Are you spying on me?
Charlotte’s POV
“What is wrong with you?” Kate asked from the front seat of Loveth’s car. He had just pulled up in front of my house, waiting for us to get out.
I stayed still, pretending to scroll through my phone. Mum said she would video call me later, and she had insisted I be home. She never said why, but I figured she just wanted to check in.
“What do you mean?” I replied, keeping my eyes on the screen, avoiding the fact that we were already here.
“You have been moving about nonstop, biting your nails, staring at your phone like something’s about to happen.” Loveth joined in. He must have noticed from the rear-view mirror.
“Is it about Gavin?” Kate asked.
“No, Luther sorted that out yesterday. It’s just…” I paused, struggling to find the right words.
“Just what?” Kate turned around in her seat, waiting.
“Can you not see she’s trying to explain?” Loveth said gently, stepping in before she pushed again. They had been on better terms lately, and it showed. I was glad for them. We all deserved someone who made us feel safe.
“I’m scared,” I admitted with a deep breath.
“We’re listening,” Kate said, her tone softening.
“What if the man who attacked me before comes back? What if he already knows Mum’s away and decides tonight’s the night? I cannot shake the feeling.” I placed my hand on my chest. “It’s heavy, like something bad is going to happen.”
“Have you told Luther?” Loveth asked.
I closed my eyes and rested against the seat. Just hearing his name made me feel a little safer. My mind wandered briefly to our past few days together, so full of warmth, closeness, and moments I still felt in my body.
“No,” I said quietly. “I told him I was staying at your place tonight, Kate.”
“Why would you lie?” Kate snapped. “You could be in real danger, and you lied to the one person who would drop everything for you. Honestly, sometimes I do not get you.”
Loveth shook his head silently.
“I do not want to drag him into my mess,” I replied, guilt pressing on me. “If something happened to him because of me, I would never forgive myself. And I could not tell Mum. She’s away with Stanley, enjoying herself. I told her I was fine, that I could stay here alone… What was I thinking?”
“Then that’s it. We are leaving,” Loveth said, turning the key in the ignition.
“But…”
“No buts,” he said. “We are going to mine. Your mum would understand, especially if you told her you felt unsafe.”
I did not argue. Instead, I looked at the house one last time, my stomach tight with fear and regret, and let Loveth drive us away.
“Why are you not home?” That was the first thing my mum said when she called later that evening.
Kate and Loveth were downstairs watching a movie. I had chosen to stay upstairs in Kate’s room to give them some space.
“I’m fine, thank you,” I said with a bit of sarcasm, folding my arms across my chest.
“Do not take that tone with me, young lady. Why did you not follow my simple instructions?” Her eyes narrowed slightly, something she always did when she was annoyed.
“You didn’t even say hello,” I muttered, pouting a little in hopes of softening her mood. The last thing I wanted was a lecture, especially after I had spent all day trying not to fall apart.
“Do not try to change the subject, Charlotte. I told you to stay home. I know for a fact that you haven’t been sleeping there since I left.”
My heart skipped. I sat up straighter, leaning back against the headboard.
“Who told you that?” I asked. I could not make sense of it. Had Luther said something? That would not make sense, not when we had both agreed to keep things quiet around her.
She let out an odd laugh and scratched the side of her head. “No one. I just had a feeling you were not home. Anyway, how are you…”
“Stop trying to change the subject,” I cut in. “Are you spying on me?”
She dropped her gaze to her lap, avoiding eye contact. That alone told me something was off. Her mood had shifted so quickly, and I was not about to let it slide.
“Of course not,” she said, but her voice rose a little too high. It did not sit right with me. She sounded jumpy, like someone trying to cover something up.
My mind drifted to that phone call she ignored the day we dropped her and Stanley at the airport. The way she had gone tense then made more sense now. Maybe the two were connected.
“Fine,” she sighed after a long pause. “Luther told me… well, not directly. I overheard him talking to his brother.”
I froze. Her words sunk in slowly, heavier than I expected.
“You must have heard wrong,” I said quietly, my eyes darting away from the screen. My pulse was quick, and I could barely think straight.
“Babe!” Stanley’s voice rang from somewhere off screen before he appeared behind her.
“Oh…hi, Charlotte!” he said cheerfully, waving with a wide grin. The tension hanging in the air eased just a little with his sudden presence.
“Hi, Stanley.” I smiled back, relieved that he had interrupted.
“I was wondering… have you spoken to Luther? I’ve not been able to reach h…”
“You know what, sweetheart, we’ll talk later,” Mum cut in, and before I could respond, she ended the video call.
I stared at the screen, confused. What just happened?
Without thinking twice, I called Luther. He had promised to ring me before going to bed, but I could not wait any longer. My fingers tapped restlessly on my thigh as I waited for him to pick up.
“Hey, babe. I was just about to call you,” his voice came through, low and rough, instantly calming me. I relaxed a little, goosebumps crawling over my skin just hearing him.
“My mum called. She says she knows I haven’t been sleeping at home,” I said straightaway. “How would she even know that?”
“You’re asking me?” I could almost hear the frown in his voice. “She said she heard you telling Stanley over the phone.”
There was a short silence. Too quiet.
“Luther? Are you there?” I asked, my heart starting to race.
“Baby… I haven’t spoken to Stanley since he left. You know that. My phone’s been off for three days. I wanted time with you, no work, no calls.”
I blinked, stunned. “That makes sense now. She cut Stanley off, on the video call. I think he was about to say he hadn’t reached you.”
“What?”
“She ended the call just as he was saying something. I think… I think she didn’t want me to hear it.” My voice dropped to a whisper. The truth was setting in slowly, and it felt heavy.
“Then how did she know?” Luther asked the question I had been trying to avoid.
“Maybe Kate or Loveth said something. I mean… I want to believe she isn’t spying on me.” But even as I said it, the words tasted wrong. Maybe she had blamed Luther to cover for my friends. I needed to be sure.
Still holding the phone to my ear, I walked downstairs, my thoughts tangled with everything that had just happened.
“Hey,” I said aloud, staring at Kate and Loveth cuddled up on the sofa. “Did either of you tell my mum I wasn’t home?”
Loveth looked up, raised a brow, then gave me the middle finger. “Screw you, Charlotte,” he said casually, with no real heat, just the usual Loveth sass.
That told me everything. They were innocent.
“Luther,” I breathed, tightening my grip on the phone. “I think my mum’s watching me.”
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