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I’d never heard the promise of violence so clearly in his words before. The man was totally unhinged.
Not waiting for a response, he shoved me away. I fell back onto my bed, my head thudding against the edge of my nightstand. I winced, scrunching my eyes shut tight, and by the time I opened them, Dad was gone.
I rubbed my head gingerly, hoping I didn’t end up with a goose egg.
Why the hell was he so worried about what the Irish thought of him? Why was he so invested in this marriage and alliance?
I couldn’t even begin to guess what he thought because I clearly didn’t know the man at all. After twenty years under the same roof, my father was still a total stranger.
I rejected a wave of advancing remorse and clung tight to my determination. Scooting off the bed, I retrieved the disposable phone from under my mattress and shoved it in my pocket before sneaking from my room.
I needed to find a place where Dad was unlikely to be listening. Deciding the garage might be my best bet, I crept downstairs and to the back of the house, trying to look inconspicuous. I didn’t want to look suspicious if anyone was watching secret cameras.
Listen to you. How did your life get so insane?
I had no freaking clue. One minute, I was a normal teen graduating from high school, then my mom was dead, my absentee father had come unglued, and I was plotting ways to run away with my brother.
Maybe I could make enough money to escape by selling my story to Lifetime TV.
I shook my head, pulling out the phone in a dark corner of the garage. I dialed Pippa’s number, praying she answered despite the unknown number.
“Hello?” Her voice was tinged with uncertainty and a hint of annoyance.
“Pip! It’s me.” I couldn’t help but grin as I envisioned the shock on her face.
“Em? Is thatyou?”
“Yes! I got my voice back last night.”
“That’s amazing!” Her excited exclamation trailed off. “Wait. Why are you calling me from a strange number? And are you whispering?”
Okay, here goes nothing.
“There’s been a lot going on. I can’t go into it all, but here are the highlights. This is the phone Conner gave me so I don’t have to use my old phone.”
“Whyyy can’t you just use your old phone?” she asked, deeply confused.
“Dad’s been … different since Mom died.”
“Is that why you haven’t left the house this whole time?” she blurted.
“Yeah.”
“Em, that sounds a little crazy. He’s so overprotective now that you can’t even talk on your own phone? Is he monitoring your calls or something?”
“I know, it sounds a little wild.” Not wanting to go into it further, I redirected the conversation. “And if that wasn’t enough, Conner and I were attacked this morning on our way back from visiting his grandparents.”
“Attacked? What the actual fuck? By who?”
“I’m not really sure, but they ran us off the road—shot out a damn tire—then tried to gun us down.”
“JesusChrist, Em. Are you okay?”
“Yeah, Conner was pretty … impressive.” I bit down on my lip, but Pip must have sensed the admiration in my tone.
“Oh yeah?” she asked, full of innuendo. “Sounds like maybe things are going better?”
I paused, choosing my words carefully. “Let’s just say I think things are moving in the right direction.” If I didn’t think about the confusing feelings I was developing for my intended, things were looking up. “I’m so glad to have my voice back. That’s why I had to call. I need you to know how much you mean to me.”
