“What?” For a split second, I think I’ve been tricked, that she is part of this thing with Lucas. Then, she opens the hatch.
“Here’s what we do. There are blankets in the back. Do not wake Avery up. Lay her in the back, and lie next to her. I’ll cover you up. When we pull in, I’ll park in the back drive. I will go out front to ask what’s going on so you can sneak into the guesthouse. Got it?” she asks, and I nod, jumping out and unstrapping Avery gently from her car seat. Cora pulls a key off her ring of keys and hands it to me.
“This is to the room,” she says. I take it and shove it into my pocket. As I lay Avery down in the back, I watch Cora pull out the car seat and toss it next to somebody’s garbage can in the alley. I would never have thought of that. Her grace in a crisis is really something to behold. She covers us up.
“Don’t worry. There is no reason for them to look for you in my car. You’re not a criminal. This will be fine,” she says. But I don’t feel like anything will be fine ever again. As she drives the few short blocks, I can hear my heart beating. I try to hold very still and take deep breaths.
“Shit,” I hear her say. “Okay, the cop just waved me over before I could turn into the back. Do not panic.”
I suppress a whimper as I hear her roll down the window.
“Oh, my goodness, what’s all this?” she asks so calmly it’s hard to believe. I feel bile rise in my throat. Avery pushes against me, making a small sound—the tiny whine that happens just before she lets out a wail. Hot tears spring to my eyes, and I can hear my own heartbeat in my ears.
“Sorry to bother you, ma’am, but we’re looking for a missing person. Do you live here?”
“Yes, right there. Who’s missing?” she asks.
“Your neighbor, it looks like. Georgia Kinney. Do you know her well?”
“Oh, that’s terrible. No, not very well. How long has she been gone?”
“Just a few hours, but...”
“A few hours? How is that missing? You had me worried.”
I put my hand over Avery’s mouth before she gives us away. My tears are hot on my cheeks as I push away the overwhelming feeling of guilt—that I’m hurting her, that I’m a terrible mother—as I keep her quiet.
“Look, her husband is certain something is very wrong, and he’s someone who wouldn’t overreact to this sort of thing, so we’re taking it seriously and don’t want to lose time.”
“Well, I will definitely keep a lookout and ask around,” I say.
“Thanks. We might have more questions later on,” he adds.
“Of course. You know where I am,” she says, and I hear the window close. I feel the car pull into the alley and I exhale, taking my hand away from Avery’s hot, angry little face. She howls and cries in overwhelmed hiccups. I kiss her over and over and tell her it’s okay as Cora pulls into the back driveway and parks. I dig in my bag for some candy to distract her and she takes it with wide eyes and calms down a little bit.
“It’s to the left on the other side of the pool. Go. When they leave, I’ll come out to check on you,” she says, and then she gets out, clicks open the hatch ever so slightly, and when I hear her footsteps disappear and the back door open and close, I slide out the back and hike my bags over my shoulder. I pick Avery up as gently as I can, and I try to steady my shaking knees as I walk the short path to the guesthouse. I let myself in and lay Avery down on the bed.
It’s a tidy little space with a kitchenette and full bathroom. The bed is covered with fuzzy pillows and a fluffy down comforter, and no matter how in danger I still am, I have never understood the feeling of safety as acutely as I do now. I’ve never felt overwhelming relief the way I do right now. I lie down next to Avery, and my mind reels with all of the scenarios where he finds me. Could he suspect Cora of helping me, after finding Avery there that one time?
When I hear the click of the door, I leap to my feet and feel like my heart will explode. But it’s just Cora. She comes with sandwiches and bottled water. I cross the room to leave Avery sleeping, and we sit at the small table near the kitchenette. She pushes a notepad at me.
“Make me a list of whatever you need for a few days. We have plenty of food, but we’ll need diapers and any other things for Avery you can think of, toiletries, whatever. Finn is gone for the night, and Mia lives in her room, glued to her phone, so don’t worry. I’ll be careful.”
“I can’t believe what you’re doing for me. I really can’t ever thank you enough. I’ll never forget it,” I say.
“It’s what anyone would do,” she says simply, but it’s not.
“Look, I was actually getting a little bit worried about you...”
“Me?” Cora says, hand to her chest.
“You kept coming over. Lucas noticed. I don’t know what he is capable of outside that house. I could be paranoid. But he’s well connected and always tells me he could kill someone and make it look like an accident,” I say, fearing she might change her mind, but I need to tell her everything.
“Oh, if he came for me, I’d blow his head off,” she says matter-of-factly, and I can’t help but let a small laugh escape my mouth. “And so can you,” she says, unlocking a cabinet and indicating the gun inside. She hands me the key. “And there is an alarm on this guest house. My mom used to visit and insisted on it because she was afraid of her own shadow. Keep the blinds shut. You’ll be okay, and I can certainly handle myself,” she says.
“I can see that,” I say with a smile.
“You’re not alone now. We’re gonna get the stuff you need immediately, and we’ll sit down and work out a plan. We need to get you a phone tonight so you can call me if you need me. I’ll do that now.” She stands and goes to the door. She turns and points to the wall cabinets.
