EVIE
Ghost kept me busy all morning, which was blissfully merciful. I didn't want to think about Benjamin being gone. I felt his absence like a missing limb, like something that should have been there but had inexplicably separated from me. It was easier to ignore when I was busy, and he directed me to walk across the field and to the abandoned barn with two other operatives hiding in the trees with him. Anyone watching my property would see me walking alone across the field. And then he had me film myself beginning to restore the barn. We made a social media post on all my channels, introducing a new series where I'd be devoting time every morning to fixing up the barn so we could add animals to the chaos.
He stayed out of sight but watchful, and I put my whole self into moving around loose boards, yanking an old door off its hinges, and sweeping the interior of the barn. I stayed a full two hours just in case anyone had eyes on me, and then I headed back to the house. He had his team edit the video to match my past posts, and we uploaded it. He seemed quietly confident that it would work, and I had to admit, it seemed legit. Benjamin had left; players watching my driveway would have taken note ofthat. Ghost's team had entered my property via back channels, and I didn't grill them too much on how that worked. I was sure they knew what they were doing.
And then, finally, I realized that there was no helping it—I had to tell Nan what was going on. There were dozens of "operatives" in nondescript black clothing hiding out under thick trees and in my house. If Nan or Tessa stumbled on one of them accidentally, they'd get the fright of their lives.
I found Nan weeding her flower beds on her hands and knees, her fluffy white curls bobbing and her gloved hands busy with encroaching invaders. She glanced up to smile at me from under the rim of her wide straw hat, and wordlessly, I got down on the ground with her. It was warm today, like I'd predicted. But clouds obscured the sun, and a wind brought out goosebumps on my skin. I ripped out a large clump of crabgrass, and the motion relieved some tension around my heart. I ripped out another. God, that felt good.
Nan glanced at me, her gaze critical. "Pent up energy?"
"Something like that," I muttered, grabbing something tall and spiky by the roots and wrenching it away from some arugula shoots.
Nan looked around. "There's an odd energy around this place today. Where is Benjamin?"
"He left." I yanked something out violently.
She sat back on her haunches. "Oh."
"Don't," I muttered. "That's not even why I came, actually." I stopped weeding for a second to sit back and give her my full attention. "I have something to confess."
"You're in love with the doctor," Nan said with a hint of dry humor.
"No—ye—that's not it." I brushed dirt from my hands. "The bodyguard thing is a little more complicated than I first led you to believe."
Nan's mouth scrunched to the side, folding her soft features. "Oh dear. This isn't a weeding conversation. This is a tea conversation."
I breathed out a half laugh. "Okay. We can make tea first."
While my jasmine tea cooled and Nan sipped hers, I told her the story from the beginning. I told her about the email and that first attack at Dr. Wells' office. I told her how Benjamin had gotten involved in the first place, and then I was honest about the attack in the hardware store and my foible going to Micah's on my own. I left out that I'd fallen in love with Benjamin throughout that insanity. But I did finish with how I'd been connected to Ghost and what his plan was for tomorrow.
I stirred my full mug of tea, watching Nan's concerned expression. "That's pretty much all of it."
"That's a lot," she said baldly.
I looked around, making sure Tessa wasn't listening. "I want you and Tessa to stay in the house tomorrow. Lock the doors. Don't go anywhere—it'll drive her up the wall to be stuck inside, but I'd rather be safe than sorry."
Nan sat back in her chair, fiddling with her reading glasses which were around her neck. "Your parents were always in danger, you know. There was always something. A Namibian ambassador threatening them when they campaigned for environmental protections. A corporate giant attempting to blackmail them for cutting into their profit margins with their legislation. It was constant with them."
Guilt grabbed hold of my lungs and twisted. "Nan, I'm so sorry."
"What I mean is, you're eminently more practical than them." She smiled wistfully, like she was seeing my parents there beside me. "They were brave, and so are you. But I have greater trust in your discernment."
My lips twitched. "Benjamin said I have the self-preservation instincts of a can opener."
Nan laughed, folding her hands over her stomach and shaking her head. "Thatis true, but you are clever and creative." Sobering, she asked, "Do you feel confident about this person and his plan? Do you feel safe?"
"I do," I nodded. "I can't say why, exactly, but Ghost seems capable. He's confident, and it seems like he's experienced. I think it will be okay."
"Hm," she mused, looking away in thought. After a few seconds of introspection, she sat up with a practical smile. "Well, I will keep Tessa here, and tomorrow, we will be on standby for news." Then, leveling a stern look my way, she said, "Be cautious."
"I will," I promised.
"In that case," she grunted, leveraging herself back into a standing position, "would you like to stay for dinner?"
Gratefully, I sagged against the chair. "Very much."
Chapter Twenty-Five
