Chapter 9
I threw the covers off.
“Daniel—wake up. Now.”
He was on his feet in two seconds, already reaching for the jeans he’d thrown on the chair.
“What is it?”
“Sarah made bail,” I said. “She’s out. Marcus is with her. Linda says she’s talking about coming for the kids.”
Daniel’s face went dark.
He grabbed his phone.
“I’m calling the police.”
“Daniel—they can’t do anything until she actually does something,” I said. “Restraining order takes time. We need to move. Now.”
We ran to the kids’ rooms.
Jake was asleep.
Lila was asleep.
We woke them gently.
“Come on, babies,” Daniel said, his voice steady even though his hands were shaking. “We’re going for a little ride. Right now.”
“Daddy? Why?” Jake mumbled, rubbing his eyes.
“Just a little adventure,” Daniel said. “Come on. I’ll carry you.”
We threw clothes into bags.
I grabbed the kids’ medicine.
Their favorite stuffed animals.
The ring was still on my finger.
We were out the door in five minutes.
Daniel didn’t go to the main road.
He took the back streets.
“Where are we going?” I said.
“Megan’s,” he said. “She lives in a gated community. Security at the front gate. Cameras everywhere. Sarah will never get in there.”
He called Megan on the way.
Woke her up.
Explained everything.
“Of course come,” she said. “I’ll leave the gate code in the text. I’ll have coffee on. Hurry.”
We made it to Megan’s in twenty minutes.
She was waiting on the porch with the lights on.
She took the sleeping kids from us.
Tucked them into her guest room.
Came back out to the kitchen where Daniel was pacing.
“This is my fault,” he said. “I should have known someone would bail her out. Her rich friends. Marcus’s people. Someone.”
“It’s not your fault,” Megan said. “Nobody saw this coming. The DA asked for no bail. The judge went against him. It’s on the system, not you.”
My phone buzzed.
A text from an unknown number.
I opened it.
My blood ran cold.
*Nice house, Emily. Shame you weren’t home when we stopped by.*
Attached was a photo.
Our house.
Taken from the street ten minutes ago.
I showed Daniel.
He went pale.
Then he saw the next text come in.
*You took everything from me. Now I take everything from you.*
“Call the police,” Daniel said. “Now.”
I called 911.
Explained the situation.
The texts.
The photo.
Sarah’s history.
They said they’d send a car to Megan’s immediately.
And a unit to our house.
We sat in the kitchen.
Waiting.
Megan made coffee.
Nobody drank it.
Daniel held my hand so tight it hurt.
Thirty minutes later, there was a knock at the door.
Two officers.
They took our statements.
Looked at the texts.
Called it in.
“APB is out on Sarah Carter and Marcus Reed,” the lead officer said. “We’ve got units patrolling the neighborhood. We’ll have a car here all night. You’re safe.”
“Safe isn’t enough,” Daniel said. “She threatened my children. She’s already kidnapped them once. What happens when she decides the police aren’t enough to stop her?”
The officer looked sympathetic.
“Mr. Carter, I’m not going to lie to you. Sarah is unpredictable. Desperate. People like that do stupid things. But we’ve got every unit in the precinct looking for her. We’ll find her. Before she finds you.”
He left an hour later.
We sat in the quiet.
The sun was starting to come up.
Daniel looked at me.
At the ring on my finger.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
“For what?”
“For dragging you into this,” he said. “Into my mess. Sarah’s out there. She’s dangerous. And now she knows who you are. She’s texting you. You could get hurt because of me.”
I put my hand on his face.
“Hey,” I said. “Look at me. I knew what I was getting into when I walked out of that restaurant with you. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. But easy isn’t real. This is real. You. Me. Those kids upstairs. That’s worth fighting for. Worth risking everything for.”
I kissed him.
“We’re in this together,” I said. “Remember?”
He nodded.
“Together.”
Jake chose that exact moment to walk into the kitchen.
He rubbed his eyes.
“Why are we at Aunt Megan’s?” he said. “And why are you crying, Daddy?”
Daniel knelt down.
He opened his mouth to lie.
To say it was just a surprise visit.
But then he stopped.
He looked at me.
I nodded.
“Buddy,” Daniel said. “I need to tell you something. And I need you to be very brave for me, okay?”
Jake nodded, his little face serious.
“Your mommy got out of jail last night,” Daniel said. “And she’s very angry. She might try to come find you and Lila. But nothing is going to happen to you. I promise. The police are looking for her. Aunt Megan’s house is very safe. And I will never, ever let anything hurt you or your sister. Ever.”
Jake was quiet for a minute.
Then he walked over to the junk drawer in Megan’s kitchen.
He pulled out a plastic baseball bat.
The kind you use for T-ball.
He hefted it in his hands.
“If she comes,” Jake said, his voice steady and fierce, “I’ll hit her with this. I won’t let her take Lila. I won’t let her take us. Not ever again.”
My heart swelled.
Daniel pulled him into a hug.
“I know you would, buddy,” he said. “I know you would. But you don’t have to. That’s my job. Okay? My job is to protect you. Your job is to be seven years old. To play baseball. To eat too much candy. To be a kid.”
Jake nodded against his shoulder.
“Okay, Daddy.”
May you like
But I saw him set the bat beside the couch.
Just in case.
