Chapter 68

Chapter Sixty-Eight

W hen I arrive at Kelly’s, I park behind June’s car and turn off the engine. As soon as I step out, Kelly’s front door swings open, and I spot June, which makes me breathe a sigh of relief. My daughter is safe, and that’s what matters most right now. We’re out of the house where Ezra could come and go, and that’s a step in the right direction.

“Cora, what the… shit, why do you look like? Was that…”

“Don’t worry about it. I was just clumsy and had an unfortunate fall down the stairs yesterday. But apart from a few bruises, I’m fine. Really,” I interrupt Kelly quickly and give her a warning look before turning to June, who is looking at me with shock and concern in equal measure.

“My God, Mom,” she gasps.

Quickly, I take her in my arms and hug her tightly.

“I’m going to be fine, I promise,” I try to reassure her.

“Then what’s all this about? Why are we supposed to move in with Aunt Kelly, and why can’t I go home? What’s going on, Mom?” June demands to know, understandably confused.

I give Kelly a meaningful look. She helps me with the suitcases so I can take care of June and calm her down. I lead her into the house and sit with her on the black leather couch.

“June, it’s difficult to explain, and I can’t tell you exactly what’s happening. But we aren’t safe at home. Ezra… there are suspicions he did bad things to some of his ex-girlfriends. I don’t feel safe near him anymore, and since your father unexpectedly had to go on a business trip for two weeks yesterday, I don’t feel safe anyway. That’s why we’ll stay here for now, and then we’ll see.”

June frowns, completely confused, while Kelly’s makeup almost falls off her face. She is so horrified by my story. I’m about to tell her everything in detail, but not in front of June.

“Mom, what are you talking about? And what assumptions? Who said something so terrible? Ezra as a wife-beater? That’s complete nonsense. You know him better than I do, and you know he’s a nice guy who would never do something like that,” June counters, trying to defend him.

I can’t blame her. If I had the choice, I’d rather believe that none of this is true. Maybe Jenny is lying, and I’ve lost Ezra forever because I didn’t talk to him about it immediately. But what if it is true? Should I put my daughter’s life at risk just because I don’t want to lose my affair? I can’t take any risks.

So, I’d better play it safe and try to do some research. I need to find out the truth.

Let’s just hope I can avoid Ezra and it doesn’t get as bad as Jenny suggested with her friend Sarah. But I can’t worry about that right now.

June still looks like she doesn’t believe a word I say.

“June, please promise me you’ll stay away from Ezra until we know for sure! You may not work for him anymore,” I demand of her.

“But, Mom, who said that?” she objects, demanding answers.

I understand her concern, but it’s not the right time to explain everything. I take a deep breath, trying to stay calm. There’s no point in panicking or losing my nerve now.

“An old acquaintance of Ezra’s came to see me and told me things… June, they were very disturbing.”

“What, that’s it? Some old friend—probably an angry ex—and we’re judging and avoiding him?” June blurts out, stunned.

She looks at me with wide eyes and pierces me with her gaze. And maybe she’s right about what she’s saying. But maybe Ezra is lying, and everything Jenny has told me is true.

June just doesn’t understand. For her, there’s only black or white. She doesn’t see the danger; it’s up to me to protect her.

“Promise me, June!” I interrupt her in a sharp voice.

She flinches briefly as I rarely raise my voice. But when I do, she knows I mean it.

“I’m trying to find out more, but until the doubts are dispelled, we must stay away from him!”

She scowls and looks away, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

“And where am I supposed to sleep?” she grumbles, clearly in a bad mood.

I understand her frustration, and I wish I could change things, but it’s just the way it is right now. She’s probably wishing she could return to campus, but unfortunately, the first semester of her new degree doesn’t start for a few months.

“Upstairs in one of the two guest rooms. You can pick. You remember where they are, don’t you?” Kelly answers kindly and smiles encouragingly at her.

June nods and rises without giving me a second glance, grabs her suitcase, and disappears upstairs. When we hear the door slam with a loud bang, we know she’s out of earshot.

“What the hell happened yesterday, and what are you talking about?” Kelly whispers, stunned, and drags me into the kitchen to ensure the children hear nothing.

“Kelly, you won’t believe a word I say when I tell you everything that’s happened in the last twelve hours,” I sigh and settle down on one of her bar stools.

“Come on. It’s better with an enormous glass of wine,” Kelly offers and pours us both a glass before she hands me mine, and I tell her everything that’s happened since I left her house yesterday.

I leave nothing out. I tell her about Thomas’s situation, my feelings for Ezra, that I wanted to be with him, and then about Jenny’s appearance and the new insights she’s given me. Also, how I more or less ran away from Ezra without him even knowing I’d left him.

“Wow. This is… crazy, Cora. This is all completely insane. You’re going to believe this bullshit from some random girl? How you described her to me, the girl didn’t appear believable. Why didn’t you call him out on it?” Kelly asks, shaking her head.

“Kelly, you didn’t see her. She was scared to death of him. She was not playing around! Besides, she showed me an old newspaper article about his arrest. I thought there was something to it, so I had to leave. If only because of June!” I tried to convince her it was the right decision.

“Right, let’s assume the girl was telling the truth. What do you want to do then? Call the police?”

“They won’t help us. Legally speaking, he did nothing, and everything else is conjectured and insinuated, which no one can prove. Ezra has been released from prison. We have to prove he really killed all those girls who disappeared or allegedly killed themselves. Anything else won’t help,” I reply thoughtfully.

“Great. And how do we get this evidence if the police couldn’t find anything back then?” Kelly grumbles, shaking her head again in disbelief.

“Thomas is a lawyer. Just one phone call from me as his secretary, and we get all the files emailed to us,” I shrug.

When my cell phone rings, Kelly is about to say something, which makes me wince. It takes me a moment before I dare to check who it is. When Ezra’s name appears on the screen, I almost drop it in shock. He’s calling me, even though I told him I needed to spend time with my daughter!

The phone rings, but there is a message less than two seconds later, and then there is another. My cell phone won’t stop ringing at all.

“What’s he writing?” Kelly wants to know.

Ezra: Where are you, Beauty?

Ezra: Why aren’t you answering?

Ezra: …

Ezra: Why isn’t your car in front of the garage?

Ezra: And why does your closet look like you’re packed?

Ezra: Beauty????

Ezra: ????

I read the messages to Kelly. Meanwhile, my cell phone is bombarded with more messages and countless calls. I can’t stand the ringing anymore and throw my cell phone beside me on the couch.

“This is crazy! Cora, he’s in your house! How did he get into your house?” Kelly asks, horrified.

“You see! That’s why we had to leave. He’s in and out of my house. Who knows what he’s been up to there?”

I shiver and rub my arms. It’s all so scary. How could I not see all this? Ezra’s other side ? How could I have let him blind me like that?

My cell phone rings again, and Kelly jumps up, grabs it, and taps something.

“What are you doing?” I asked her in alarm because it was my plan to ignore him and not provoke him.

“I’m texting him now to tell that little psycho ass to leave you alone!” she snorts angrily and continues typing.

I quickly snatch my cell phone from her hand before she sends the message and I delete the text.

“No! I’m going to block him and stay silent. Because no matter what I say to him, he’ll just try to talk his way out of it. But I don’t want to hear about it. Besides, I don’t want Jenny to get into trouble with him or anything to happen to her,” I admonish her before looking at my phone again and putting what I’ve said into action.

The ringing stops immediately and there are no more calls. I sink back onto the couch with a sigh and run my fingers through my curls. My head is full, and everything is spinning with all that’s going on.

“So we’re going to believe the little girl and look for clues?” Kelly asks again.

I raise my eyes and nod.

“Yes. Will you get your laptop?”

Kelly nods and disappears into her office, which is more decorative than anything else. She no longer has to work due to her ex-husband’s high alimony payments.

My thoughts are spinning, and I don’t know how to get things back in order. Until yesterday, my biggest problem was that I had separated from my husband because he was once again violent toward me. That was peanuts compared to what I’m up to my ears in now. I have to find something…