She looks thin—too thin, her clothes hanging off her frame. But it’s her eyes that make my stomach turn over.
They’re empty. Dead.
There’s no light left in them.
“Why?” I ask, my voice trembling with rage. “Why are you helping him?”
She flinches, looking down at the table. She looks broken. Completely and utterly broken.
“Because I’m stupid,” she whispers. “And because I’m scared.”
“He burned down a building today,” I say, slamming my hand on the metal table. “He tried to kill people. How can you help him do that?”
“I didn’t know about the fire!” she cries, tears finally spilling over. “I swear. He just said I had to watch you. Had to tell him where you were.”
“Why?” I ask again. “What does he have on you?”
She wipes her nose on her shoulder, sniffing. “I used to sell,” she admits so quietly I barely hear her. “Pills. Oxycodone. Just to make rent. Luke knew. He found my stash.” She looks up at me, her eyes wide with terror. “He said if I didn’t help him find you, he’d call the cops. I have a record. I’d go to prison for a long time and then I would never have my son. Jacob is only a month old. He can’t survive without his mother.”
Fuck. “Where’s Jacob?”
Her face crumples. “He has him.”
The room spins. “What?”
“My mom... She watches him for me when I’m… um… working. But Luke... Luke took him. He said he’s keeping him safe. That if I run, if I don’t do exactly what he says, I’ll never see my baby again.”
The sheer cruelty of it makes me sick. He used her baby as leverage. He used her fear of prison to turn her into his slave.
“You don’t have to do this,” I tell her, stepping closer. “We can help you.”
The door opens behind me. Mayor Brighton walks in, along with Knox and Jude.
“Ms. Milton,” the mayor says, his voice authoritative but kind. “We know who you are. And we know what Luke has done to you.”
She shrinks back.
“Here’s the deal,” he says. “You tell us where Luke is right now. You tell us everything about his plans. And I will personally ensure that the D.A. looks at your case with leniency. We can argue you were under duress. We can get your son back.”
Her head snaps up. Hope flares in her dead eyes, so bright it hurts to look at. “You can get him? My baby?”
“Yes,” Jude says, stepping forward. “We have resources. We can find him. But we need to know where he is.”
She looks at me, and I see the apology written all over her face.
“I’m sorry,” she chokes out. “He hates you. He hates you so much. He talks about you all the time. How you tricked him. How you stole his life.”
“I didn’t steal it,” I say. “I escaped it.”
“He’s at the Starlight Motel,” she says quickly, eager to make the deal. “Room 104. He’s... he’s waiting for a dealer. He’s got a gun.”
“How long ago did you leave him?” Knox asks, his voice lethal.
“Twenty minutes,” she says. “I took off. I didn’t think he was capable of hurting anyone until I learned about the fire. I knew I had to get out of there.”
“And go where? What exactly was your plan?” Jude asks.
I can see the terror in her eyes as she speaks. “I don’t know where Luke is keeping my son or who has him, but I thought maybe I could ask around. I was trying to get a driver out of town. I have a friend in Chicago. Luke hates him, but he’s also scared of him. I thought my friend could help me get Jacob back. I just want Jacob back.”
