When he hangs up, he looks me over quickly, but doesn’t ask any of the questions I’d been dreading. “Hey, kiddo. Didn’t expect you home so soon. How was the wedding?”
I manage to shrug casually. “It was ... good. I actually just forgot something so I’m uh … gonna run in and grab that.”
He nods, clearly distracted as he tucks his phone into his pocket. “Alright, kiddo. Your mom had a charity dinner tonight, and I’m running late to pick her up. We should be back in about an hour. You want us to bring you anything for dinner?”
I shake my head, feeling a wave of relief wash over me. I don’t have to explain anything. Not yet. “No, I’m good. Just grabbing a few things,” I say, hoping that’s enough to satisfy him.
“Alright,” he says, already halfway down the driveway. “See you soon.”
I watch him climb into his car and pull away, my heart still hammering, but with a bit of space to breathe now. Thank god for small miracles. At least I don’t have to face the inevitable onslaught of questions yet.
But I can’t stay here, waiting for Mom to come back. She’ll notice everything Dad missed. My red eyes. The tightness in my voice. She’ll dig deeper than Dad did, and I don’t have the energy to deflect her.
I need to get out of here. Right. The walk. Fresh air. Maybe then, I’ll be able to think straight.
At the very least, it will kill some time. Long enough so that when I go inside, I can smile and pretend the wedding was terrific. That Gabriel and I had a great time. With a quick glance down the darkening street, I start walking.
cecilia
. . .
The quiet streetfeels like it’s closing in. I keep walking, arms wrapped tightly around myself. The night breeze cuts through my dress like it’s nothing, the chill settling deep into my bones. I catch a flicker of movement out of the corner of my eye—a stray cat maybe, or just a trick of the light—but the unease inside me only digs deeper. It’s getting dark and it’s getting dark fast.
Twenty minutes into my walk, I know I made a mistake. My feet drag across the pavement, the stillness amplifying everything: my own thoughts, the echo of Gabriel’s face when his mom had asked him, flat out, what he was doing there. The look of utter defeat that followed.
It broke something inside him, and I watched it happen like a front-row spectator. His mom, wrapped up in her new family, didn’t even seem to care that he existed anymore. How do you deal with that? I can’t imagine what it would feel like to be rejected by a parent so completely. To bereplaced. And Gabriel? God, he’s amazing. He’s kind and thoughtful. He always puts the people he cares about first, and he’s loyal to a fault. Hell, even pissed off at me, he still made sure to call Felix to give me a ridehome. And he waited. He didn’t want to talk to me, but he stuck around long enough for Felix to show up so I wasn’t left alone. Who doesn’t want someone like that in their life?
“A crazy person,” I mutter under my breath.
The street is eerily silent, and my footsteps sound too loud against the pavement. The rustling leaves only add to the tension building under my skin. I wrap my arms tighter, trying to ward off the chill creeping down my spine, when my ears pick up the low rumble of an approaching engine.
I glance over my shoulder, catching sight of a blacked-out Audi Q8 creeping up behind me, its windows too dark to see through. My brows knit together. I don’t recognize it, and a vehicle like that stands out in a neighborhood like this. We’re nice, but notAudi Q8nice.
I shrug it off, but a minute later, the SUV is still there, hovering a few car lengths back, moving with me. My stomach clenches. I step up onto the edge of someone’s lawn—no sidewalks on this part of the street—and slow my steps, waiting for it to pass.
It doesn’t.
What the hell?
My heart skips a beat, a chill creeping up the back of my neck. The car is still following, still keeping pace with me. Maybe they’re looking for a house number? That’s all it is. No reason to freak out.
I glance over my shoulder again. No, something’s off. The car slows, deliberately matching my pace. My chest tightens, my breaths coming a little quicker now.Shit. Don’t freak out. Austin’s in jail. You have a restraining order against Parken and Gregroy. You’re fine.
I try to speed up, my feet slapping against the pavement faster now, sandals scraping the ground. My pulse quickens with every second the car doesn’t pass.Better safe than sorry,I think,any second now they’ll pull into a driveway, and I’ll feel stupid for even thinking this.
But they don’t. My hands tremble, heart pounding in my ears. The car is still there.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
I fumble for my phone, the device slipping through my sweaty fingers. I let out a frustrated, “Fuck!” as it hits the pavement with a crack. Bending down to grab it, the Audi suddenly surges ahead, swerving in front of me, cutting me off.
Panic seizes my chest. My pulse pounds like a drumbeat in my head as I clutch my phone, eyes glued to the car. I take a step back. Then another.
I’m not that far from home. Two blocks. Maybe three. I could make it. My shoes aren’t meant for running, but who cares? I could make it if I have to.No one’s going to grab you, Cecilia. Don’t be ridiculous.
But fear wraps around me, suffocating.
The rear door swings open, and I freeze, every muscle in my body going rigid. A woman steps out, her bright red heels hitting the pavement first, followed by long, elegant legs. She’s tall, blonde, and immaculately dressed in a red pencil skirt and matching blazer. Not exactly the image of a kidnapper.
