Stalk Me

I smile. “So I can buy whatever car I want?”

He grins back at me. “Yes, although I would avoid buying the same car you got for your birthday. There aren’t that many of them and it’s easy to run DMV reports. Remember, you’re going to have winter to deal with up there. I’d suggest something with all-wheel or four-wheel drive.”

“I drive a Range Rover now. Would that be a good choice?”

“Absolutely. I also want you to get to know the train routes.” He reaches in a file and hands me train schedule print-outs. “Traveling by train means you’re not alone, and it’s a quick way to travel anonymously.”

“Okay.”

He pulls out the locket James got me for my birthday.

“Why do you have my locket?”

“James gave it to us to modify.” He opens it up to show me a picture of a young boy. I’d recognize those eyes anywhere.

“It’s my dad, but James told me I couldn’t have a picture of my dad.”

“No one will recognize him at this young age. And after what you went through, I know it’s important.” He leans over to clasp the necklace around my neck.

I get tears in my eyes. “Thank you. It really does mean a lot to me.”

“You’re welcome, but this is more than just a locket now. We’ve inserted a tracking device in it. Don’t take it off. Ever.”

“You’re going to track me?”

“Yes. Our computer programs will be constantly comparing your GPS coordinates with those of your campus. If you go off campus, we’ll be alerted.”

“And then what?”

“Well, if you haven’t told us you’ll be off campus, we’ll assume you’ve been kidnapped and send in the calvary.”

I smile. “That’s reassuring. At least if he did find me and take me, you’d be able to find me. So how do I let you know if I’m going off campus?”

He holds up my new phone. “See this application? The compass with the black background?”

“Yep.”

“If you leave campus of your own free will, click the app before you leave. If something happens on campus, click the app icon three times, and we’ll know you’re in trouble.”

“Three times. Just like Dorothy? Click your heels together three times?”

Garrett smiles. “Obviously, it’s important to keep your phone charged and with you at all times. Try to always sit with your back to a wall, not with your back to the room. Try not to go off campus alone. Be sure to look inside your vehicle before you get in it, and if you leave campus, vary the routes you take. Don’t be predictable. No standing nail appointments.”

“Okay.”

“Now I want you to look at these.” He hands me a stack of photos.

I look down, shudder, and then take a deep breath.

“That’s Vincent,” I say. In the photo he looks happy. He looks nothing like he did the night he tried to kidnap me. Even with his sunglasses on, he was holding his jaw differently. “Why do I have to look at a photo of Vincent?”

“Keep going,” he says.

I flip to the next photo. It’s a different guy. He’s blond and . . . wait. “This is Vincent too. Only he’s blonde, right?”

“That’s right. Keep looking through the stack. There are Vincents with different hair colors. With facial hair. Without. We’ve even changed the color of his eyes. And notice the one with him in a ball cap?”

“Yeah. He looks different in all of them. Some of them I don’t know if I’d recognize him.”

“That’s the point. Keep going.”

“Oh, wow. You changed his clothes and his hair.” I flip to the last one and laugh. “Oh my gosh, a girl? Do you really think he’d dress up as a girl?”

“We don’t know what he will do, but remember there are a few things he can’t change. His height. He’s six-four. The most he can do is change his posture and slouch. Also, most people who don simple disguises won’t change their teeth. Study his mouth. You seem okay looking at these photos. James was worried you’d freak out a little.”

“The first picture made me feel kinda sick to my stomach, but he was smiling in it. I guess I have mixed emotions about him. For a long time, I considered him sort of a friend. It makes me feel stupid not to have known. Like all the stuff he told me. Especially the part about me being prettier than my mom. How could I have ever believed that?”

Garrett studies me. “Keatyn, you’re prettier than your mom in the ways that are important to Vincent.”

“What if he thought I was a whore? What if I did a slutty video? Wouldn’t he hate me and stop being interested in me?”

Garrett is shaking his head at me.

“No, Keatyn. That’s a very bad idea. Something like that would probably send him way over the edge. We don’t want that. There’s no telling what he’d do to you if you made him that mad.”

“Can I ask you a question? But you can’t tell my Mom.”

Garrett studies my face then agrees. “Okay.”

“If he had gotten me in the van, what do you think he would have done to me?”

“I really don’t know. You know him better than any of us. What do you think he would’ve done?”

I think about it for a second. “He was obsessed with remaking A Day at the Lake. I think he would’ve kept me and made me shoot some version of it. I’m pretty sure sexual things would have happened too. I think he thought we’d fall in love or have an affair on set. When the movie was done, I’m not sure. He may have re-written the ending. Like, into one where I die.”

“I think you’re probably right. Okay, now back to our list. I’m also giving you pepper spray. Keep one on your keychain and one in your purse at all times. You’re getting a crash course in all this. Do you have any questions?”

“Is it safe for me to talk to the people you loaded in my phone? I was worried I wouldn’t get to.”

“Let’s bring everyone else in. We need to discuss that with them.”

I’m not sure who was listening to our conversation, but Mom, Tommy, James, and Brooklyn walk into the living room and sit down next to us.

Garrett hands everyone a phone. “These are your old phones. We’ve added a dual password protection system. If someone stole your phone, it would be very difficult for them to access your information. Always remember that whenever you talk, text, or email Keatyn, someone could be watching or listening to you. Never, ever mention her real name, the name of her school, or her location. In your phone, she is listed as M. Monroe. I’d suggest getting in the habit of calling her Monroe.”

I look down at my new phone. It doesn’t even have a normal passcode on it. “Why doesn’t my phone have all that password stuff?”

Everyone turns and stares at me.

And it sinks in.

I give them all a wry smile. “Oh, right. If he finds my phone, it’s too late anyway.”

Mom gets tears in her eyes, but Garrett continues. “So that’s pretty much it. I’ll personally be with the security detail tomorrow and make sure she gets to school safely. Keatyn, be sure to work on your backstory today. Figure it out. Memorize it. Own it.”

“You sound like a director,” I say. “You ever think of switching careers?”

I get a hearty laugh from both Garrett and James. “I don’t think so. I’ll see you all bright and early tomorrow.”

I go in my room, look in the mirror, and practice.

“Hi, I’m Keatyn Monroe. I’m from L.A. My parents, uh . . . shit.”

What about my parents? I can’t tell people they’re dead. It’s too horrible to even pretend.

What should my backstory be?

I run to the kitchen to grab a Red Bull. Maybe I need a little quick energy to jumpstart my brain. It seems I’m not the only one trying to concoct a story, though. Millie, Mom, Tommy, and Mr. Moran, who are all in the business of making movies, are sitting at the kitchen table throwing around fake lives like dollar bills at a strip club.

I pretend to scan the fridge for food, but instead I’m listening to their cringeworthy ideas. I swear, they want my life to be some bad teenaged sitcom.

We should all thank God that they’re not writers. Hollywood would go down in flames.