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Gabriel also lowered himself closer to her level. “Suzanna, honey, are you all right?”
Her head lifted. Her unwavering tear-filled gaze steadied on his face. “No. I’m not all right. I’m never going to be all right.”
“What happened?”
His short question made her face screw up into even more agony. She covered her face with one hand and sobbed.
Cindy approached. She pointed her finger at the crouched Suzanna and said hatefully, “Serves you right for what you did. I hope you suffer—”
Nathan stood and broke in before she finished. “Get out of here. I mean it. Leave right this second or I’m not sure I can be held accountable for my actions.”
“You don’t…scare me.” But her voice hitched in the middle of her taunt.
“Then you aren’t as smart as I thought you were. Go away. Now.”
Her mouth compressed into a thin line. “Fine, I’m going. But mark my words. She’s not worthy of your generous sympathy. When you find out about her, you’ll see that I was right all along.”
Gabriel also stood and turned to her. He didn’t say a word, but Cindy’s mouth tightened further in anger. She stumbled backward a step or two before turning and marching over to her car. Moments later her rear tires squealed as she exited the auto shop parking lot.
Suzanna slowly got to her feet. She pushed out a trembling sigh and handed her car keys to Nathan. “I can’t drive this car.” She shook her head and sniffed. “Maybe never again. That smell—”
“You don’t have to. Ever again.” He handed the keys to Dylan and whispered something to him. He got into the vehicle and drove it behind the auto shop.
Her head turned, and she stared at the mountainous western sky. She looked for all the world like she’d have to recover quite a lot of ground within herself just to come up to the level of despondent.
“Will you go back home with us?” Nathan asked.
She shrugged. “I don’t want to.”
“Why not?” Gabriel asked. He moved closer to her.
She sniffed, and more silent tears spilled onto her cheeks. “There is someone after me. I don’t want you or Nathan to get hurt because of me. I couldn’t stand that. Not again.”
Suzanna sent her gaze down the street. The rooftop of the Enclave motel could be seen. Earlier when they’d passed by, she’d commented on the full parking lot.
“The motel still has no vacancies. I can’t drive my car. I’m trapped here. But I’m scared that I’m going to get someone hurt if I stay. I don’t want to drag anyone down with me. And especially not the two of you.”
Nathan pushed out a long sigh. He then reached into his pocket and retrieved his keys. “Here are the keys to my truck. There is a full tank of gas in it.” He grabbed her hand, put the key fob there, and wrapped her hand back around it. He then pulled his wallet from his back pocket and withdrew a stack of bills. “Here is some money. It’s only a few hundred dollars, but it will get you out of town in any direction you choose.” He lifted her other hand, put the cash there, and folded her fingers around the money. “If you really need to go. You can go. You are not trapped.”
Gabriel was about to protest his unexpected actions. He didn’t want her to leave. He didn’t want her on the run with someone after her.
Nathan closed his hands over hers and held them in place. She lifted her face to his, and they stared at each other for several seconds before he added, “However, if you’d rather, we will take you back to our place—that you’ll remember is behind very tall and secure compound walls and which is also on a very secluded piece of property within—and let you consider further options. We will support either decision you make.”
We will?
Gabriel was glad those two words stayed inside his head. But he did not want her to go. Not ever.
* * * *
Suzanna broke the intense gaze with Nathan by closing her eyes. He was giving her an out. Gabriel moved closer. She felt his hand at the small of her back. With the two of them surrounding her, she’d never felt so safe in her life.
They’d offered choices. Ones she knew they didn’t really want her to take.
