“Sir?”the security guard said.“Your brother wants to talk to you.”
Finally.“Thanks,” he said and took the phone.
“What happened?”Don’s asked obviously concerned.
“White.The bastard—” This time, the blackness didn’t abate, but engulfed him, and the last thing he was aware of was the phone slipping from his fingers.
Chapter Eleven
Try as shemight, Hannah couldn’t fall asleep.
She’d been fine all through the day and never once felt unsafe.She had read a little, watched television, and thought she would fall asleep quickly like she did last night.
But now she was restless, as if something was about to happen.Not knowing whether the rest of her family was safe was driving her crazy.Coming to a decision, she put on the light and reached for her phone.It was nearly midnight, but she had to speak to her agent now.Fortunately, Karen was a night owl and seldom went to sleep before the early morning hours.
If anything had happened to anyone, they would have contacted Karen.She was sure of it.Her sisters and mother all had her agent’s telephone number.
Karen answered on the first ring.
“Karen.It’s Hannah.”
“Hannah, sweetheart!”she called out.“I’m so glad to hear from you.Listen…”
“My family—have you heard anything from them…”
“You have to call them, Hannah.”
A cold hand clutched at her trachea, forcing out most of the air.“Why?Did something happen to one of them?”
“Your mother and sisters are fine, it’s just… Please call them.”
Hysteria bubbled up, and Hannah breathed in deeply.“Is it Darryn?Has something happened to Darryn?”
“Yes, but he’s fine now, please phone them,” Karen insisted.“I’m going to put the phone down.Please get yourself a new phone.White is apparently capable of hacking into any system.”The next minute the line went dead.
Stunned, Hannah sat for a few seconds before she got up.An icy calm settled over her.Darryn had been hurt by Stephen.He wanted a reaction?Well, he’d get one.She was mad as hell and finished being the victim.
She grabbed her bag and flung her clothes in haphazardly.Fortunately, she hadn’t brought much with her, so packing went quickly.She stared at her phone then dropped it in the garbage pail.Karen was right, she should leave it and get another one.Where to get another one was a problem, the little village only had the bare basics.She’d make a plan somehow to get a message to her family.
She would leave the groceries she’d bought here.She quickly messaged the owner and said she’d pay whatever they needed for someone to clean the place and she would drop the key off at her place.
Then, grabbing her keys and bag, she left the house and sprinted to her car.
All she could think of was getting to Darryn as soon as possible.But first she had to leave the key.
She looked back over her shoulder to the house as she drove away.Damn, she’d left the bedroom light on, but she’d let the landlady know.She was not turning around.Getting to Darryn was her only concern at the moment.
As she stopped in front of the landlady’s house, the porch light came on, and the woman appeared in the doorway.Hannah sighed.She had hoped she could just drop the key in the mailbox.Getting out and talking to the landlady would mean wasting more time, but she couldn’t just drive away now.
She met the woman at the gate.“I’m sorry, I didn’t want to disturb you.And I’m so sorry to have to leave so early, but I have a…a family emergency,” she said as she handed over the keys.
“You’ve paid for a whole month!”the woman exclaimed.“I—”
“I’ll come back on another date and will call you, if that’s all right?”she said.“Which reminds me.I’ve misplaced my cell phone and want to let my sister Caitlin know I’m on my way.Could I please ask you to send her a message?”
“Of course,” she said, “I have my phone in my pocket.”She gave Hannah her phone.“Put in her number, and I’ll send the message.”
Hannah quickly entered the number, told the woman about the light that was still on, and thanked her before she jogged back to the car.She’d filled up the tank when she’d arrived, so fortunately, she didn’t have to make another stop right now.
