Jump studied Blakely’s reaction to the news the fire had been deliberately set. She didn’t seem surprised. Had Grayson done this before?
He needed to get more information on Grayson and find out what the dude was about. Was he an ex, family, or just some creep who was stalking her?
“How long until you think the police will want to talk to me?”
Her question wasn’t a big surprise. Of course they would want to talk to her once they figured out where the fire started. The one problem he had with her was he could tell she was hiding something. No doubt, the police would pick up on it if they were any good at all. He needed to figure out what was going on with her and see if he could help.
“They’ll probably want to talk soon. Did you get your phone before we left the apartment?”
Her shoulders deflated, and she closed her eyes, shaking her head. “No. I forgot it.”
“Well, for now they have no way of contacting you. They’ll probably come around here in a few days. So you have two, maybe three days.”
He watched as her lips thinned and her nostrils flared. She sipped more coffee, almost like she thought lifting the coffee cup would save her. There was no way she could hide from the truth, not with a face like hers that showed every emotion.
He took a drink from his coffee and looked at her over the rim. “When the police question you, they are going to know you’re hiding something. It’s as plain as day.”
Her eyes widened, and she shook her head. “No. No, I’m not hiding anything.”
T chuckled. “I don’t know you and I can tell you’re hiding something. If I can tell, the police are going to pick up on it fast.”
She made a noise and opened her mouth to say something, but Jump held up his hand.
“Don’t lie right now. We can’t help you unless we know what you’re hiding.”
Blakely shook her head slowly. “Why would you help me?”
“Because I have a feeling that guy would have killed you last night if I hadn’t intervened.” Jump leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table as he stared at her. “You were in a pickle, and Grayson has something on you. Just tell us what’s up.”
Blakely held his gaze for a moment then she stood and moved to the kitchen sink. She stayed there, unmoving for a long moment.
Jump sat back, giving her a moment to think. If he pushed too hard, she might just walk out of here. That would be okay, he guessed. But he would worry about her. Grayson could find her and that could end up being very bad if there was no one around to protect her.
CHAPTER FIVE
Blakely gripped the coffee mug, wishing she could just walk out and not tell them anything. But she’d been running for a long time. Her life had gone to hell after leaving The Faithful. Heck, her life hadn’t been good before leaving.
She turned to face them and leaned against the counter, her gaze locking with Jump’s. Could she do this story justice? The crazy part wasn’t Grayson or her on the run, it was everything else that came with The Faithful.
“I know this is going to sound like something I made up, but it’s not.”
Jump sat back and crossed his legs at his ankles as he lifted his coffee mug. “I’m ready. Go ahead.”
She drew in a slow breath, letting it go just as slowly. “I was born into a cult. I’m lucky because when I was a toddler, I was taken into foster care. I have a social security number and a birth certificate. My siblings have none of that. No documentation at all. But that’s not the wild part, I’m just setting it up for you, so you understand what it is like.”
Jump and T nodded encouragingly. Most people when she told them about the lack of documentation they immediately thought she was lying, but she wasn’t.
“Anyway, there are only a few of us who have social security numbers or any forms of ID. So very few of us can have bank accounts. My father died two years ago in a terrible crash. My younger siblings were in the van with him. It was awful. They all died.”
“I’m sorry,” Jump said.
She nodded. “It was bad. My father was a leader in the community. He was one of only four adult men who had identification. The other ones live in different parts of the country. Anyway, because I had documents, he listed me on the bank account as a joint owner. Putting me on the account was the easiest way for the group to get money if my father was busy. Sometimes he didn’t have time to go to the bank, but I did. So even though I was a woman, and couldn’t do anything else in the cult, I had access to the bank.”
She blew out a ragged breath. How awful would they think she was? They could turn her into the authorities for theft. Grayson wouldn’t turn her in, instead he would torture her.
He wanted access to the accounts so he would have the money. But she didn’t have any of that information with her. Carrying bank records with full account numbers would be insane. But Grayson didn’t know that she was careful, so careful that she had everything locked up in a safe deposit box. She sure as heck would never let Grayson know which bank held her secrets.
“So this is all over some money?” Jump asked.
