Harper handed Dani the remote. “I don’t watch TV, but I think it still works.”

“You don’t watch TV. You don’t go to movies.” Dani raised her eyebrows. “What do you do?”

“I work.” And sit alone and think and remember and…and sometimes cry. She sighed quietly, wishing the pizza would come already.

She moved away from Dani, choosing to sit in the lumpy chair instead of sharing the sofa. The chair was picked up at a thrift shop, as was most everything else in the house. When she moved to Dallas, she’d brought nothing with her but her clothes and her laptop. She’d rented an apartment at first, but noisy neighbors soon had her regretting that decision. This house—a rental—belonged to Sergeant Helms’s sister. Because of that, she was getting a break on the rent, which she appreciated. The house was in a decent neighborhood so she had no complaints there.

She stared absently at the TV as Dani flipped through channels. She then turned her attention to the woman sharing her space. Not just any woman. Danielle Stevens. A damn actress, for God’s sake. An actress with a doll-loving stalker chasing her. Dani Strauss. A woman relying on her to keep her safe. The last time that had happened…well, no. She didn’t want to go there. She needed to be alone if she was going to let those memories in. Because those memories always brought tears.

The doorbell sounded. Finally. She got up, opening the door without looking. Not that she was on first-name basis with all the delivery folks, but she smiled at Jamil, who delivered to her most often.

“Hey there, Miss Harper. Large pizza? That’s a change. You got company?”

“Got a guest tonight, yeah.” She took the receipt he handed her and added a tip before signing it. “Thanks, Jamil.”

“Thank you. See you next time,” he said as he hurried back to his car.

She was about to turn away when she saw the porch light reflect off of something by her tire. She walked closer, putting the pizza on the hood as she squatted down to inspect it.

“Son of a bitch,” she murmured.

A knife was sticking out of the front driver’s side tire. A quick glance to the back told her that all of the tires had been slashed.

“Harper?”

“Yeah. Over here.”

Dani walked down the porch steps. “What’s wrong?”

She stood up and pointed at the knife. “The bastard is really starting to piss me off.”

Dani’s eyes went from the knife back to her. “How did he find us?”

“I don’t know. I made sure we weren’t followed.” She handed the pizza box to Dani. “Go back inside. I need to call Reid.”

* * *