Constance watched with horror as the car almost ran D'Artagnan over. As they sped away Constance flung open her front door and sprinted towards him.
"Are you alright?" she asked breathlessly.
"I'm fine,"
His dark eyes were steeled and focused. He tucked his hair behind his ear and pulled out his phone.
"What are you doing? Calling the police?"
The worried edge in her voice took hold of D'Artagnan's heart.
"No. I'm having my coworker run the registration number." He put the phone to his ear. "Aramis. I have a registration I need you to run,"
As he spoke D'Artagnan took hold of Constance's elbow carefully and led her back inside. He closed the door behind them and leaned against it as he finished his call. The ventilation in the house cooled his skin from the heavy summer air.
"It was him," he said as he slipped the phone back into his pocket.
"I told you,"
"I had to be sure. And now we have his vehicle in our files."
Constance wrung her hands, and collapsed onto the sofa.
"This doesn't change anything," D'Artagnan told her.
"It does. It makes everything worse. I planned to do all this in secret, but now he knows."
"He doesn't know anything,"
"He knows, at the very least, that you were here."
D'Artagnan planted his hands on his hips, "So?"
"So. He's going to lose his mind over it. He's a jealous type. Now, he's seen a man coming out of my house. And not only that, but walking across the street to confront him! If only men would think!"
"Constance, he is the person who was in the wrong. Not me."
She took a deep breath followed by a long sigh. "I know that. I'm just saying there's no telling what he'll do now."
He sat beside her on the sofa and placed his hand on her knee. "Then we'll be ready."
The contact was unexpected for both of them, and Constance sat frozen. D'Artagnan removed his hand and placed it in his lap. "I'll be here. My team will figure out how to keep you safe."
He stood. "Will you be okay here tonight?"
"Yes. I'll be fine."
"Call if you need anything, and I'll be back tomorrow with the phone." His hand lingered on the doorknob.
Constance smiled, "Go, D'Artagnan. I'm fine,"
He opened the door to go before he changed his mind. The thought of her ex watching her made him uneasy, but this was his first case and he couldn't mess it up. No. He had to be by the book on this.
Later that night Constance was laying in bed when there was a pounding on her door. Her heart started thudding loudly as she peaked out the window. It was Robbie, her ex husband. It was late. He pounded a few more times before throwing his hands up into the air and stomping off to his car.
He'd learned his lesson about shouting at her from the front steps. He used to do that, but her neighbors had called the police out one too many times for his convenience. She watched as he just sat in his car, watching the street, and her house. No doubt waiting to see if D'Artagnan would make another appearance.
She grabbed her cell phone- just in case. She didn't think he'd be stupid enough to break in, but she knew better than to rule anything out. She sat by her window and waited. She cried because she was so tired. All she wanted was to sleep and not be afraid, not wonder if she was safe in her home.
After an hour of waiting she heard the car start and saw him pull away. She exhaled a breath she'd been holding. Her fingers released their grip from the phone and she laid back down. She closed her eyes and didn't even hear the second engine roaring to life from down the street.
D'Artagnan watched as Constance's ex pulled from the curb and drove away. He started the engine of his Charger and followed him. He tailed him to a bar where he sat and waited for three hours. Confident that the man was done bothering Constance, his client, he decided to call it a night.