Page 1 of Stalked By Raiden

Prologue

Raiden

Five Years Ago

I’m not shocked.

I’ve been circling this decision for months. Signing the papers took ten minutes. Now, it’s time to bring in my best friend. The phone rings twice before River picks up.

“What?”

I snort. “Nice to hear your voice too.”

“You’re calling me in the middle of my nap. Somebody better be dead.”

“Not yet.”

He goes silent. “That sounds ominous.”

“I got fired.”

River barks out a laugh. “Bullshit.”

“I wish.”

“You’ve spent the last five years kissing the district attorney’s ass and collecting convictions like baseball cards. What the hell happened?” he asks.

I stare across the street at the elementary school. A police cruiser crawls past the building before disappearing around the corner. Two boys stand on the sidewalk arguing while their mothers wait near the school gate.

Even from here, I see the gang tags spray-painted across the brick wall behind them. Wrong place for kids. Wrong place for anyone.

“A repeat offender. Serial rapist. The judge dismissed the case. Said the fucker wasn’t in his right mind,” I mutter, my anger brewing all over again. “And I told the judge exactly what I thought of him.”

River groans. “Tell me you didn’t call him corrupt.”

I shrug despite knowing he can’t see it. “I may have called him a spineless piece of shit.”

A choking sound comes through the phone. “Jesus Christ.”

“He deserved it,” I reply.

I’d made up my mind before I opened my mouth. He’s a top judge, and I weighed my career against the satisfaction for all of two few seconds. I didn’t give a shit then, and I still don’t know that my career is over.

“He sure did,” River says as he laughs again.

I push away from the rusted railing I’ve been leaning against. “I need you to meet me somewhere.”

“Where?”

I give him the address.

“The hell are you doing there?”

“Just get over here.”

“Fine. Give me twenty minutes.”

The line disconnects. I slip my phone back into my pocket and look up at the building. It isn’t much to look at. Two stories. Old enough that the mortar is beginning to crumble in places. The windows need replacing. The roof definitely needs work. But it has good bones.