Instinctively, my legs stutter to a jerky stop while a horrific image skitters through my mind.I jump backward, putting distance between the two of us.
Kiona’s always so touchy-feely, which normally doesn’t bother me. Yet what if Silas is watching and he sees her being too chummy? He might take her next. Like he did Kenzie.
No, no, no.
I won’t let another person suffer at the hands of this monster.
“What’s wrong?” Kiona asks, reaching for me.
“You go on ahead. I forgot something.”
Before she can object, I sprint in the other direction.
Unfortunately, the guard blocks my path before I can get five feet away. He casts a disapproving look at me. “You need to go through the metal detector again.”
Working to control my breathing, I flash a forced smile and divert my path as instructed. “My mistake. Sorry.”
Kiona hollers at my retreating back.“Should I wait for you, Lila?”
I wave over my shoulder at her, offering a fake smile. “No, thanks, sweetie. I’m good. See you tomorrow.”
With a resigned shrug, she waves at me and heads out the door.
Thank goodness.
The night guard studies me closely. His penetrating gaze says he doesn’t trust me one bit. Smart man.
“I forgot something in my locker,” I tell him, attempting to explain my odd behavior.
His stern expression doesn’t change as he waves me in. And since I’m sure he’s watching me go, I briskly scamperallthe way to the locker room to sell my malarkey. Definitely getting my steps in today. I’ll need to grab my hairbrush from my locker so my purse hassomethingin it when he checks my bag again. Otherwise, I’ll be even more suspicious.
Lies, lies, and more lies.
When I catch my reflection in the locker room mirror, I barely recognize myself. Look at what I’ve become.
Not only am I a criminal, but a habitual liar. I hate this so much.
When I finally make it to the parking lot several minutes later, I bolt straight to my car with quick strides. My gaze sweeps around me, watching for danger with each step.
The lot is brightly lit, and security patrols often. Yet my heart slams violently against my ribs as fear overwhelms my senses. Even though I don’t need to take my key fob out of my purse toget into my car, I grip my house key so it extends from my tight fist, poking out between my index finger and middle finger like a makeshift knife.
Tomorrow, I should get a real knife. Or a gun. At a minimum, a taser.
Can’t believe I haven’t bought something like that already. I’ve been so focused on getting Kenzie back or figuring out how to solve things that I never considered my personal safety.
Perhaps Reed isn’t the only dunderhead among us.The call is coming from inside the house.
My pace picks up when I spot my car. I check the back seat and jump in, locking the doors immediately. After a relieved exhale, I start the ignition and motor out.
Twenty minutes later, I struggle to unlock the front door to my apartment with shaky hands. Convinced danger is lurking, I strain to decipher every little sound. The crickets and frogs in the woods nearby perform their nightly symphony. But I keep listening for the telltale signs of an attacker. Any second, Silas’ thug will pounce.
Instead of detecting footsteps on the sidewalk or rustling of leaves under a pair of men’s boots, something else comes into auditory focus—the ominous scratchy hoot of a barred owl. Nothing like setting the mood, Mother Nature. Apparently, a cheery song from a nocturnal whippoorwill was too much to ask on a night like this.
I peek over my shoulder three times before I get the key in the slot in the right direction.
My shoulders slump forward, and a whoosh of air shoots past my lips when that familiar click of the bolt unlocking reaches my ears.
I hurriedly enter and lock the door behind me. And in the dark, I lean against the foyer wall and attempt to catch myrioting breaths. My purse drops to the floor with a thud. My head hits the wall with another thud.
