Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 77106 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77106 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
“We need help,” she said, wiggling Lainey, who reached out toward me.
“Okay,” I agreed, stepping back and putting the gun down on the end table, then reaching for Lainey. “Come here, Lil’ Bit,” I said as Zoe stepped inside.
It wasn’t until she’d dropped down onto the couch and I went to close the door that I noticed it.
The driver’s side window on her car.
Spiderwebbed.
“Were you in an accident?” I asked, my gaze moving over Lainey, then her mother, looking for injuries.
“They came after me,” she said.
“Who came after you?”
“Them. The men. From the parking lot.”
“What?” I asked, stiffening. “What do you mean they came after you?”
“Tonight,” she said, looking dangerously close to breaking down.
She’d clearly been trying to hold it together until she knew they were safe. It wouldn’t be long before she lost her battle with control.
“And I think… I think a while ago.”
“You think?”
“I came home from staying here that one night to find my room at the motel tossed. Everything had been pulled out. Every drawer opened. Even the mini fridge had been gone through.”
“Why didn’t you tell me that when we ran into each other again?”
“I thought it was just a random opportunistic criminal looking for cash or something to hock. Nothing happened again, so I figured that was all it was. Until tonight.”
“Okay. Tell me exactly what happened.”
“Lainey was being really… difficult tonight. So I figured I would take her for a ride to see if she passed out. I decided to stop for some ice cream at the convenience store. We were just looking at the options when the door sensor dinged. And there they were.”
“You’re sure it was the same guys?”
“Well, even if I wasn’t sure at first, I was within a minute or two. They were talking about trying to find me. I ducked down and made my way away from them. When they went to check the bathroom, I just… bolted.
“I managed to get in the backseat and the doors locked. But as I was getting Lainey in her seat, then crawling up front, he was hitting the window. Eventually, it webbed.
“I reversed out, then threw it into drive and floored it. I think I hit him.”
“Good.”
“I don’t know how bad. I just needed to get out of there. I think… I think they followed me from the motel.”
“Why do you think that?”
“When I was leaving, I was talking to someone and he looked over my shoulder at, I think, a car parked there…”
“Black sedan, heavy tint, engine running?” I asked, feeling my stomach twist.
“I don’t really know for sure,” she admitted, shrugging. “Why?”
“I saw it too. Got a weird feeling, but just shook it off.”
If I hadn’t been so stuck in my head about shit, I likely would have checked things out further. And saved Zoe from another run for her life.
“I was afraid to go back to the motel and maybe put the other women and kids at risk.”
“That was probably a smart move.”
“I didn’t know where else to go,” Zoe said. “I tried… somewhere else first.”
The way her whole body tensed at that got my attention.
“Where?”
Zoe sucked in a breath and glanced up at me. “Lainey’s father.”
“When’s the last time you saw him?”
“The day the stick turned blue.”
Lainey’s head rested on my chest, clearly exhausted from the events of the night.
“How’d that go?” Not well, clearly, if she came to my door.
Zoe snorted. “If I ever needed a reminder of why I was willing to struggle like I do, that little visit was it.”
“He’s a dick, huh?” He had to be to let his baby’s mother and his baby live in a motel, doing gig work to just barely keep the two of them fed and clothed.
“You have no idea.”
“Was he always?”
To that, Zoe let out a snort. “That’s complicated. I’d say he wasn’t an asshole for the first couple of months.”
“What made you stay after the switch?”
“I had nothing. My mom had recently passed, and I got this message on social media. He went on and on about my silly little dance video I posted. Telling me how he could manage me, could take my career to new heights, could make me a ton of money.”
“So you came down here.”
“So I came down here. And to be fair, he did make me famous. I mean… not famous famous. But I had a ton of viral dance videos. I never actually saw the money for them, though. Travis technically owned my accounts. The money was his. I mean, I did get to live in a mansion. And while I was there, I had nice clothes and good food, trips out, all that.
“But as Travis became a more abusive boss—”
“Boss or partner?”
“Well, I guess it’s hard to differentiate. He screamed at me as my boss, but that boss was also my boyfriend, so, yeah. It felt all-around not great. But, yeah, I had no idea how under his thumb I was until I got pregnant.”