Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 77198 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77198 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
“Someplace safe.” I took hold of her hand, then told her, “Keep your eyes closed until I tell you to open them.”
She nodded, then followed as I led her through the kitchen and out to the garage. “We’re good now. You can open your eyes.”
“Okay.”
She opened her eyes, then watched as I pulled the tarp off of my old, army-green Scout. Once I had it uncovered, we put our things in the back and got inside. Moments later, we were on the road and finally had a moment to catch our breaths. It wasn’t until then that I thought to call Hop. I reached for my phone and dialed his number. As soon as he answered, I told him, “I need a favor.”
“What’s up?”
“I need you to get Tripp and go over to the house. There’s a job that needs to be handled there.”
“A job at your place?”
“Yeah, and I’m gonna need you two to be careful,” I warned. “When you get there, you’ll see why.”
“Damn, Billy. Do you think this has got something to do with the girl?”
“Maybe, but there’s no way to know for sure. Regardless, I need to know you’re gonna take care of it.”
“You can count on me. You know that.”
“Thanks, Hop.”
“Don’t mention it.”
As soon as he hung up, I eased over to the shoulder of the road and pulled up Kiersten’s number. I hated to message her so late, but I didn’t have a choice. I needed to make sure she didn’t go by the house until I’d sorted things with Antonio.
Me:
Hey.
Need you to steer clear of the house for a while.
Kiersten:
Why? What’s going on?”
Me:
Nothing’s going on. I’m just getting some work done.
They’re going to be spraying tomorrow.
Kiersten:
Spraying what?”
Me:
Just don’t go by the house.
Kiersten:
I won’t.
At least, not anytime soon. I’m still in Boston, remember?
Me:
I forgot about your conference.
How’s that going?
Kiersten:
It’s great. I’m learning so much.
Me:
Glad to hear it.
Kiersten:
Is everything okay?
Me:
Everything’s fine. I’m about to call it a night.
I’ll give you a call tomorrow.
Kiersten:
Okay. Love you.
Me:
Love you, too.
Once I was sure the message had gone through, I dropped my phone in the console, then pulled back onto the road. I glanced over at Everleigh and found her staring out the passenger window. She looked like she was on the brink of a complete breakdown. “You okay over there?”
“I would be lying if I said I was.”
“It’s going to be okay.”
“You sound pretty sure of yourself.”
“That’s because I am. You’ll see.”
We drove for another hour or so, and then I took the exit for Radnor Lake. My father had a cabin there and left it to me when he died. There wasn’t much to the place. I’d kept it, thinking I’d use it for fishing, but the most I ever did was go by now and then to check on the place. It wasn’t much, but it was secluded and still in my father’s name—which would buy us some time to figure out what to do about our friend Antonio.
When we pulled up to the cabin, I turned my headlights on bright, then told Everleigh, “Hold tight while I go turn the lights on.”
She nodded, then watched as I got out of the truck and walked up to the cabin’s front steps. Once I was inside, I turned on all the lights and checked each of the rooms to make sure everything was in order. It didn’t take long. There were only two bedrooms with a decent-sized bathroom, a small kitchenette, and a living room, and the décor was sparse at best. As I looked around, I was pleased to see that it was still reasonably clean. It just needed a few touchups here and there and clean sheets on the bed.
After I’d checked it all out, I went back out to the truck and opened the passenger-side door. “We’re all set.”
“Is this your place?”
“It was my dad’s place.” I grabbed her bags from the back, then led her up to the front door. “It isn’t much, but we’ll be safe here.”
She looked a bit skeptical, but she headed inside and followed me down the short hallway to the master bedroom. I placed her things on the dresser as I told her, “This will be you for the next few days. I’m gonna go out and get the rest of our stuff, and then, I’ll come back and help you change the sheets.”
“I can do it. Just tell me where they are.”
“There’s a plastic tub in the closet. You can get whatever you need from there.”
“Okay. Got it.”
While she got busy changing her sheets, I went out to the truck and got the rest of our bags. After I locked up, I went back in and put everything away. I spent a little time cleaning up—not because it needed it, but because it helped keep my mind off the three men I’d just killed. That didn’t work, so I took a shower and put on fresh clothes.