“It really sucks that you’ve had to go through that alone. I should’ve been there.”

In the receding light she could see Maggie shrug.

“That’s water under the bridge, Quinn. I would’ve liked to have had you to talk to, but to be honest, it wouldn’t have been safe for me to be around you much. I have had to be so careful. If I visited someone more than once, I was afraid he might latch on to them too.”

“You had to be so terrified.”

“I was for a long time. And I was angry when I found out he’d been brought up on stalking charges before. Unfortunately, his two previous victims just wanted it over with, and they backed down easy. One of the trials was dismissed, and the other one got settled out of court. That just spurred him on to go after someone else. Just happened to be that I stepped into his radar.”

“You’re such a strong woman, it’s hard for me to imagine someone like that targeting you,” Quinn said.

“That’s a good point. A lot of women have trouble with obsessive men because they are too kind and trusting. Or they’re vulnerable, and the stalker picks up on that and uses it to his own benefit. As usual, I don’t fit into a stereotype, but somehow I became his next target.”

“I’m so sorry,” Quinn said.

“Me too. I’m just glad that finally he’s serving time.”

“Are you anxious about when he gets out?” Quinn asked, worried for Maggie.

“Well, they’re supposed to let me know, but I’ve set up Google alerts on his name just in case. And once a month I call the correctional center to be sure he’s still listed. I still take a lot of precautions, but I know I’m safe now. And I have a dog that’ll eat his face if he shows up.”

“I just can’t imagine someone like you getting tangled up with a crazy person,” Quinn said.

Maggie took a long sip of her wine, then leaned back on one arm. “It happens more often than you’d think. He was a charmer at first—made himself look like a real catch. We talked for a few weeks before even going out. He sent me flowers twice.”

“Before even meeting him?” Quinn asked.