Pen nodded. “I was very lucky meeting Foster.”
“When I met Cy, I had no idea how he would change my life. I mean, I know when you meet someone special, things change, but with Cy, I feel like he really changed the trajectory of my life.”
Pen nodded. “I know I wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t met Foster. One day I’ll tell you the full story.”
“I’d like that.”
Jump’s phone rang, and he answered. Everyone stopped talking when he held up a hand. “I’ll put you on speakerphone.” Jump put his phone on the counter and tapped the screen. “Okay, Thario, you’re on speakerphone. Pen, Willa, and Blakely are here.”
“Hey, everyone. Thario here. I want to start by saying this cult is scary. The information about The Faithful is limited. I found some information about Blakely and her father, but there is little else on the group. The FBI does have a file, but it is limited. Grayson is only mentioned in the file. I did find a few notices about people from The Faithful being tossed in jail.”
“I remember talk of a few of them spending time in jail,” Blakely said.
“There honestly isn’t much on them. I don’t know where Grayson has been staying, or where he lives,” Thario said.
“How can we find him?” Jump asked.
“The police are looking for him. He isn’t staying in a hotel, at least not a reputable place. He would need an ID for that.”
“Sometimes the adults would steal IDs if they found someone who looked similar to them. He might have taken one from someone else.”
“I’ll look into it, but it’s a long shot,” Thario said.
“Thanks, man. I appreciate everything you’ve done for us,” Jump said.
“I’m going to keep looking.”
“Thank you. If you find anything else out, give us a holler.
The guys said goodbye to Thario, and the call ended. Blakely wasn’t surprised that they couldn’t find much about Grayson. The Faithful were masters at hiding their locations. They moved around a lot and paid for things in cash, avoiding having to deal with local governments.
At least she was safe for now. Grayson didn’t know where she was, and she would work hard to make sure he didn’t find her.She didn’t want to run and leave Jump behind. He was becoming too important to her.
Could she make a life with him? Maybe. She wanted to try, that is, if he wanted her. The memory of that kiss played through her mind. He hadn’t kissed her again, but they’d been with his friend. Maybe it had been a heat of the moment thing, but she hoped it meant something to him, because it sure did to her.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Jump shut the door. He was thankful he and Blakely were alone. Before the guys left, they’d helped clean up. He really appreciated his friends. They were great, but he was glad they were gone so he could spend some alone time with Blakely.
They’d kissed, and maybe he shouldn’t have. She hadn’t pulled away, and she didn’t seem like she was unhappy. He thought she had enjoyed the kiss. Maybe she would want more.
He needed to talk to her and figure out if they were on the same page. He’d never really had this talk with any of his girlfriends. Even his last relationship that he thought was going somewhere, they hadn’t sat down and laid out what they wanted from life.
“That was nice,” Blakely said. She was sitting on the couch, her legs pulled up close to her body, hugging her knees. She’d been through so much and he wanted to protect her.
“They are good people.” He moved to the couch and sat next to her, not so they were touching, but close.
She turned to face him, her gaze serious. He moved so he was looking at her. Her blue eyes were filled with questions, and he wanted to give her answers. Maybe they were on totally differentwavelengths, but he swore she was thinking something similar to him.
“Even though my parents promised me to that jerk, I have almost no history of dating. I mean, I was a teenager, so I had crushes. There was this one boy who would hold my hand if we were alone. I think both of us understood nothing would ever come of us being together.”
“What happened to him?”
She shrugged. “No clue. My parents moved us to another location. I tried writing him, but I think his parents moved, too. I never got any answers. He was a sane person in the insanity that was my life.”
“I’m sorry you had to deal with that.”
“I’ve been free for two years, and I’m still learning things. I did try dating someone after I escaped. He was a guy I knew from work in Las Vegas. But then Grayson happened, and I took off. He was weird, though, and I didn’t really like him.”
