Chapter 2

The pounding on the door at 2 a.m. jolted Woody from his restless sleep.  He ran to the door and flung it open to catch Jordan in his arms. She clung to him like she was a child being chased by an imaginary monster. "Jordan are you ok? What happened?"  He asked sincerely. 

"My phone lines were cut…and he left a note.  Woody he was in my house!" By the time she got the last proclamation out she was in tears.

"Shh, shh, Jordan it's ok." He said holding her tight. "I'm here now, you're safe." He took her small duffle bag from her hands and set it in his bedroom. He looked at Jordan who was now sitting on his couch rubbing her eyes.  She looked like she hadn't slept in weeks.  Woody cursed himself for not asking her to stay the night when they were in the Pogue.  Why hadn't he seen how scared she was.  "I'm gonna go fix some coffee." He announced as he headed into the kitchen.

"I'm going to put a watch out on your apartment tomorrow morning---" he started when he came back into the room with two steaming mugs in his hands, but he was stopped short when he saw that Jordan was fast asleep on the couch.  He conscientiously set the mugs on the coffee table and then reached over to stroke her cheek lightly.  His finger gently traced the outline of her face and he longed to kiss her, instead he just sighed in frustration and scooped her up in his arms.  He carried her into his bedroom and slid her under the covers, thankful that she was already wearing pajamas.  He moved quietly to the couch where he fell into yet another uneasy sleep.

************************************************************************

Jordan was dreaming. She had to be.  She was running from her apartment to Woody's but was snatched from behind and pushed down to the pavement.  She fought with all her might but seemed to get no where, and tried to scream but nothing would come out. Please, please, she thought, let me get to Woody.  In the midst of her struggle, a sharp wire appeared around her throat and cut into her.  She couldn't stop thinking that Woody would never know how she felt before she died, a victim just like the many she worked on every day.  Now it would be her on the table with the y-incision, being sliced opened and examined, and not able to tell the doctors what had happened, to tell them who had killed her.  All she could hope for was that the evidence would speak for itself.  Woody, help me! She thought over and over.  And then suddenly the killer was gone and Woody was holding her in his sturdy arms rocking her back and forth.

"Jordan, it's ok, I'm here! Jordan wake up!" He commanded. Her eyes snapped open and she realized that she was crying.

"Oh God, Woody!  He had me and he was strangling me and I couldn't scream I couldn't find you….to tell you…" she was stifled by sobs and sunk her face into his brawny chest.  He held her tightly. "Please, don't leave me!" She cried against his tense body. 

"I'm not going anywhere." He assured her as he settled in against the headboard pulling her closely to him.

The sun peeked from under the curtain as Jordan's eyes fluttered open the next morning.  She felt more rested and stretched, reaching for Woody but he was not to be found.  She crawled out of bed and ventured into the living room where she found him on the phone.  "Yeah, okay, I'll tell her, yeah thanks Jim." He looked up concerned and sighed.  "I had some guys go check out your apartment this morning, they found the door broken into and your apartment is in shambles.

Jordan's breath came quickly and she thought she was going to faint.  What if she had decided to stay the night at home? She would have been killed!  Her knees began to buckle and the floor became nearer as her vision was blurred.  Woody grabbed her before she hit the ground and this brought her back into reality.

            Nervous but showered and more rested than before, Jordan returned to the morgue that morning where yet another body was waiting for her.  It was another female victim with another familiar musical cord sliced through her neck.  Chills ran up and down Jordan's spine as she reached for the yellow sticky note attached to the end of the string.  "You weren't at home so I had to leave you a message; maybe I'll catch you later." She dropped the note and watched it as it fluttered to the ground.  Garret witnessed this as he walked in the crypt. "Jordan what's wrong?" He inquired.

            "He's doing this for me!" She squeaked. "I'm responsible for this!"

            "Jordan don't be ridiculous!" Garret assured her. And then he picked up the note.  Remembering that her house was broken into he put a comforting arm around her shoulders.  "Why would someone do this?"  He questioned.

            "I don't know." She sighed and then brought a hand to her mouth as a thought struck her.  Quickly she pulled out her cell phone and dialed Woody's, who was still at her house surveying the damage and collecting evidence.

            "Hoyt." Came the answer.

            "Woody!  I need you to do something for me!  Find my guitar!"

            "Sure," he answered unsure of what she was getting at.  He analyzed the room and found it propped in the corner of her living room.  He picked it up. "Jordan, it's here, but there aren't any strings on it." He said matter of factly.

            "Oh my God!" Jordan exasperated.  "Woody, look for a yellow sticky note anywhere on the guitar…look carefully.

            Woody examined the outside of the instrument and found nothing. He was about to give her an answer when something bright caught his eye from the hole in the guitar's body.  He reached inside and pulled out a yellow sticky note. It read: "It's all for you, find me or I'll find you."

Sorry it's so short but it's all I have time for right now.