In the Eye of the Storm by Jennifer Hayden

school.” Hurrying inside, she shut the door behind her and took several deep breaths. Clearly, Wick Meyers was not in his right mind. Something caught her eye and she looked down at her feet. There was a white envelope on the floor with her name on it. Leaning over, she picked it up and carried it back to her desk. She set her things down and then glanced at the envelope for a moment before opening it up. She felt her face grow hot as she read the word.
    “WHORE.” The word was typed in Times Roman, all CAPS. Naturally, it wasn’t signed. Immediately Kate reached for her cell phone. She dialed Richard’s number. He answered groggily, and she let him have it.
    “You tell that sonofabitch to leave me alone!”
    “What are you talking about, Kate? What time is it?”
    “Wick Meyers is stalking me.” Kate lowered her voice, reminding herself where she was. “He was here at school this morning, Richard. He left me a note.”
    “A note?”
    “I’m going to call the police.”
    “Kate, calm down. You’re not making any sense.” Clearly wide awake now, Richard sighed. “What did the note say?”
    “Whore,” she said, her anxiety surfacing again.
    Richard let out a hiss of breath. “How do you know it’s from Wick?”
    “Because I saw him outside the school building this morning, Richard. And I’m pretty sure he was following me last night.”
    “Kate, those are some pretty serious accusations. Do you have proof? Did anyone else see him following you?”
    “Damn you, Richard. You set me up with this maniac. Now get him off my back or I’m going to call the police. I’m not kidding here.”
    “Wick isn’t dangerous. I’m sure he didn’t leave any letter. Now if he followed you, it’s probably just because he likes you.”
    She counted to ten, her blood beginning to boil. “Is this how you let someone know you like them? By scaring the hell out of them?”
    “No,” he said emphatically. “It’s not. But I’m not convinced Wick is responsible for that note. You have to admit you’ve shut down half of the male population in this city. What makes you think one of the other men you’ve dated didn’t leave you this note?”
    “I told you, I saw Wick here this morning. I know it was him.”
    “I talked to him yesterday, just like I told you I would. He told me you were nuts and that he had just come by to apologize and you went off half-cocked screaming at him.”
    Of course he had told Richard that. “He’s lying, Richard. You can ask any one of my neighbors. We had a very quiet exchange and I asked him to leave. That’s it.”
    “You’re sure you didn’t raise your voice at all?”
    “Even if I had—which I did not—it wouldn’t warrant him bothering me like this. It’s harassment.”
    “Don’t call the police. I’ll talk to him again. I’m sure you won’t have any more problems with him.”
    “See that you really handle it this time. I’m not kidding about the police.” Kate hung up as she heard the bell ring.
    Her nerves frazzled, she gave the class their weekly reading work and settled down at her desk, trying to calm her nerves. It took a while, but she managed to get her anxiety under control and get her class under way. After lunch, she felt significantly better. She’d been checking the parking lot and there was no sign of Wick or his car. Perhaps Richard had gotten through this time.
    She was about to set up the class in their daily clean up assignments when there was a knock on the door. She walked over and opened it, surprised to see Beau in the hallway, a black plastic bag in his hand.
    “What are you doing here?” she managed to ask, caught off guard by the sight of him. He looked casual, wearing his typical blue jeans and T-shirt. He had a ball cap on his head turned backward and a pair of sunglasses over his eyes.
    “I thought about what you said about visiting your kids and I decided it’s a good idea.”
    She couldn’t hide her surprise. “But what about