“Somehow I don’t think that would be possible.”
My phone vibrates, and I reach for my back pocket.
“Not enough time,” he comments before I can hit the icon to answer the phone. I glance up at him, confused because it seems like he knows something I don’t.
“Hey, Ma,” I say when the phone is at my ear.
“Lethe! Thank God. Where are you?”
“Near UT. I met up with a friend.”
“Why didn’t you answer any of my calls or texts? Never mind, I need you to come home. No, forget that. I’ll come to you.”
“What’s going on? Is Dad okay?” I question.
Warmth on my hand distracts me for a second, and I allow him to pull me to stand, then I walk blindly alongside him as we pass the church again. “Your father is fine, Lethe. Tell me where you are, we’re on our way.” I hear a car door slam.
“Why are you freaking out? It’s kind of freaking me out,” I admit.
“Tell me where you are!” she demands with a shout.
“The coffee shop,” the guy whispers, encouraging me to repeat it.
“First and Glenn. I’m parked in front of the coffee shop,” I tell her.
“Good, stay on the phone with me. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
“Careful,” I hear my dad mutter in the background, then a horn honks.
“Will you tell me what’s going on?”
“Oh, honey. We can talk when I get there.” My mom sounds devastated.
I stop in my tracks. My hand falls away from his, and he turns to watch me. “I can already tell it’s bad, just tell me.” We’re close enough now that I can see my car up the street. Several of the businesses are still open, and there’s no shortage of people. A few of them give me strange looks and a wide berth as they pass me on the sidewalk.
“It’s the Bigelows. Someone broke into the house, honey, and…” She chokes up, but I don’t need to hear any more.
The guy takes two steps closer to me, closing the distance between us. I can feel his breath on my temple and the warmth of his body pressed against mine as he whispers, “Bye, Lethe. I’ll see you soon.” His heat disappears as he shuffles past me, leaving me cold and alone.
I’m stuck staring down the street. I can’t even turn my head to watch him go, because all I can think about is seeing that shadow upstairs in my room and instinctively knowing that it was who or what broke into the Bigelows.
“Are you still there?” Mom’s voice is frantic, making me think it isn’t the first time she asked. I look around, and everything feels unfamiliar. I have no idea how long I’ve been standing here, but my throat is dry, like I needed to swallow twenty minutes ago.
“I’m here,” I croak and clear my throat. “I’m here.”
CHAPTER7
When Mom pulls up next to me, Dad gets out of the passenger seat and lifts the handle of my car door. I watch him, then realize I need to unlock the door. “Come on.” He lays his hand on my shoulder.
Mom calls loudly, “Dad will drive your car. Get in.”
I understand what she’s saying, and even what I need to do, but I still move sluggishly. Dad helps me into the passenger seat of Mom’s car, and he even closes the door for me before she pulls away. I see him get behind the wheel of my car in the side mirror.
“I’m so glad you’re okay.” She lays her hand on my arm and grips me tightly. I let my head fall against the seat.
Mom pulls under the awning of a hotel, and I look around. I haven’t been paying attention to where we were going. “We’re going to stay here for the night,” she tells me.
“Okay,” I agree.
