Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 94512 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94512 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
The hard truth remained. Nothing about the way he lived his life had or would change the past. It never would. But one thing was certain. If he held on to that anger and hatred, the only thing it would accomplish was to ruin his future.
“I need to let the shit go somehow.” Dare ran a hand through his hair in frustration.
“Seems to me admitting it is taking the first step.”
Dare let out a laugh. “Yeah? What’s the second?”
Ethan shrugged. “You’ll figure it out.”
Yeah, he probably would. And Liza might forgive him. Whether she’d believe in him again, though? That remained to be seen.
* * *
Liza passed the weekend by keeping busy drafting sketches and doing work. She’d checked on Tess by calling Faith, and thank goodness, the teenager had come through her ordeal and was getting better. Faith hadn’t mentioned Dare or the scene Friday night, and neither had Liza. And though it was now Monday morning, she hadn’t heard a word from Dare.
Pushing aside the hurt that thought caused, she called her brother yet again. This time, his voicemail was full. Of course he hadn’t been in touch either. No big shock there, but a part of her had been hoping Brian would somehow come through. Man up. Bring her the money. Worry about her safety. Something.
Instead, nothing.
As usual, she was on her own.
Though the men who expected her to pay up hadn’t called, she headed to the bank anyway with Cara by her side. The teller explained they needed a full business day to get that kind of cash together, and Liza’s nerves were jangling as she waited to tell the man who’d be calling.
When she finally heard from him, a phone call at three o’clock, her hands shook as she explained she needed twenty-four hours for the small bank branch in Serendipity to get that amount of money in. To Liza’s shock, the guy on the phone understood and didn’t threaten her at all.
On Cara’s advice, Liza firmly told him she wanted to meet in a public place. As civilized as possible, she thought wryly.
Again to her surprise, he readily agreed. On Wednesday at five o’clock, someone would meet her in her office to take the package off her hands.
“No cop boyfriend,” the man on the phone warned her.
Liza wanted to laugh out loud and inform him he had nothing to worry about on that score.
Instead, she merely said, “No problem.”
“And no cop friends either.” He obviously referred to Cara. Which meant Liza was definitely being watched.
She shivered. “Fine. There’ll be people around the office, though,” she warned him.
“Office staff and employees won’t be a problem,” he said in a gruff voice before disconnecting the call.
Liza glanced at Cara, who’d been sitting by her side. “Well, that was too easy.”
Cara shook her dark ponytail. “These guys just want their money. That’s all that matters, so honestly, this should be a simple handoff.” Cara smiled. “You’re doing great.”
Liza glanced down at her shaking hands and wondered how Cara performed her duties on a daily basis. “I don’t feel great.” She was worn out from lack of sleep and frazzled by fear.
“It’ll be over soon,” Cara assured her.
“I know.”
Cara’s compassionate tone and the fact that she was here helping without complaint reminded her of Dare.
Liza wanted to ask her if she’d spoken to him and whether she’d told him about the threat and the money, but she refrained. He couldn’t have made himself any clearer about how he felt, and though she understood his past better thanks to Cara, that didn’t change his inability to accept her.
Besides, it wasn’t as if he’d tried to get in touch with Liza over the weekend either. Her instinct on Friday had been correct. She needed to cut him out of her life, and going cold turkey was the simplest way. No matter how painful the withdrawal might be.
* * *
Finding Brian McKnight had been simpler than Dare thought. So simple it boggled the mind. On a hunch, Dare called on Annabelle at her antique shop. He wanted to look the storekeeper in the eye when he asked her if she’d heard from Brian McKnight. The man had to reach out to someone, and Annabelle had seemed to care about him. One glance into her eyes, and he hit pay dirt.
The woman wasn’t trained in the fine art of lying. Her eyes darted everywhere but at Dare when she answered his question, hemming and hawing while attempting to reply.
He’d finally laid it on the line, telling her that Liza was in danger because of her brother’s actions and that if she knew where Brian was, she’d be helping them both by admitting it.
Now Dare stood at a seedy hotel in a neighboring town to Serendipity. From the looks of the place, guests probably paid by the night and most checked out sooner rather than later.