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And she couldn’t go outside.
Veronica’s heart pounded in her chest as she tried to come up with a solution. She couldn’t leave Rebel inside all day, but she couldn’t bear the thought of going outside. She looked at the dog, who was staring at her with big, pleading eyes.
“Okay, okay,” she muttered, pushing herself up from the bed. “I’ll figure something out.”
She hesitated at the door to her bedroom, her hand hovering over the handle. She could feel the panic rising again, threatening to choke her. But then she thought of Rebel, and her resolve hardened. She couldn’t let the dog suffer because of her fears.
Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and stepped out into the living room. It was quiet, almost too quiet.
She took a deep breath and opened the door. Rebel bounded out ahead of her, and Veronica followed, her heart in her throat. Just one step out the door. It was all she could manage. She felt exposed and vulnerable. She dropped her gaze to the porch and frowned at the blanket folded there. She bent over to pick it up and found a note scrawled on the back of a crumpled receipt in Connelly’s flowing handwriting.
I’ll be back tonight. Keep Rebel close. She’ll protect you.
Had he slept out here on the porch all night?
She didn’t get the chance to contemplate that because Rebel ran to the edge of the yard, sniffing at the grass along the trees.
“Stay here, please.” Her voice was almost swallowed by the sharp wind blowing in off the ocean.
And the dog didn’t listen.
Rebel lifted her head and Veronica swore she grinned before bounding off into the woods.
“No!” She was halfway down the front porch steps before she realized it. Fear froze her in place. “Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh, shit.”
She couldn’t chase after the dog, but she couldn’t let her run off into the woods. What if something happened to her? What if she got lost?
Taking a deep breath, she stepped off the porch and into the yard. Her heart pounded in her chest, and her hands shook. She took another step, and then another.
And then she couldn’t go any farther. She physically could not lift her foot to take another step. She cupped her hands around her mouth.
“Rebel!”
She heard a crash but the dog didn’t come back.
Panic began to claw at her throat. She called out again, louder this time, but there was no response. The darkness was closing in, threatening to strangle her.
She backtracked to the house. The moment she stepped inside, her lungs opened up and she drew in a sharp breath.
Veronica slammed the door shut, leaning against it to catch her breath. She was trembling all over, and her heart was pounding like a jackhammer in her chest.
Rebel was out there, alone and vulnerable, and it was all her fault.
Tears streamed down her face as she tried to come up with a plan. She couldn’t go out there, not alone. But she couldn’t just sit here and do nothing. She had to do something.
She needed Connelly.
Veronica hesitated for a moment, then went to her bedroom and grabbed her phone off the nightstand. She dialed Connelly’s number, her palms sweating as she waited for him to answer.
“Hey, Vee,” he said, his voice warm and comforting. “Sorry I had to take off. I had a meeting with my agent. How are you feeling? Did you sleep okay?”
“Rebel’s gone,” she blurted before she could second guess her decision to call him. “I-I don’t know where she went. I let her out to pee and she ran off into the woods and—and I can’t go after her. Can you please come back and help me find her?”
“I’m in town, but I’m leaving right now. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”
That was the thing about Connelly. He’d always drop everything and race to her side the moment she asked for help. She could always count on him. She’d forgotten that about him.
Veronica hung up and sank down onto the edge of her bed and caught sight of her reflection in the old bureau that had come with the house. Her eyes were too wide, showing too much white. Dark hair hung in limp, greasy strands over her shoulders. Cheekbones too sharp, cheeks too hollow in her pale face.
