AllFreeNovel
Share Us
There was a phone number right there. Oakley knew what phone numbers looked like. Jilly Silly had showed kids how to make a phone call, especially if they were in trouble.
There it was. There were two little words.Offandice. If she put them together…
An office was a place someone worked.Her mommy worked right there. That meant her mommy wouldbethere.
Grandfather talked about going to his office all the time. He spent lots and lots of time there.
Her mommyhadto be there.
Oakley wrote down that phone number very, very carefully. She’d put it in her special book for next time.
Then she went to the phone on his desk. The one he used to call Mean Vaughn sometimes. It was always in there. Oakley carefully poked the numbers on the screen. Very carefully so she didn’t make a mistake. Then she hit the green phone button.
Just like Jilly Silly said to.
A lady answered.“Texas State Police. Garrity. How may I direct your call?”
Oakley pulled in a big breath. She knew just what to say. “Hello? I am trying to find my mommy. Can you help me?”
The lady asked her some questions. Oakley answered.
“My mommy’s name is Zoey Daviess. And I want to leave grandfather’s now. I want to go home now. Can you help me call my mommy so she can come get me right now?”
When the lady on the phone gave her a different number to call, Oakley wrote that number down, too.
Then the lady told her to not hang up, that she would call Oakley’s mommy for her.
Oakley’s heart pounded. She got really, really shaky. Her hands were really sweaty.
There was more ringing for a minute. Then…
Another lady answered.
She sounded so pretty. And Oakley justknew.
It was her. Mommy.
But now Oakley didn’t know what to say.
13
Zoey hadn’t meantto actually take a nap, but she had. Zoey reached for her phone, heart racing when she saw the number for the Garrity forwarding service. Her first thought was that it was Murdoch and he’d found something.
Or that it was Murdoch. That man—he had been in her dreams, damn it.
“Hello?”
“Mommy. When are you coming to get us?” the whispered question froze Zoey right where she was.
“Keller, sweetie? Is that you?” Her niece called her sometimes, butKeller would be at the Barratts’ tonight in just a few hours. She wouldn’t be calling without a good reason. She also wouldn’t be calling through the sheriff’s forwarding service. Neither would Zoey’s other niece, Katie.
Unless something was wrong.
Zoey sat up, quickly, head clear now. “Sweetheart, what’s wrong?”
“Please hurry...Mommy. We can’t wait. I’m scared now. He’s saying scary stuff about the ’xperiment. And being perfect. Please hurry. I have to go. Nanny is coming to unlock my bedroom. Hurry, Mommy. He’s going to hurt us again.”
Zoey cursed when the call just cut off. It could have been a prank, but the little girl had sounded so much like Keller. Except maybe…younger?
