted online?” the officer asked.
I shook my head. “No, someone was taking pictures of me while I was getting out of the shower, then they sent them to me and sent a message.”
“How did they send them? Were they pictures you had previously sent this person?”
I ran a hand through my wet hair. “No, I’ve never sent pictures like that. I don’t know who this person is. I don’t know how this happened. They just…appeared. It wasn’t email or anything like that. They popped up all over my screen, and the message they sent looked like what coders use. You know? The black window and green font? At least that’s what it is on TV,” I muttered. “I sound crazy.”
“What did the message say?”
Bile rose in my throat. I shook my head and took a second to gain my composure. “You’re so beautiful. If you don’t do what I want, these go on the internet.”
The chair squeaked under his weight as he leaned back and put his hands behind his head. “Miss, I’m very sorry. I hate to tell you this, but there wasn’t a crime. Cybercrime is very complicated, and without a direct threat of harm, there’s nothing we can do.”
“Nothing you can do?” I asked quietly. “So someone can take pictures of me inside my bedroom without my permission and there’s nothing you can do?”
One of the men standing off to the side took a step toward me. “The laws haven’t caught up with technology yet. Come here.” He motioned me away from the desk.
I stepped up to him, glancing back at the man behind the front desk. His attention was already on the computer, and he was taking a sip of coffee. I’d been dismissed. A hysterical laugh bubbled up in my chest. I placed my hand on my forehead and shook my head. “This can’t be happening,” I whispered.
“The laws haven’t caught up with technology yet,” the man repeated. “But you can hire a private company to trace the messages and file a restraining order. I will take a police report of this incident so if anything does happen, it’s on record. I hate it as much as you, but right now there’s nothing we can do. I can recommend someplace you can go. They’re friends of mine and will take care of you. I’m Maddox. Let’s take a seat and fill out a report, and then I’ll send you over to MarxMen.”
I nodded and followed him to his desk. He walked me through a police report, slowly encouraged me, and sent me on my way to MarxMen with a promise that they would be expecting me.