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She’d never done anything dangerous, period.
If her dad or Neil caught her running away, the consequences would be dire. Once her father had locked her in the family shed for an entire week for an offense far less than this.
Clutching her backpack, she leaped to her feet, hurried to the nearest doors, then glanced behind her again. Nobody in the city bus was familiar, but that wasn’t to say a car hadn’t followed. Though with as many transfers as she’d had to make to get to Rosy Hills, it wouldn’t have been easy for someone to keep up.
Both Father and Neil would have the patience to track her.
They thought they owned her. The impending wedding wasn’t a romantic event to them. No, it signified a transfer of property.
Bella shuddered at the thought. If she had anything to say about it, the wedding would never happen. She would start a new life with just the items in her backpack. It wasn’t much, but hopefully her sister could take her in.
Otherwise, she’d find another way to keep her freedom. It didn’t matter what she had to do, she would never show up at that wedding. If or when she got married, it would be for love.
She darted behind a tree, waited for the bus to leave, then scrutinized every other vehicle on the street. They all continued on their way, none slowing or acting strange.
That didn’t mean she was safe. She wouldn’t let her guard down until she was inside Rita’s house. Even then, she wouldn’t be able to relax. Not until the date of the wedding passed. Or maybe not even then. It wasn’t like her father or Neil would ever stop trying to recover what they thought they owned.
A lump formed in her throat at the thought of them never giving up. Maybe Neil would. He could easily find another bride from the church, someone who wouldn’t be so much trouble. But how long would that take?
He might find Bella before reaching that point. Then what?
She’d have to deal with that later. For now, she needed to get to her sister’s house.
Holding her breath, she glanced at the traffic again. Vehicles zipped by as expected. It was hard to believe she’d actually made it this far unnoticed. With any luck, her mom would think she went to the library to study after her classes.
That would buy Bella time before Mother called Father to let him know she was missing. They would eventually learn she left her phone at school, but hopefully they ping her location first and think she’d stayed on campus. It would take them a while to figure out what really happened.
By then, she’d have a plan in place. Rita and her new husband would know what to do. Grayson was an investigative reporter with his own show, and he was always trying to help people. He would know what to do.
But first to get there, a task more difficult than it would seem. They lived in a gated community, and Bella’s name might not be on the approved guest list. Her parents’ names weren’t even on it.
She would find a way in, one way or another.
Rita had to help her. She knew exactly what Bella was going through. Her parents had made her marry Boone. He’d paid them even more money than Neil offered for Bella. Rita’s ex-husband was now in prison for murder, but even so, their parents still saw Boone as Rita’s legitimate husband. They were that heartless.
The only reason they’d even gone to Rita and Grayson’s wedding had been to convince her to change her mind before the vows. Even though the ceremony had gone on, and Rita finally found her happiness, her parents refused to accept it. In their church, unmarried daughters were property of the parents and had to obey their wishes no matter how old they were.
That was why they expected Bella to marry Neil.
She would never let that happen. It had been convenient to stay with her parents while going to college because they paid for everything, but the price was too high. Neil only wanted a servant, and he would never let her finish her education let alone leave the house to work. He might even be a murderer too.
For all Bella knew, everyone in the church was one. All of the men were for sure scary enough to be.
She shoved her thoughts from her mind and marched the three blocks to Rita’s neighborhood with her head held high. This was the beginning of her new life. A life whereshecalled the shots. From this day forward, she made her own decisions.
Bella adjusted her hood over her head. She wasn’t stupid. If she didn’t try to disguise herself, she ran the risk of someone recognizing her. It was bad enough she carried her normal, recognizable backpack, but that couldn’t be helped. Her timetable had been elevated by her mother’s proclamation as she headed out the door — Neil was coming for dinner again, this time to officially propose. That would be the moment everyone in church saw them as pledged together. In their eyes, that was as binding as the marriage itself.
She wouldn’t be able to get away at that point. Neil could decide to take her home with him to spend their engagement together.
No way would that happen.
When she reached the gate, Bella’s heart leaped into her throat and threatened to choke her.
The moment of truth had arrived.
Hardly able to breathe, she stumbled toward the entrance meant for cars. She tapped on the window to get the attendant’s attention.
He turned to her and gave her a funny look. “Can I help you?”
