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Last week, I was in the middle of my workday when Eddie called me to tell me his mom had fallen and his dad had just taken her to the ER. She was okay but needed X-rays, and he wanted to meet his parents at the hospital. He’s very close with them and is their primary support in LA since he only has one sibling, a sister who lives in Seattle.
Eddie asked if I could pick Sarah up from school since I’m listed as one of her emergency contacts. I took her to her favorite boba place on Sawtelle. While we were sipping our drinks outside, a car alarm went off nearby, and after a minute I realized it was mine. I didn’t think anything of it—that occasionally happens when someone walks too closely by my car.
“That’s my alarm,” I told Sarah. “I better go turn it off.”
As we got closer to the car, though, I noticed the doors and trunk were slightly ajar.
“Did someone break in?” Sarah asked me.
“Looks like it,” I said calmly, not to scare her.
When I opened the front passenger side door, I saw they had rummaged through my glove compartment but had left the $20 bill I keep hidden underneath a pile of old CDs for emergencies. I assumed they were after electronics like AirPods, which I don’t keep in my car.
Even though they hadn’t stolen anything, I still reported the break-in to the police because they had damaged my glove compartment latch, which was surprisingly expensive to repair, and I wanted reimbursement from my car insurance company. Paul must’ve read the police report I filed.
“Paul’s wondering if you ended up finding anything was stolen,” Eddie continues.
I shake my head. “Not that I know of. Why?”
“Because he doesn’t think it was a regular break-in.”
My stomach drops. “Really?”
“He thinks it had something to do with your mom,” Eddie says in an ominous tone.
“What?Why?”
“He says that since nothing was taken from the car, whoever broke in likely had a different motivation than theft. It was probably someone looking for information—possibly someone hired by the Cadells to follow you and find out if you’ve been in contact with your mom.” He swallows in apparent fear. “Paul says to be careful at home too. If they want information on you, they’re not going to stop at breaking into your car.”
My mind is racing.
If the Cadells broke into my car last week, that means they were watching me well before Cristina showed up at my office yesterday.
She’s running out of time.
The words from Cristina’s text send a chill down my spine. If they’ve been watching me, do they know she visited me?
I look at Eddie. Visibly worried, he glances down at his watch.
“I need to pick Sarah up from school,” he says.
I nod, swallowing the sudden lump in my throat. “Okay.”
We say goodbye in front of his house and avoid discussing the unnerved look in his eyes. But I know what he’s thinking—Sarah was with me when the Cadells broke into my car. Until all of this is over, he’s not going to want me around her. I don’t blame him.
It’s clear what I must do—get as far away from here as possible.
CHAPTER19
February 1998
“COME WITH ME,” Dr. Larsen said. She led me outside to a large wooden deck off the ranch where girls met with visitors, mainly family members and occasionally friends. Dad was already there, seated on a chair with Rascal, who was leashed by his side.
As soon as Rascal saw me, he ran my way, jumping on me, his tail wagging in a dizzying spin. I picked him up, and he started licking me uncontrollably.
Before I was admitted to Better Horizons, I was scared of him licking me, terrified there were calories in his saliva that could be transmitted to me. I had also feared touching his food and treats for the same reason, making Dad feed him whenever he needed to eat.
But at this moment, ED couldn’t stop me from hugging him as tightly as I could and letting him lick me.
