by Box Set
I went to my room and found some clothes I could wear. Then I jumped in the shower. I had five minutes to blow dry my hair, which was less time than I usually took, but I made it.
I climbed into Hearst’s car, and we followed Liz and Felicity in Felicity’s car.
“No time for coffee,” Hearst said.
“Did you get some at the loft?” I asked.
“Not enough, but it was good.”
I glanced over at him, guyliner, nose ring, eyebrow piercing, ears full of metal, and I smiled. “Nice to see you again, Imposer of Civility.”
“You too, Susie Sunshine.”
He reached for my hand, and held it until he had to downshift when we got close to school.
“It feels like it’s been a million years since we were here last,” I said.
“At least,” he agreed.
He parked and we got out of the car.
I looked down at my empty hands. “I didn’t bring any books,” I said.
He grinned. “I didn’t either.”
“Maybe Liz can loan us some notebook paper and a pen.”
He shrugged. “Right now, I’m just glad to be myself. Here. In this ridiculous parochial school. With you.”
I smiled at him. “Me too.”
He took my hand, and we started walking into the building.
My phone vibrated. It was a text from Graham. He said, “They searched the house for Sharon about fifteen minutes ago. We have eyes on their teams. I’ll keep you posted. Do not go anywhere after school. Come straight here. Just in case.”
I shared the news with Hearst.
“That’s good though. They could have searched in the middle of the night. They must have thought she was home until this morning when nobody got up and started moving around in the house.”
“Does it freak you out that they have our pictures?”
“A little. I’m trying not to think about it.”
“They’ll find us eventually, won’t they?”
“Maybe not,” he said. “Maybe we’ll get you that piercing and dye your hair black.”
“Let’s find Liz before we’re late.”
* * *
Somehow I made it through the day. I was really dragging. All that excitement finally took its toll.
“Please let me get some coffee on the way home,” I begged Felicity.
“I can make more at the loft,” she said.
“No. I need the real thing.”
“Actually,” Liz said, “you probably need to go home and go to sleep.”
“She’s right,” Felicity said. “No coffee. We’ll walk you in and put you to bed.”
I got in the back seat of the car. “And once I’m asleep, you’ll stalk my brother.”
“That’s rude,” Liz said. “We don’t stalk him.”
Whatever.
“Speaking of crushes,” Felicity said, “I was thinking about you and Noah.”
Oh no. “Not this again.”
“I was thinking that maybe Noah isn’t right for you at all,” Felicity said.
“What a coincidence,” Liz said, in exaggerated surprise. “I was thinking the same thing.”
“Maybe the right guy for you is closer than we realized,” Felicity said.
“Really?” I asked, dreading the direction of this conversation. “And just who would that be?”
“Could be somebody tall, dark, and handsome,” Liz said.
“Someone you’re really comfortable around,” Felicity added.
“Maybe somebody you’ve spent hours kissing,” Liz said.
“Hearst,” I said with a sigh.
“You think so too?” Felicity asked.
“I told you. We were pretending to be dating. We had to kiss for hours.”
Liz started giggling.
“You didn’t have to spend hours with your lips locked to pretend to be dating,” Felicity pointed out. “You could have kissed a little and then snuggled. Did anybody actually tell you to spend hours with your tongues in each other’s mouths?”
No. Nobody had told us to do that. “I’m too tired for this today. Can you harass me about my love life tomorrow instead?”
“No,” Felicity said. “Now is better for us.”
“I’ll show Graham your second-grade class picture,” I threatened. “You had the thickest glasses I’ve ever seen.”
“Not fair,” Felicity complained.
“And Liz, what if I tell my brother about the time you were talking in your sleep?”
“You wouldn’t,” she hissed.
“Oh my darling, Graham,” I said, mocking her. “I love you so.”
“Townsey!” Liz cried.
“You can threaten us all you want,” Felicity said. “We know the truth. There’s something going on with you and Hearst. You can’t avoid us forever.”
There was something going on with me and Hearst. I wasn’t sure if he realized it yet, and I wasn’t sure it was a good idea. He could wreck my heart so easily.
I leaned back and closed my eyes. I was planning to fake falling asleep and mumble Noah’s name a couple of times to throw them off the scent. Instead, I fell asleep for real, and I dreamed Hearst was lying next to me.
* * *
Somehow I got upstairs and into bed. Then I was out again. I didn’t wake until after midnight. I went to the bathroom and then went to the kitchen for some water.
“I was starting to worry,” Graham said from the sofa. “You must not have slept well in days.”
“Not since Saturday,” I said. “I was too worried about everything to sleep much.”
“Do you want to watch a movie with me? Or can you go back to sleep?”
I thought for a second. “I can sleep more.”
“Go on then,” he said. “If you need to miss school tomorrow, you can. I’ve never seen anyone so tired. I couldn’t wake you for dinner. You didn’t even twitch. I actually checked your pulse.”
“Love you, Graham,” I said.
“Love you, Townsey.”
I went back to my room and crawled back in bed.
* * *
I finally woke from hunger around two in the afternoon. I poured myself a giant bowl of cereal. Then I slowly and methodically ate the whole bowl. I didn’t feel refreshed. I felt sluggish.
Maybe I had mono. They said mono made you tired. Maybe Hearst had given me mono. He’d kissed enough girls to catch it.
I wrinkled my nose at the thought.
Hearst? Where was Hearst? Had he gone to school this morning?
I went back to my room and found my phone. For the first time in a year, I’d let my battery run all the way down. I plugged it in. Then I washed my face, brushed my hair, put on a clean t-shirt and shorts, and headed downstairs to see if Graham knew where Hearst was.
Lori wasn’t at her desk, and my brother was in with a client. I sat in Lori’s chair and waited. If it took much longer, I’d give up and go back upstairs. My phone should have enough of a charge to power on by now.
I had just stood up when the door of my brother’s office opened and a man stepped out. He didn’t look my way. He thanked Graham for his time, and then he started to walk through the waiting area and toward the front door. That’s when I realized who he was. The stocky frame, the dark tan skin, and the blond hair. I’d never seen any other man who had such a deep, artificial tan. I’d only seen pictures.
Doug West was in the office.
I gasped as terror swept through me. Until I made that noise, the man hadn’t paid me any attention. But he’d heard me, and he turned to look at me, the whites of his eyes standing out against his dark face. And he froze. Then his hard mouth formed a big, mean smile. He stood there for an eternity watching me.
Then, he mouthed “Got you.” He laughed as he went out the door, his large shoulders shaking with evil intent.
My brother ran out of his office the second the door closed behind the man. He stopped and turned the bolt lock on the exterior door. Then he started toward
the door to the loft.
“Graham,” I said, in a strangled voice.
Graham turned and looked at me. “He saw you?” he asked.
I nodded. Then all I saw was black and I slumped to the floor.
My brother was yelling, but not at me. I came to with my head in his lap. He was sitting on the floor behind Lori’s desk, and he was practically screaming into the phone. “I don’t care if Joe McCoy is in a meeting with the police chief,” he snapped. “I don’t care if he’s meeting with the mayor or the president or freaking Batman. Get the man on the phone now!”
“Graham,” I said.
“Oh, thank God,” he said looking down at me. “Does your head hurt? You hit it on the floor.”
I wasn’t sure. All I could focus on right now was the paralyzing fear in my chest. Doug West had seen me. He knew who I was. He knew where I was. “Graham, he said, ‘Got you.’”
Graham jerked in surprise. “He said that?”
My head was throbbing from his sudden movement. “Yes, and my head does hurt.”
“Joe,” he said into the phone. “Thank God. I need you here now. It’s about Townsey. No, she’s okay for now. She’s in danger, Joe. I can’t keep her safe without your help.” He listened for a moment. “Okay. I will.” He hung up. “Let me get Joshua on the phone, and then we’ll try to get you upstairs.”
Joshua answered immediately. My brother told him Doug had been here and had seen me. That’s all it took. Joshua knew how bad this was. My brother hung up.
“Do you think you can sit up? Let’s try that first,” he suggested.
“Where’s Hearst? Is he safe?” I asked.
My brother grabbed his phone and pressed a few buttons. “Get the boy on your way,” he said. “Yes.”
“Joshua will get him?” I asked.
“Yes. Can you sit up?”
“I think so.” I moved slowly. My head didn’t hurt anymore. I had bigger problems than a knot on my head. “Graham, what are we going to do?”
“We’ll do whatever Joe tells us to do,” he said. “He’s going to make sure you’re okay. He has been doing this for a long, long time. He’s good at his job. And he’s your godfather.”
“He’s going to get me,” I said, too terrified to be embarrassed about my fear. My teeth were chattering. “I’m c-c-cold, Graham.”
My brother pulled me to my feet. “Can you stand?”
I nodded.
“I can carry you,” he said.
With a shake of my head, I said, “No. I can walk.” I started moving toward the stairs to the loft. I moved slowly, deliberately. I was afraid I’d take one wrong step and the world would slip away from me. When I finally got to the loft, Graham opened the door.
“Lie down on the couch,” he said. “I want you to hear what Joe has to say. I’ll get some blankets.”
In a few seconds, he was back with my comforter and two blankets from the closet. He covered me carefully, tucking the blankets in around me.
“Wh-why am I so cold?”
“You might be going into shock, sweetie,” he said. “You’re going to be okay. Joe is coming. Joshua is coming, and he’s bringing Hearst. We can bring in as many people as we need. We couldn’t do that before Sharon and the kids got away because we risked somebody telling Doug. We don’t have to worry about that now. We can have as many people protecting you as we need. We’ll take care of you, Townsey.”
The chattering of my teeth continued, and I couldn’t control it.
“Joe’s here,” Graham said. “I’ll get him to examine you.”
I heard him speaking in hushed tones with Joe.
“Hey, Townsey,” Joe said, standing next to the sofa. “I hear you got really scared and hit your head. I need to figure out if there’s something wrong medically. If there is, we’ll have to get you treatment. But you might just need some time to relax. I’m going to feel your pulse now, okay?”
I nodded.
He held my wrist and looked at his watch. “It’s good news, Townsey. Your pulse is strong. I’m going to listen to your breathing now. I’m going to lean over you a little bit so I can hear the air go in and out. Okay?”
I nodded again.
He finally moved away. “She’s breathing pretty well, and her pulse rate is good.”
My brother leaned over me. “Turn a little, honey so he can feel the lump on your head.”
I turned some. Joe ran his fingers over the back of my head.
“There’s a goose egg. Do you feel nauseated? Dizzy?”
“No,” I said.
“Does your head hurt?”
“Not really.”
“Are you still cold?” my brother asked.
I glared at him. My teeth were chattering so loud, I couldn’t believe he’d asked.
“I guess that’s a yes,” Joe said. “I’m going to check on you again in a little bit, Townsey, but I don’t think you need medical treatment. Your brother’s going to bring me up to date. I know you’re scared. I don’t care what I have to do to keep you safe, Townsey. You’re like my own daughter, and I will not let that man anywhere near you.”
The squeak signaled the door to the loft opening, and I heard footsteps.
“Joshua,” Graham said. “Get Lori on the phone. Let her know what’s happened. And then we need to get word to Felicity and Liz to stay away from here.”
“Townsey!” Hearst said from across the loft. “What happened?”
“She saw Doug West, and he saw her. Then she fainted and hit her head,” Graham said. “She’s cold, and she’s terrified.”
Hearst leaned down and hugged me. “Is that your teeth making that sound?” he asked. “Are you that cold?”
I nodded, and tears pooled in the corner of my eye.
“Oh, Townsey,” he said. “Scoot over.” Hearst lifted the blankets and lay down with me. He put his arms around me and pulled me into his chest. “It’s going to be okay,” he said.
I started crying for real then.
He rubbed my back and told me over and over that it was going to be okay.
“I thought they were just friends,” Joe said from across the room.
“I’m not so sure anymore,” my brother answered.
“Tell me about this mess you’ve gotten mixed up in,” Joe said.
Graham started talking, but I couldn’t make out the words.
“I’ve got you, baby,” Hearst said. “I’ve got you.”
After a few minutes, my teeth stopped chattering. I started to get warm, and I wept into Hearst’s shoulder.
“I’ve got you, baby,” Hearst said, again and again.
I finally cried the last of my tears. Then I hugged Hearst close and fell asleep.
I heard my brother asking if I was all right. Hearst answered, but I couldn’t wake up. I fell back into a deep sleep.
“Townsey,” Hearst said. “Can you wake up? We need you to wake up for a while because you hit your head.”
I struggled to open my eyes. I finally did. “I’m okay,” I said.
“I need to get up for a minute,” he said. “Can you drink something?”
“Yes,” I said. “Coffee.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he said.
“I need to stay awake,” I said. “I need to hear what’s happening.”
He nodded. “I’ll make some.”
After throwing off a couple of the blankets, I managed to sit up and watch the others at the kitchen island. My brother’s face was pinched in a frown. Joe was on the phone with someone, and they were arguing. Joshua was saying something to Hearst, but I couldn’t make it out. I hadn’t thought Doug would find me. I never dreamed I’d be in the same room with him less than two days after helping Sharon. I kept seeing that menacing smile, and his lips forming those terrifying words, “Got you.”
I started to tremble. I pushed away the image. I was okay. I was in the loft with three large men. Four if I counted Hearst. I had a police officer, a bounty hunter, and a
private investigator looking out for me.
Hearst came back over and sat next to me. “Coffee will be ready in a minute,” he said. “Your brother has security from the Coates Agency watching my house, Lori’s family, and posted outside of here. Joe has some ideas about what we need to do.”
The man had killed two wives and his own brother. And I was next. I started trembling again.
“Townsey,” Hearst said. “I know the man is scary. But I’m not leaving your side. I promise.”
“What about Liz and Felicity?”
“They’re fine. Joe has somebody driving by their houses every thirty minutes. There’s nothing to indicate that Doug knows they exist. He hasn’t even found my house yet. He only knows about Paxton PI and you. He isn’t going to get you. Your brother told me what he said. He won’t get you, Townsey. We have Joe. We have Joshua. You saw him with those grenades. He’s the real deal.”
The smile. The mouth forming the words, “Got you.” It all flashed through my mind again.
“You’re whimpering,” Hearst said, pulling me against his chest. “What are you thinking about?”
“His mouth. His hatred. His words.”
“We’ll beat him, Townsey. We already beat him once. More than once. We took his money. We took his family. We beat him. And we’ll beat him again.”
I nodded.
“He wants you to be scared. Don’t give him the satisfaction.”
“It’s not that easy, Hearst.”
“I know. You’re strong though. He doesn’t know how strong you are. He doesn’t know that you were going to single-handedly get that woman and her kids to freedom. He doesn’t know that you would have succeeded because that’s what you do.” He kissed the top of my head. “I’ll get the coffee.”
He got up and went to the kitchen. When he returned, he had a mug of hot coffee for each of us. I reached for one.
“Are you still shaking?” he asked.
“No,” I said. “I’ve got it.”
We sat there, side-by-side, sipping our coffee.
“Do you think you could eat?” he asked.
“I doubt it.”
“What about chicken soup from Thirty Seconds?”
Thirty Seconds was my favorite restaurant, and I loved their soup like Hearst loved coffee. “Yes,” I said. “I could eat soup.”