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“She told me that you have a boyfriend.” She pauses for a moment, silently giving me the answer I dreaded. “Shit. I was hoping it wasn’t true.”
Rachel tapes the box closed and passes it to Ace when he walks in with a chatty Olivia who’s busy talking about something that happened at the park last week.
“I’ve been alone for so long, Lee. Don’t judge me and get mad for finding someone after being alone for over ten years. It’s not like I was trying to meet anyone. It just happened.”
I shouldn’t be angry. She’s right. She gave up having a normal life to raise Olivia and has never once complained about it. Six months after I had Olivia, in order for them to remain safe with no questions asked, they moved from city to city once a year.
Eventually, I met Sebastian and felt it was safe enough for Rachel and Olivia to settle in one place for a while. When I learned how evil he was, I had to stop visiting them because I feared he’d find out about them and hurt them. Once I left him, I told Rachel to move again in case Sebastian learned about them.
For years, they’ve been running, never understanding why they couldn’t stay in one place for very long and why it wasn’t safe. At one point, Rachel thought I was being paranoid, but I knew differently. One day, someone from my past was bound to catch up to me and threaten Olivia if they found out.
I was right. Except the person coming after them is the last person I ever expected. It’s Olivia’s father or brother. The verdict is still out on that one since Colton and his father both liked to rape me, and I got pregnant during the same week they’d both paid late-night visits to my bedroom.
“Are you okay?” Rachel asks, stealing my attention away from my thoughts. Clearing my throat, I nod as she sighs. “I understand that you don’t trust easily, Lee, but Mike is a good man, and Olivia adores him.”
“Have you told him you’re leaving?”
“I told him I was going to visit a family member, and we’ll be back in a couple of weeks,” she says, her eyes snapping to Ace and Olivia when they appear in the living room.
“The car is packed. Are you ready to go?” he asks, earning a nod from Rachel.
“As ready as we’ll ever be,” she says, pulling her car keys from her pocket.
“Actually, you can leave your car here. We’ll get you a new one later,” Ace explains. He takes Olivia’s hand and leads her outside.
Rachel grabs her purse, tosses her keys inside, and leads me outside to our waiting SUV that’s packed with their belongings. She climbs into the back with Olivia, and I sit in the front with Ace who drives away the moment our seat belts are clicked into place.
I turn in my seat and look in the back toward the two passengers. “We have a long drive ahead of us, so whenever either of you need to stop, let us know.” Olivia looks up from her iPad and smiles happily.
“I love road trips, and I’m super excited to decorate my new bedroom.”
“Sweetie, put your headphones on and watch a movie. The drive will be long and boring, and you won’t like the grown-up talk.” Rachel reaches inside the purple backpack and produces a pair of rose gold headphones. She helps Olivia connect them to the iPad and pick out a movie before she puts them on her small head, her attention stolen by whatever she’s watching on the screen.
Looking at me, Rachel asks, “What’s the plan? Where are we going?” I open my mouth to speak, but Ace beats me to it and answers her question.
“We have a safe house that you’ll stay at.” I turn around and sit correctly in my seat. He places his hand on my thigh, tracing lazy circles over my bare skin exposed by my shorts. He knows I’m anxious right now, and his touch is helping to soothe me.
“Wake me when we stop at a gas station,” Rachel says through a yawn.
We’ll stop somewhere soon to refill our gas tank and get food, but we need to drive farther away to be safe and ensure we aren’t followed.
Right now, it’s not just Rowen and King we have to worry about. It’s Colton, too, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s near, watching and waiting like the fucking predator he is.
He knows about Olivia, and he knows that Rachel has her. I’m just not sure what his plan is or if he even knows where they are. He sent King and Rowen after them, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t also aware of their location.
When it comes to Colton, anything is possible, and I wouldn’t put anything past him. He likely knows precisely where they lived but wanted to play a game and have someone else do his dirty work.
He always loved to play games.
The worst thing about Colton is how charming he is. He can charm the pants off anyone and get them to do anything. I know because I’ve seen it before. It’s how he charmed me into being alone with him years ago, and his charm kept me quiet about what he was doing to me late at night when he’d sneak into my room.
He’s out there somewhere, and I won’t rest until he’s found and put down with a bullet in his brain. It’s the very least he deserves.
eleven
ACE
One lookat Lee and it’s easy to see how anxious and afraid she’s feeling. It’s always one thing after another, and I wish I were able to ease her mind, make her life easier, and take away some of her fears.
