47. Hailey

FORTY-SEVEN

Daylight barely cracked at the horizon, those first bleary rays that lit at the edges of the earth and covered it with a feathery haze.

I gazed over at the man who was long asleep, his head rested on the pillow, his arms still firm around me.

They'd been firm around me since he'd finally succumbed to the exhaustion and the pain meds they'd given him for his injuries.

The man had held me until morning.

Refusing to let go.

Even in the depths of slumber his arms had been unyielding.

Sure and strong.

And I knew it was time that I was strong for him.

Taking in a steeling breath, I carefully unwound myself from his hold and slipped out from under his arm that had to weigh as much as a tree.

I froze when he stirred, distorted discontent filtering from between his lips as if even in his slumber his soul had recognized I was no longer at his side.

I breathed out a sigh when he settled back in, then I pushed from the bed and tiptoed around the room to gather my clothes from the floor.

I dressed as quietly as I could, then I glanced back once more at his sleeping form, my chest squeezing in a swell of devotion.

Then I crept out the door.

Silence swam through my house since Maddie and Lolly were still asleep. I grabbed my purse from where I'd dropped it on the floor next to the front door last night and let myself out into the waking day.

It was beautiful out, those last cool moments of the night hanging on before the sun would fully take to the sky.

I didn't wait around in the peace of it.

Not when that's what I was fighting for.

Peace.

The true fullness of it.

I rushed to my SUV and hopped in. Anger sprang to my chest when I put the key into the ignition. I didn't hesitate to turn it over. I knew Pruitt didn't want me dead.

He wanted me pathetic and afraid.

Destitute.

Subject to his will and his hand.

He just didn't mind hurting the ones I cared about to get me there.

I backed out of the driveway, my hands shaking as I put it in drive and headed through my small neighborhood.

When I pulled out onto the two-lane road, I floored it.

A quiver of unease rolled through me as I lifted my hand to the door of the quaint house that was nestled in a family neighborhood in Time River, the trees high and the lawns manicured.

My fist rapped against the wood.

Even though the sun was steadily climbing into the sky, I shivered.

Apprehension ripped down my spine.

This was it.

There was no turning back.

It seemed like it took forever before movement finally rustled from behind the door, and the curtains swished on the window.

One second later, metal screeched as the locks were disengaged.

Savannah stood there with her daughter Olivia in front of her, a hand set over the little girl's chest.

Concern twisted up Savannah's face as she studied me. "Hailey? What are you doing here?"

"Hi, Miss Hailey! It's so good to see you. Did you bring Maddie with you? I love that I got to meet her, and me and my cousin Evelyn had the best time with her. We think she should always be with us."

Emotion clotted my throat, and I turned my attention to the little girl. "She's not with me right now, but I promise we'll get you both together to play again soon. How's that sound?"

"That sounds great! I'm going to make her a special invitation for you to take with you so she can come to my house and play on my playset!" She looked up at Savannah. "Is that okay, Mommy?"

I could feel the dread dripping from the woman as she ran a tender hand down the back of the little girl's head. "That's fine. Why don't you run and do it really quick so I can talk with Ms. Hailey?"

"On it! Stay right there, I'll be right back," Olivia peeped, and she disappeared back inside.

Savannah turned back to me, the same question I hadn't been able to answer coming low from her tongue. "What are you doing here? Are you okay?"

"I need to talk to Ezra."

She glanced around like she was looking for a threat before the terror was rolling off her tongue. "Ezra just got word from the station about what happened at Cambrey Pines yesterday. Is Cody hurt? Why didn't you call us?"

Guilt climbed up my throat, and in a bout of disquiet, I twisted my fingers. "Cody insisted that we didn't call. He wanted to be the one to tell everyone himself."

He'd known they were going to be distraught, just like it was clear Savannah was right then.

She blew out a sigh. "Well, the second Ezra heard about it, he was in his truck and heading to Cody's house."

Distress buzzed in my being.

"What is it?" she pressed.

"I really needed to talk to him. In private."

A frown pulled across her face. "Are you in trouble?"

I wavered, attention dropping to the ground because I'd carried this secret with me for so long.

Welcome to the family you didn't know you had.

The memory of what she'd whispered to me as she'd hugged me as we'd been leaving the ranch on Saturday twisted through my mind, and my heart thudded.

Because I trusted her, and it was time I stopped hiding.

Stopped hiding in plain sight.

"I am, and I need Ezra's help, but I need to do it without Cody knowing because I don't want him getting more involved than he's already been. I can't cause him any more danger than I already have."

She looked over my shoulder like Ezra might appear there. "He left twenty minutes ago. You probably passed him on the road as soon as you left."

Anxiety billowed. "Okay, well…can you call him and let him know I need to talk to him? Cody is at my house. Tell him to check in with Cody, and not to leave until I get there. I'll talk to him outside."

"Of course." She hesitated then reached for me, taking my hand. "Is there anything I can do to help? I hate this, Hailey. Hate that I can feel the fear rolling off you."

My head shook. "It's just time I stood for what's right, and I'm going to need Ezra's help to do that."

She breathed out the worry. "Okay. But I'm here. Whatever you need."

I squeezed her hand back. "Your friendship is enough. I'm so grateful for it. For all of you. For making my daughter and me feel like we belong."

"That's because you do."

Footsteps pounded from within the house, the clamor growing louder with each eager thud.

Olivia was suddenly pushing back in front of Savannah, an eager smile on her face. She rocked back on her heels as she handed me a piece of paper that was folded into a small square and had a bunch of pink tape and heart stickers all over it.

To my new best friend Maddie was scrawled in the middle.

"Would you please give this to Maddie, Miss Hailey?"

My heart clutched as I accepted it. "Absolutely."

"Go on and get your hands washed for breakfast," Savannah told her, though I knew she was making an excuse to get me alone.

"Okay, Mommy! Bye, Miss Hailey."

"Bye," I whispered, and she ran back into the house.

I looked up at Savannah. Care and worry vibrated from her.

"I'll text Ezra right now and let him know you're on your way."

"Thank you."

Throwing her arms around me, she hugged me tight. "Always and anything, Hailey. Just…be careful and text me later."

"I will."

She nodded against me, reluctant to let me go.

I finally turned and jogged back down the sidewalk that cut through the middle of their yard to my Durango that was parked at the curb.

I was quick to hop in, started it, and whipped a U-turn in the middle of the street. I wound back out of the neighborhood and hit the road that led back to Hendrickson.

My heart was lodged in my throat as I traveled.

The beat of my heart palpable there.

Anticipation and dread thick.

The forest grew up on all sides.

Dense and deep.

The rays of the rising sun blipped through the leaves of the trees, flashing above me as I drove beneath.

I wound through the desolate woods, anxiety gripping me in a vise as I raced to get back to my house.

Suddenly, I was hit with that sense again. The creepy vibe that slithered over my skin as I took the curves of the deserted, winding road.

Alarm pooled and sweat slicked my flesh.

On instinct, I glanced in the rearview mirror.

The car behind me had come from out of nowhere, trailing me at a distance.

Flashes of metallic black and the glimmering of glass striking in the rays that speared through the leaves.

The same car that had freaked me out all those weeks ago.

The same car Pruitt had been driving when he'd followed us to the gas station this last weekend.

Panic surged, my throat closing off, and I pushed down on the accelerator.

Though this time, it didn't stay back and match my speed.

It increased, gaining on me so fast it made me dizzy.

I pushed my SUV harder, flying around the corners, heart hammering out of my chest as I drove as fast as I could.

I took a sharp curve.

And the car behind me?

It flew around me, taking it sharper and cutting me off.

A scream ripped out of me as I slammed on my brakes.

My SUV went into a skid, and my back tire hit the dirt shoulder of the road.

And I couldn't control it.

Couldn't stop my car from fishtailing one direction then the other.

Couldn't stop its slide as it careened off the steep embankment on the side.

My eyes were frozen wide as fear tore through my spirit as my SUV flew through the underbrush.

Bouncing and jarring and out of control, heading directly for a giant tree.

I screamed when I slammed into it. Metal ground and glass shattered as the Durango twisted around the trunk.

Pain splintered up my left side.

The airbag deployed, and my skin felt as if it were being singed as I smashed against it.

An instant later, the bedlam quieted, just the hum of an engine fan melding with the ringing in my ears.

Disoriented, I fought for my senses, to ward off the shock that wanted to hold me hostage.

I fumbled to get my seatbelt undone, and I could barely get my hands to cooperate as I struggled to get the door wrenched open.

A daze clouded my mind as I staggered back up through the woods.

But it was horror that consumed when I made it out through the break in the trees.

Because Pruitt was glaring at me from across the distance.

And he wasn't alone.