Page 40 of Property of Yak

I hit send before I can overthink it.

Here goes nothing.

Yak

I can’t help but chuckle when she waves at the camera and then visibly regrets it.

She’s just so fucking adorable I can hardly stand it. In fact, I’ve been trying to put space between us because of how sweet she is.

She made me dinner while I was putting up the cameras that she didn’t want in the first place. Then instead of sitting in silence, she tried to get to know me, which is difficult when I can’t tell her much. Not now at least.

The camera dings again, and I can’t help but tense when a cop car slows down and comes to a stop. I suck in a breath when I watch as her dad gets out of his cruiser and approaches. The cameras automatically switch from exterior to interior as soon as they step inside.

I listen as they greet each other, and her father calls her out for looking tired.

Am I the reason she hasn’t been sleeping well?

Before the guilt can set in, the conversation slightly shifts. When he asks her about the cameras, she lies, and it’s almost believable. At least it would have been if it weren’t for the way her hands twist in front of her. Her dad clocks it but shockingly doesn’t call her out.

My heart drops to my ass when he brings up reports of a motorcycle being in the area.

Son of a bitch, and here I thought I was evading them.

Then again it’s hard to get past them when they are constantly in the area. If I didn’t know better, I would think it was a bad area of town and that they were just waiting for the crime to happen, instead of it being one of the safest areas.

Instead of confiding in her father, though, Julie waves off his concern. It shouldn’t please me how easily she lies, thinking on the fly to try and divert her father’s attention, but it does. Still, I watch them, waiting for her to give him a sign that she’s in trouble, that something’s wrong, but my girl keeps her composure.

When his radio goes off, she waits by the door and watches him drive away.

I wonder how many times she’s done that? Watched him drive off and wonder if that’s the last time she will ever see him.

Being raised by a single parent in a dangerous line of work isn’t for the weak.

I watch as she grabs her phone and sits on the couch. She nibbles on her lip before typing out a quick text. Immediately, my phone goes off, making me smile.

Angel

Hi.

I can’t help but chuckle at the simplicity of her message, but I play along.

Me

Hi. Everything okay?

My eyes dart to the camera feed in the corner of my screen and watch as she types.

Angel

Everything is fine. I just wanted to let you know my dad stopped by. He said that there have been reports of a motorcycle being in the area and wanted to check it out for himself.

Me

Should I be concerned?

Angel

No, I think I convinced him that it was just someone who lives on the street or near us. The next time you come over, though, you might want to drive something else.