Chapter 7

Chapter

Seven

Elizabeth rarely cried. Staying in control of herself and her emotions had been drilled into her. If she ever allowed herself to fall apart, it was late at night, in her bathroom, alone, with the shower running. Right now, with Hays holding her, she wanted to sob and let him protect her and solve her problems.

That had never happened and could never happen for her. He couldn't pledge himself to her, die for her. No way. Hays was tough enough to beat anyone in battle, even Peter, and somehow he'd retained the purity, kindness, and humor, all the parts of Hays that she'd fallen in love with as an eighteen-year-old.

She was neither pure nor good, and she would never endanger him or allow him, or his family or friends, to be tainted by her horrific world. She'd convince Quaid of the danger and then she'd return to purgatory to live out her sentence. Without Hays.

Elizabeth straightened away from him. She needed to shove him away, but she could already see it would be a fight. One she'd have to deal with later. She hadn't even fully explained and apologized for his rejection and beating at her hands, and still he stood by her, supported her. He was far too good for her.

"We need to move," she said, precluding the need for everyone else in the room, including her brother and sister, to reiterate why they didn't trust her. These men talked tough, especially Aiden Porter, and they had bested her guards, but if Father couldn't win with his guards or mercenaries, he'd win another way. He actually preferred the more unconventional methods.

Panic pressed at her chest, and an urgency to run followed. "Can some of you help get my guards and me on the plane? Then you all will go into hiding along with everyone you love who could be used to control you."

There were grunts of disapproval. Regarding them and their loved ones hiding?

"Elizabeth," Quaid said. "This all comes down to us trusting you. If you're lying, we'll ship you out with your guards. Paul will fly you and we'll have Aiden and his men accompany you and get you all home safe." His smile was sarcastic.

Would he willingly risk Aiden Porter and his men like that? Aiden had already put a target on his back when he had stood with Anna and Sutton Smith to rescue Quaid. Father hadn't acted against him. Yet. Was Aiden's beautiful wife, Chalisa Anderson Porter, with her family on the Hidden Kingdom of Magna? She'd seen photos of Chalisa's tough brother-in-law General Kingston Magnum, but even his army and Aiden Porter's men wouldn't be enough if Father set his sights on them. He could easily have someone sneak a bomb into the palace or poison their water supply. Their entire island nation could be wiped out.

"If you're telling the truth," Quaid said, interrupting her stewing, "we're not sending you back."

"Pardon?" Elizabeth couldn't believe what he'd just said. She stared into her brother's blue eyes, so similar to her own, and then up into Hays's deep-brown gaze. "You can't be serious." Quaid trusted her and wanted to rescue her from Father? That wasn't in her plans.

"Dead serious," Hays interjected.

Quaid and the other men in the room nodded. Anna smiled encouragingly. The angelic lady didn't know how to not like someone or be cautious. Even the cues from her husband didn't terrify her.

Jacey also smiled, but it was tremulous. "I don't know how to wrap my mind around our beaten-down dad being the devil behind Mother, but I want to know the truth. I love you, Lizzy. I always have."

Elizabeth sucked in a breath as if someone had gut punched her. Jacey loved her? She stepped back, tears pricking at her eyelids. Hays was right there to catch her. He wrapped an arm around her waist and cuddled her against his side. He was tall, strong, protective. The boy she'd adored grown into the most appealing man in the world. Could she just lean into him for a day, a month, a lifetime?

No. The answer was no, but she couldn't make herself straighten away from him just yet.

"I never intended to be rescued," she admitted quietly. She couldn't plan on it now. They were all being kind and optimistic. There was no time for either.

"Liz." Hays's voice was gravelly. "You've been carrying this burden alone for too long. We will all help you and protect you."

Elizabeth could never accept the kind of protection Hays was alluding to, but she did need their help to keep them safe. Maybe one day they could take down Father, with Aiden Porter and Sutton Smith working together and any inside information she could convey. Those two powerful men had imagined they were through with this project when they'd exposed Mother and gotten her arrested. She hoped they'd help Quaid fight Father. If there was a way to defeat him, these people could do it. Elizabeth would probably be caught in the crossfire like Mother and either be killed or arrested. That didn't matter if Quaid, Jacey, and Hays could be safe.

She looked around the room. "You all … will help me?"

The men nodded soberly, and Anna and Jacey gave her watery smiles.

"You trust me?" she squeaked out, meeting her brother's gaze.

"No," Quaid said, ruining the moment, but it was for the best. She was grateful he wasn't letting his guard down and simply trusting her on her word. If she could convince him Father was the puppeteer, she'd have to then convince them to go into deep hiding and work out a plan where she went back and sacrificed herself to keep them all safe. Could she distract Father so he didn't start kidnapping and torturing their loved ones? At least until Quaid, Aiden, and Sutton Smith could scheme up a brilliant way to fight him? She still didn't dare hope to win. Even the illustrious Sutton Smith didn't have the power or connections Father did. Her father used evil and extortion to force people to do nefarious things to safeguard their loved ones. The scarier thing was that nobody but her, and maybe Peter, had any idea how connected or dangerous Benjamin Oliver was. Anyone with money could hire an army, but there were so many worse things that her father could do, had done.

"But Clint will either have a lie detector test or find one," Quaid continued.

The sheriff nodded.

"No need to find a polygraph machine," Aiden put in. "I've got Eye Detect on my plane. It's more accurate."

"Nice."

"Hays, you and Clint take Cade and the ladies," Quaid instructed. "Aiden and I will give instructions to the other men about the guards, go retrieve his test, and meet up. Let's move out."

"Quaid," Elizabeth said. "You shouldn't let Father's men see where we're going. Especially Peter."

"You think I was born yesterday?" Quaid asked, smirking at her.

She tried to smile back, but she was a quivering mess. She'd be in a heap on the wood floor if Hays wasn't holding her up.

"Wait." Aiden held up a hand. "My dad and Sutton both trained me to never overlook hidden implants that could be a tracking device. Benjamin has almost certainly injected something like that into her. Especially after you and Jacey both escaped."

Elizabeth's stomach turned over. She put a hand to it, leaning even more heavily into Hays.

"There was a small dental implant in Jacey's cheek that Miles had removed before she came to the ranch," Clint said.

Jacey nodded.

Quaid blew out a breath. "I don't think they planned on my escape nine years ago. I didn't have an implant."

"Doc could remove any device and we can trust him," the sheriff piped in, "but how do we scan for it? Miles used his Navy contacts. I doubt Doc's X-ray machine will pick it up, and we'd have to go to Missoula for a more in-depth scan. Keeping people from recognizing Elizabeth Oliver would be tough."

"I've got scanners on my plane." Aiden smiled. "I always keep the newest gadgets with me."

"How do you fit any humans on your plane?" Jacey teased Aiden, diffusing the tension a bit.

He smiled. "I'm very organized."

Elizabeth felt like a dog tagged at the local animal shelter. She didn't like the thought of a tracker inside her cheek or some hometown ‘Doc' removing it, but if it meant her father couldn't track her and come find these people and hurt them, she would do whatever she needed to do.

"Soon you'll be free," Hays said. "We'll all work together to take down your father and then you can do what you've always longed to do."

Elizabeth stared at him. His words didn't compute. Freedom? Her father ‘taken down'? Do what she longed to do?

She had no hopes, no dreams. If Hays, Jacey, Quaid, and their spouses were safe and her father couldn't continue to use her or any of them for his diabolical plans, her mission in life would be complete. What purpose could she possibly have beyond that?

Hays held her gaze, and there was a world of hope and promise there. Was he saying that the two of them could revisit the connection and sparks they'd discovered in communications class years ago? She had an image of her and Hays walking together along an icy path in a small village in Greenland, him telling her silly knock-knock jokes.

Hope fluttered in her chest. It was foreign and she couldn't allow it to grow. There were a multitude of pieces to put into place, far too many steps to take, miracles that would have to happen, and she didn't believe in heavenly help any longer. She had to deal with one step at a time, divulge all the information in her head to Aiden and Quaid so they could prepare for any eventuality with her father.

Hope couldn't be allowed.

Hope in a future with Hays would distract her and endanger him. She was too dark and broken for someone like Hays.

"Let's go," Quaid urged.

Everyone started moving. Hays kept his arm around her.

"How did you end up involved in all of this?" she asked, looking up at him.

"Originally, Quaid brought me here to ascertain what you were all about," he said as he escorted her to the front door.

Her stomach flipped. Quaid had never trusted her.

"I've accomplished that, and I trust you." Hays gently squeezed her waist and gave her a smile that made her pulse quicken. "Now my purpose is to protect and support you."

His very touch supported and invigorated her.

She stopped walking on the wide front porch, then tugged him to the side so the others could go around them. "Hays. You can't. You don't understand my life, what I've seen, what I've done. I'd only endanger and hurt you."

Hays's deep-brown eyes were determined. "You don't know what I've seen, what I've done. I'll protect you, then we'll heal together. The Savior will help us and guide us."

She pulled away from him. "I know you're an elite Navy SEAL and your experiences have been hard, challenging, maybe even disturbing like my own. I can respect you turning to the Savior, but I can never go there. Let's focus on what Quaid needs us to do to keep everyone safe."

Walking away from him, she kept her head high and ignored the speculative glances from Jacey and Anna. Hays shadowed her. His patience and persistence tugged at her heart.

"Knock knock," he whispered close to her ear.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Who's there?"

"Stopwatch."

"Stopwatch who?" She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and turned to him.

"Stopwatch you're doing and let me in."

His dark eyes begged her. She couldn't.

He needed to do whatever job was required of him, then get far away from her. For his physical and emotional safety. They were polar opposites now. She could easily see that. Why couldn't he?