by Cate Beauman
She forced another smile, not bothering to correct the woman’s natural assumption. “Thank you.”
“How old?”
“Just about twelve weeks.”
“Aw. They grow fast,” she said as she rang up the items and folded them into a bag.
“They sure do.”
Faith settled and closed her eyes again.
“That’ll be one hundred and fifty dollars and thirty-eight cents.”
Reagan handed over her credit card, then signed her slip.
“Come again.”
“Thanks.” She started back through the store, making her way toward the mall, looking again at the sweater that reminded her of Shane as her phone rang. Fighting with the bags, she finally reached into her purse. “Hello?”
“This is so amazin’! I think I might’ve died and gone to heaven.”
She smiled, infected by Jenny’s giddy pleasure. “So you’re having fun?”
“Yes. They keep callin’ me Ms. Hendley, and they gave me lemon water and a couple of fancy chocolates on a pretty plate to eat while I wait for my hair to process. I’m usin’ their guest phone.”
She laughed. “I’m glad you’re having a good time.”
“It’s the best. First the massage, then my nails—I got a French manicure on my fingernails and on my toenails to match.”
“I can’t wait to see.” She started toward the exit.
“I watched the lady real carefully. When we get home I wanna try and do one on you.”
“Sure.” She liked having another girl around. It was fun playing with makeup and nail polish. “So, I found you a few long-sleeved shirts and sweaters and a couple more pairs of jeans. Oh, and a really cute pair of pajamas.”
“You bought me more clothes?”
“And Faith too. It’s getting cold.”
“Reagan, I got plenty.”
Shopping had been as much therapy as necessity. Her mid-morning call from The Project’s director had wreaked havoc on her nerves all day. As Reagan navigated the roads to Lexington, her boss had spoken of budget cuts and a renewed push in Washington to eradicate wasteful spending. Apparently The Appalachia Project’s funding was now in question. If patients weren’t going to utilize the clinic, the program would be shut down. They had sixty days to improve their numbers or the director would have no choice but to pull the plug. “Well, now you have more.”
“Shirley and me always shared a couple pairs of clothes between us. I guess I never knew it could be like this.”
This is exactly what she wanted for Jenny—amazing new experiences, positive mentors, an education, good, nutritious food, and pretty clothes. Now she needed to make sure the young mother and her baby got to keep everything they had. Although Jenny had a child of her own, the state of Kentucky still considered her a minor. In the eyes of the law, she and her infant daughter weren’t free to just up and leave without parental permission. For the next twelve months, Reagan needed to make certain she could stay in The Gap, but without a decent place to live and the protection of their security team in the hostile little town, there weren’t a lot of safe, feasible options for her and the girls. “It can be so much better. I can’t wait to show you.”
“I don’t know how. I guess maybe if Shane were here.”
She didn’t want to think about Shane. There was already too much on her mind. Today was supposed to be a happy day—the kickoff for Jenny’s girls-only birthday weekend. With threats at a minimum, Chase was at home keeping an eye on the pill safe while she showed Jenny the time of her life.
“Oh, the stylist is ready to wash my hair.”
“I can’t wait to see you. Faith and I are going to start heading back to the hotel. We’ll stop by the salon in about twenty minutes. Our dinner reservations are at five—right after Faith eats, so hopefully she’ll sleep.”
“I’ll see you soon.”
“Okay.” She hung up and pulled out her keys as she neared the exit. Dropping them, she stopped and bent down awkwardly with the baby and her bags, frowning when she spotted the man in the brown leather jacket walking several steps behind her. She’d noticed him in a few of the stores she’d been in over the last couple of hours.
They made eye contact, and he moved into the candle shop. Turning, she kept going, reassuring herself their brief encounters had only been a coincidence.
~~~~
Reagan sampled more of the delicious crème brulee she and Jenny were sharing. During the last hour, she’d had the pleasure of watching Jenny enjoy another new experience—a three-course meal prepared perfectly by an amazing chef.
“And they put cucumbers on my eyelids like you see in the movies.” She grinned as she scooped up more of their dessert. “I felt like a real city girl.” The excited teenager hadn’t stopped talking since Reagan stepped into the hotel’s salon to pick her up.
“You look like a real city girl.” Jenny was beautiful, wearing her red cap-sleeved button blazer and sleek black slacks. Her skin glowed from her mini facial, and her blond hair, now cut in long layers, had subtle highlights and lowlights, adding flair and sophistication.
“I can’t believe I’ve actually been to a spa, and tonight I ate filet mignon!” She grinned again. “I don’t know how I’ll ever want anythin’ else now that I’ve had what you and Shane have given me.”
“We gave you a chance. You ran with the opportunities.”
“I want to make you proud.” She looked up from under her lashes.
“Mission accomplished.” She set down her spoon.
Jenny smiled as Faith started fussing in her carrier close to the table. “Looks like we finished just in time.” Jenny unsnapped the baby from the seat. “Hi, Faithy.” She kissed her cheek and earned a smile. Jenny grinned again. “Did you wake up a happy girl?”
Reagan studied the young mother and her daughter in the glow of candlelight. For all the setbacks and disappointments she’d faced since her arrival in The Gap, she was certain she and Shane had done one thing perfectly right. She needed to find a way to get Jenny and Faith out of here. Jenny no longer belonged in Black Bear Gap. She and Faith both needed to be in a place where they could continue to thrive. “Should we go?”
“Yes.”
She waved to their waiter, setting the already-signed check at the edge of the table, and they walked out.
“Perfect,” Jenny said as they moved into the lobby and the elevator doors slid open, letting out a group.
“Let’s head up. We’ll play with Ms. Faith and make her nice and sleepy, then we’ll order snacks.”
Jenny’s eyes widened. “Like from room service?”
“Definitely.” She loved Jenny’s enthusiasm for the things she’d always taken for granted. During her childhood, she’d yearned for affection and understanding, but she’d never done without the creature comforts Jenny was only now experiencing. She pushed the button for the third floor and did a double take when she spotted the man in the leather jacket she remembered from the mall sitting on the couch reading a newspaper. She moved to step out, but the doors closed her in.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” She smiled reassuringly, sliding her hand over Faith’s back as the elevator car climbed. “Nothing’s wrong. I just thought I saw someone I know.”
Jenny frowned. “From The Gap?”
She had no idea who the man was or where he was from. “No.”
The door opened on the third floor, and they stepped out. Reagan let them into their room, glanced both ways in the hall, then bolted the lock with an unsteady hand and slid the security bar in place for good measure. She no longer had any doubts that she was being followed.
Chapter Twenty-seven
Reagan turned right toward the GED testing center, placing a steadying hand on the cake box and pretty bouquet of flowers she and Faith had picked out in celebration of Jenny’s big day. She glanced at the dashboard clock, knowing she and the baby would be waiting a good ten minutes, but Faith was fed and sl
eeping, and she was eager to celebrate Jenny’s huge step toward independence.
Her gaze wandered to the rearview mirror, as it had more than a few times, searching for the black car she remembered seeing on her ride home from Doctor Schlibenburg’s. She found herself wondering if the vehicle that had followed her belonged to the man with the leather jacket. She hadn’t seen him since the night she stepped into the hotel elevator, but she wasn’t about to believe he’d just disappeared.
She never mentioned the incidents in Lexington to Chase. She didn’t plan to say anything until she had a solid plan in place for herself and the girls, especially with the director’s frequent e-mails pressuring her to find a solution to their nonexistent patient load and his not-so-subtle hints that avoiding any further conflicts with community members was in her best interest. If Chase mentioned this new issue to the director, he might shut them down even earlier, and she wasn’t ready to be on her own in The Gap without someone from Ethan Cooke Security.
The urge to call Shane and share all of the crazy new developments had been hard to suppress, yet she had. It had been nearly a week since he left—a rough transition for all of them, but Jenny didn’t seem quite as weepy. They were finding a new routine that included Chase, but it wasn’t the same. Their new bodyguard was a great guy. He took turns making meals, but he wasn’t hands-on with the baby, nor did he offer to help Jenny with her studies the way Shane always had. Instead, he tirelessly worked on reports and spent several hours on the phone with someone or other out in Los Angeles—on occasion speaking in Farsi.
In the six days since Shane’s departure, she’d slept little and worried often, her conversations with The Project’s director constantly weighing on her mind. She’d done her best to try to improve damaged local relationships by stopping by the market more frequently and suggesting a bonfire with a marshmallow roast and hot chocolate, but no one nibbled at the idea the way they had the food swap several weeks ago.
At this point, there was little hope the residents of The Gap would decide she wasn’t some conniving government liar sent here to screw with their jobs. Every day that ticked by was a reminder that time was running short to find a way to get Jenny and Faith out of here.
She rubbed at the tension squeezing her shoulders, the excitement she’d managed to drum up for the day diminishing with the burden of her thoughts. Turning into the parking lot, she frowned when she spotted Jenny pinned up against the alley sidewall by the young man she could only assume was the infamous Terry. “You son of a bitch.” Jerking the SUV to a halt, she yanked open her door. “Hey! Get your hands off her!”
Terry turned, sneering. “Well if it ain’t Hot Doc to the rescue.”
“Let me go, Terry.” Jenny struggled to free herself.
“I’m thinkin’ the doctor should come make me.” He laughed.
Reagan steamed forward, shoving at Terry, slamming her heel into his toes. “Let her go.”
“Ow!” He released his grip on Jenny.
“Jenny get in the car.” She stepped closer to Terry. “You keep your hands off her.” She whirled around, ready to leave, and was yanked back and shoved against the wall, ignoring the jarring smack to her shoulder. “You keep your hands off me too, you little bastard.”
He gripped her arms tighter, holding her in place. “That’s not real Christian of you now, Fed.
“Reagan.” Jenny got back out, crying, starting their way.
“Stay in the car,” she shouted, staring into Terry’s dilated pupils, realizing he was high on something.
“Don’t be bossin’ my girl around. If she wants me she’s welcome to come on back.” He loomed closer to her face, any traces of humor leaving his eyes. “Where’s my daughter, Hot Doc?”
“She’s at home with the bodyguard,” Reagan lied.
“You tryin’ to keep me from my kid?”
“What I’m about to do is call the cops and file a report.” She pushed against him.
Terry shoved her back for the second time. “I wouldn’t be makin’ a fool mistake like that.” He squeezed her arms until she whimpered. “The Gap ain’t real happy with you these days. Lots of people are wantin’ you gone. You’ve been nothin’ but trouble since you got here. It’d be a darn shame if you disappeared.”
“Messing with a federal employee isn’t a good idea. If you’re smart you’ll remember that.”
He hooted. “She’s a feisty one.” His smile vanished. “You stole my kid and my girl, and I’m thinkin’ I might be fixin’ to take ‘em back.”
“Your threats are pathetic.” But she swallowed fear, studying the sores on his face and his rotting teeth.
“Oh, I’m not threatenin’, I’m promisin’. Jenny and Faith only wake up in that cabin every day ‘cause I’m lettin’ it be that way. You start involvin’ the cops in what’s mine and Jenny’s business, that might not be happenin’ no more.”
“You leave Jenny and Faith alone or I will involve the police. That’s my promise to you.”
A slow smile spread across his face. “Don’t say I didn’t warn ya.”
She fought to free herself from his bruising fingers, got in the vehicle, and backed out with a screech, tossing Jenny a hot look. “What is he doing here, Jenny? I thought we agreed you were going to stay away from him.”
“I didn’t tell him I was gonna be here.”
“Then how’d he know you were going to be at the testing center thirty miles away from The Gap?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.” She turned her body and stared out her window, her breath rushing in and out.
“Jenny—”
“I’m not talkin’ to you, Reagan.”
She took a deep, steadying breath, gripping trembling hands against the wheel, saying nothing more during the tense forty-minute ride back to town. Finally, she followed the last twist in the road to the cabin and pulled into the spot next to Chase’s vehicle.
Jenny wasted no time getting out, grabbing Faith’s carrier from the back and hurrying inside.
She swallowed, shaking her head, knowing she’d handled the entire situation poorly. Raising her voice to Jenny wasn’t right. Accusing before she knew the whole story was wrong as well. Sighing, she shouldered her purse and Faith’s diaper bag, then grabbed the cake, flowers, and gift. This wasn’t the way she’d wanted the day to go. This afternoon was supposed to be a celebration of Jenny’s accomplishments. Stepping inside, she smiled at Chase sitting on the couch with his laptop on his thighs. “Hi.”
“How’d it go?”
“Um, fine.” She set the stuff on the entryway table and sat on the cushion next to him. “Uh, we had a small run-in with Terry.”
He frowned, sitting up. “Jenny’s ex?”
She licked her lips. “Yeah. He was at the testing center when I picked her up. Shane told him to stay away from Jenny here on the property, but it wouldn’t hurt if we keep an eye out for him anyway.”
The crease in his brow deepened. “Did he threaten her?”
She rubbed at her still-throbbing arms, remembering Terry’s promises. If she told Chase about the incident he would probably insist they involve the police. Chase didn’t know Jenny or understand the delicate dynamics of her situation. She couldn’t trust and confide in him the way she had Shane. She wasn’t taking any chances that their new bodyguard might call the authorities and give Terry a reason to follow through with what he’d said. “No but I think from now on you should be with Jenny and Faith here on the property and whenever we go out.” There would be no more solo trips for her and the girls. “I don’t want him anywhere near Jenny or the baby.”
“Of course.”
She smiled her relief, certain Chase was more than capable of keeping Terry at bay. “Thanks.” Standing, she went back for the goodies she bought, put the flowers in a makeshift vase, and cut two slices of cake, setting the items on a tray along with the present she’d had wrapped. “There’s cake in the kitchen,” she said to Chase on her way through the living
room.
“Thanks.”
“Sure.” She straightened her shoulders and walked to Jenny’s room. “Jenny?”
“Go away.”
She pressed her lips together and fought with the doorknob anyway.
“I said go away.”
“I heard you.” She set the tray on the dresser as she looked at Jenny curled in a miserable ball in the center of her bed. “Jenny, I—”
“I passed all seven sections—with distinction.” She sat up, wiping at her cheeks. “Just in case you cared.”
Her guilt doubled, well aware she’d ruined Jenny’s special day. “Congratulations.” She nibbled her bottom lip as she and Jenny stared at each other in the awkward silence. “Faith and I picked out some things for you today.”
Jenny tossed a glance toward the dresser with red-rimmed eyes. “I’m not much in the mood for cake and flowers.”
“Honey, I’m so sorry for snapping at you. I shouldn’t have.”
“I didn’t know he was gonna be there.”
She sat next to Jenny. “I know. I’m sorry for assuming otherwise.”
“I haven’t talked to him since Shane told him to stay away.”
“That’s good. I’m so proud of you, sweetie.” She wrapped her arm around the teenager’s slumped shoulders. “And excited for you. You’re so smart, and you’re turning into such a beautiful, stylish, capable young woman. You’ve become such a wonderful mother to your little girl.”
“Thanks.” Her face crumpled again with another bout of tears.
She sighed, pressing her forehead to Jenny’s shoulder for a brief moment. “I really messed up.”
She shook her head. “It’s not that. I can see why you thought what you did."
“Then what?” she encouraged, sliding Jenny’s hair behind her ear.
“Shane forgot.”
She closed her eyes. “He didn’t forget, sweetie.” She pulled her closer. “He’s incredibly busy.”
“He’s been gone almost a week, and we haven’t heard nothin’—anything from him.”
