Page 102 of Day Break

“Is this a bad time?” I asked.

The phone was silent and then we heard a loud bang as a door shut. “No,” Malory said with a sigh. “I’m just going to come out and say it. Your SOB of a father let Elliott Meyers out on a million-dollar bail, and he’s jumped ship.”

“What?” We both sat forward.

“We warned him, but your father decided Meyers wasn’t that big of a skip threat. He didn’t believe he could scrounge up a cold mil for bail and, even if he did, he wasn’t a flight risk.”

“What does that mean?” Chloe asked me.

“That means he can get out of jail until his hearing date,” I answered, taking her hand.

“Which he did. Now, we can’t find him. The worse news is”—she took a deep breath— “he knows right where you are.”

“What?” This time I stood up and pounded the table.

“Which is why I’m running around like a chicken with no head. I’m trying to get approval to head your way,” Malory added quickly.

“When did he disappear?” I asked, glancing around the house. Both the front and back doors were unlocked. Hell, half the windows in the house were wide open to let the summer breeze in.

“He walked out of the jail around six yesterday morning and wasn’t at his hearing this morning. He hasn’t checked in either,” Malory answered.

I shut and locked the back door.

“Son of a…” I started.

“In this case, it’s more like, father of a… I did mention it was your father on the bench this time, right?” Malory said. “Listen, if I can swing it, there will be a couple patrol cars heading your way. If I can’t, I may just need to take a few days of vacation. Either way, you’ll see me before nightfall.”

“The guest room is always ready,” I said before hanging up. Then I walked to the front door and locked it. I spent a few moments shutting and locking all the windows.

When I returned to the kitchen, Chloe was still sitting at the table, looking at her hands.

“You…” she started. She took a deep breath before continuing. “You don’t think he’s going to come after me, do you?”

“No,” I lied. Her eyes jerked up to mine, and I knew she could tell I was lying. “Shit. Yeah. Yeah, I do. Which is why…” I looked around and quickly thought. “Why don’t we head out? Take a few days at this little bed and breakfast I know down the coast?” I suggested. “They have the cutest cabins…” I dropped off.

Chloe shook her head. “I won’t run.” She looked back at her hands. “Not from him. He’s taken too much from me already. He doesn’t deserve anything more.”

“Okay,” I said slowly. “Then let’s head up to the apartment and gather a few things so we can stay in the main house with Malory tonight.”

Chloe slowly nodded. “She’s a good friend.”

I smiled. “The best.”

“How did the two of you meet?”

I felt my heart skip. “She was the detective on my sister’s case,” I said softly.

Chloe’s eyes met mine. “Oh.”

“Yeah.” I smiled. “She was convinced right away that I had nothing to do with Sherry’s murder. Unfortunately, she was a rookie back then. Sherry is the reason she’s such a hard-ass sometimes. She feels as if she let her and me down.” I looked down at my hands.

I remembered how cold the handcuffs felt that first time they’d been slapped on my wrists. The feeling of helplessness as they hauled me away in the back of the patrol car, with all of my family watching. Judging me.

Then I looked at Chloe and realized that she’d had it a lot worse. Not only had she gone through hell, but then she’d spent a year in prison.

We had talked some about the trials she’d been through, the friends she’d made, the enemies that had tortured her. She claimed it was all behind her.

Whatever happened now, I knew in my heart that I would do anything to keep Chloe safe. Safe from my family and from her past.