Total pages in book: 180
Estimated words: 182075 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 910(@200wpm)___ 728(@250wpm)___ 607(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 182075 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 910(@200wpm)___ 728(@250wpm)___ 607(@300wpm)
But if you’re pregnant you don’t have any choice. You can’t raise a baby in this household. With this man.
And the sad fact was that she didn’t have anyone else. Maggie was overseas. They were her only option.
You’ll have to tell them what happened. About Billy being in their penthouse.
Billy: I’ll get someone to bring you some stuff.
Shit. Fuck.
Indie: Okay. But I was kind of hoping to talk to someone about birth control.
It took him a while to reply and she was starting to sweat when the text came through. She had to blink several times to clear her eyes so his message wasn’t blurry.
Billy: There’s some cash in my bedside drawer. I’ll call you an Uber and let you know when it’s here. Remember to take your phone. And behave. I’m always watching.
She gulped.
Fuck. Fuck.
She couldn’t reply. She was too fucking scared. Instead, she dropped her phone on the bed.
She’d grab the cash. Go to the pharmacy and get what she needed.
Then she’d make a plan.
Indie stared down at the little stick.
Please don’t show two lines.
Please. Please.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want children. Eventually.
With someone other than Billy. But bringing a child into the world with him . . . no.
Finally, the timer on her phone dinged and she stared down at the stick.
At the two lines.
Oh. She was so fucked.
11
How was she going to do this?
How could she escape him?
There was no way that she could raise a baby with him. What if he beat her so badly that he hurt the baby? Or killed her?
No. He wasn’t going to hurt this baby. Maybe she had trouble leaving him for herself. But her baby was relying on Indie to protect him or her. And she wasn’t going to fail.
Yes, he’d made threats against the guys and Maggie. But she wasn’t sure that he could really do anything to them.
Just focus on one thing at the time. How are you going to get out of here?
Did he have cameras in the apartment? If she left her phone here would he know if she left?
Indie walked through the apartment, trying to look casual as she scanned for cameras. She couldn’t see anything. Then she spotted the mail from earlier.
There might be a way to test if he could see her leave. She searched through the mail and sent thanks to the postie. There was a letter for Mr. Wembley.
Leaving her phone in the apartment, she walked out and along to his door, knocking on it.
After delivering the letter and listening to his grumbling for five minutes, she returned to Billy’s apartment.
To find her phone ringing. She rushed to it and saw Billy’s name.
“Hello? Billy?”
“Where were you?” he snarled.
“What? Oh, just now?” she replied, trying to keep the fear out of her voice. “I just went to deliver Mr. Wembley his mail. It was delivered to our place by mistake. Is there a problem? How did you know I left?”
“I have the door monitored,” he snarled. “Next time, tell me before you leave.”
“Sure. No problem.” She ended the call and an idea formulated in her head.
The only question was . . . did she have the ingredients to make chocolate chip biscuits?
An hour later, she was placing containers of biscuits into a huge tote bag. They were the only thing she could bake. Spencer had taught her years ago.
Stuffed in the bottom of her tote bag was her ID, some cash she’d managed to squirrel away, her pregnancy test, and her backpack.
She’d turned the place upside down trying to find her backpack. He’d taken it off her after her botched escape and hidden it. She’d been really worried that he’d thrown it out.
But he must have just shoved it into a cupboard and forgotten about it.
This was the tricky bit. She grabbed her phone and texted Billy.
Indie: Mr. W. seemed sad before. I’ve made him chocolate chip biscuits and I’m going to deliver them.
She headed toward the door, her heart racing. He texted back quickly.
Billy: I though you didn’t feel well?
Fuck.
Her hands shook again as she messaged him back.
Indie: When I spoke to the pharmacist, they thought it sounded like something I ate didn’t agree with me. I’m feeling good now so I guess they were right.
She sent a prayer that he believed her.
Billy: Take your phone. Go nowhere else. There and back.
Elation filled her as she left the apartment. Now, she just needed this next part to go smoothly.
The good news was that Mr. Wembley’s apartment faced the street.
He answered the door with a frown.
“Hey, Mr. Wembley, I’ve got some biscuits for you.”
She pulled out the tin as his frown lightened. “Chocolate chip?”
“Of course,” she said. “I was wondering if I could come in for a moment? I need a favor.” She had to be quick.
He waved her inside. “Come on, then.”