A few deputy cars and an ambulance were also scattered around the site.
“Oh, God!” Elle gasped. “I hope no one was hurt.” But even as she said it, she knew there was no way the driver of the car had gotten out totally unscathed. The car must have been moving at a high rate of speed before hitting the tree.
“Eastern’s there,” Jace said quietly as he pulled over to the side of the road. “I’m just going to check in with him.”
Jace climbed out, and Elle immediately followed. Eastern saw them, an emotion she couldn’t place passing over his features before he headed their way.
Jace’s arm slipped around her waist. “Is everything okay?” he asked as his brother stopped in front of them.
Eastern’s gaze flicked her way before returning to Jace, and for some reason, her belly twisted. She could already tell—everything wasnotokay.
“The driver died on impact,” Eastern finally said.
Jace’s arm tightened around her. “Anyone we know?”
There was a beat of silence before Eastern answered. “It was Darcy Boyd.”
CHAPTER 24
Elle sipped her chai latte. Sugar and Spice was busy around her, but her mind kept flicking back to the same thing.
Boyd. He was dead. Was it an accident? The mechanic told Eastern there’d been a fault in the brakes, so all signs pointed to yes. She should be grateful, right? That he was gone and she didn’t have to worry about him?
A hand on her arm caused her to jump. She turned to look at Jace beside her.
He frowned. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I just…I keep thinking about Boyd.” There was no point in lying.
His fingers tightened around her arm. “He’s gone now. You don’t need to worry about him anymore.”
“I know. I just hate that we don’t have any answers. Like why he targeted me. Why he tried tokillme.” God, even saying those words out loud sounded weird. A guy she’d never met had tried tokillher.
Eastern was still looking into him, but so far, he’d found no connection between her and Boyd. He appeared to be just whatthey already knew he was—a small-time criminal. An abuser. An out-of-towner.
“I hate that too.” A muscle ticked in Jace’s jaw. “I wish we knew, but I’m not sorry he’s gone.”
She nodded, shifting her gaze back to the latte. “So I’m safe now, right? He’s gone and he was the only threat…” She knew he couldn’t guarantee that, but a part of her still hoped he would anyway.
Jace’s brows flickered. “I’d like to think so. But I still want you to stay close to me for a while to make sure.”
The café was closed for a week, and Jace had taken the week off work to be with her. It also gave Molly time to recover.
When her gaze caught on his phone, she frowned. “You haven’t received any more messages from that private number?”
“Not since I blocked them.”
That was good. One less thing to worry about.
“You know what we need?” Jace asked.
“A crystal ball that has all the answers we’re seeking?”
“Well, that…and cupcakes.”
In the glass cabinet at the counter, a dozen different types were on display, and they all looked amazing, especially the pumpkin pie. She sighed. “But how will we ever choose?”
“Why choose when we can have one of each?”
