by Lisa Bilbrey
“I know that,” she said. “We consider you, Leigh, and Tyson to be family, too. To be honest, I don’t want you to leave. I understand why you have to. Leigh’s mom and dad need you, but I’ve kind of gotten use to my family being around, and it’s gonna be weird to not be able to just pop into Gold Rush and see you.”
Thomas laughed. “Tell me about it. Tyson found a job at the local community college teaching science to children barely able to add one plus one, but I don’t know if I should try to start a new business, or find something else. I just don’t know.”
“You’ll figure it out,” she said. “And I’m just a phone call away if you need someone to talk to. We all are. Any time.”
“Same here. You know that, right? You need us, you call. Don’t try to be tough or whatever. You call and we’ll be here. Promise me that you’ll call, Elle.”
Sighing, yet smiling too, she leaned against him and whispered, “I promise, Thomas.”
Callum, Derek, and Sadie walked into the room, the three of them shifting their attention from her to him. They clearly wondered why the air was thick with tension, yet Elle knew Thomas would be embarrassed if she told them about their conversation, so for now, she’d keep it to herself and cherish the fact that he worried about her. He was a good friend.
“Trucks about ready to head off,” Derek said, tilting his head toward the door. “And, I guess, you’d better get a move on if you want to catch your flight.”
Thomas smiled and led the four of them out of the house, pulling the door closed. He dropped his keys into the metal lock box the realtor had placed next to the front door, which meant the house was officially no longer his. Thomas signed off on the paperwork for the moving truck and waited until they had driven away before he turned and faced them again.
Once the truck was on the way, they loaded into their cars and made the trip across the city to San Francisco International Airport so that Thomas could catch his flight. They walked inside with him and waited while he got his ticket. Since his trip was one way, he didn’t bother checking his luggage.
With a sigh, he shifted his attention to the four of them, the fact that they wouldn’t see him for a long time hit Elle heavily and she understood why he took a few minutes and talked with her privately. He was struggling with the move, too, even if it was the right move to make.
“I, um, I can’t thank you enough for all the help over the last few weeks. I couldn’t have gotten through all of this without your help. Not just with the packing, either. Being away from Ty and Leigh . . . Well, it’s hard. It’s been nice to have good friends to take my mind off them, even if it really didn’t work.”
Derek laughed. “We’re gonna miss you, man. Don’t be one of those guys who says they’ll keep in touch and then we never hear from them again, okay? Call, text, email, whatever you want. Just stay in touch.”
“You have my word.” Thomas pulled Derek into a quick, manly hug before turning and doing the same to Callum. “I’ve never told you two this, but I admire the way you let your feelings for one another flow so freely.”
“What can I say? I can’t live without him,” Callum said, and the truth in his words had tears filling Elle’s eyes. “Be happy, man. Just be happy.”
“I will be.” Thomas stepped back and shifted his attention to Sadie and Elle, who were wrapped around each other. “Think I’m going to miss you two the most.”
“Why?” Sadie whimpered.
“Because if you hadn’t made it look so fucking easy, Leigh and I might not have made a go for it with Ty, and while we might have been content, we wouldn’t be as happy as we are with him. You gave us the strength to love, to be loved. Thank you for that.”
“God, who knew you were so sappy,” Sadie cried, launching herself into his arms. “You’re a good man, Thomas. Leigh and Tyson are lucky to have you.”
“Nah,” he murmured, his eyes shifting to Elle as he hugged Sadie. “I’m the lucky one. They let me love them.”
And Elle couldn’t disagree. Leigh, Tyson, Thomas — they had the kind of love that would last forever. Just like the love she felt for Derek. Callum, and Sadie. Most people only get one love of their life, but Elle had three.
Thomas kissed Sadie’s forehead before releasing her and rushing down through the security and disappearing among the mass of people hurrying to get their flights.
Elle, Derek, Sadie, and Callum were about to make their way to the exit when a tall, thin woman with dark hair rushed up to them. She was wearing the typical flight attendant uniform consisting of a tight, black skirt, white blouse, and black jacket. She shifted her eyes between the four of them before turning her focus toward Elle.
“Sorry to interrupt, but are you Elle?”
“Um, yeah,” she said, confused.
“I was told to give this to you.” She held out a small white envelope.
“By who?”
“He didn’t give me a name,” she said, checking her watch. “Sorry, I’ve got to run. My flights about to take off without me.”
She turned and hurried off before Elle could question her more.
“That was . . . awkward,” Sadie said.
“No shit.” Elle scoffed and turned the envelope over, prying the back flap from inside the fold. Her heart clenched in her chest as she pulled out a sheet of paper with seven words scribbled in the middle in black marker: Always knew you were a dirty whore.
—FA—
Elle sat on the edge of the bathtub, trying to keep from sobbing, keep from throwing up, and keep from screaming. The minute they got home, she rushed upstairs and into the bathroom, needing a moment alone before Ivy and Nick dropped the girls off. They’d picked them up from school after Callum called and told them about the note.
After reading the lovely note she’d received, they’d contacted airport security who tried to track down their mystery flight attendant, but it seemed as if she had disappeared.
Since no actual crime had taken place, there really wasn’t anything they could do, and calling the police would be pointless. What would the charge be? Derek, Callum, and Sadie figured it was just someone who didn’t approve of their relationship, some passerby who thought they were sinners and belonged in Hell.
It wouldn’t have been the first time they’d been called out by someone, and Elle knew it wouldn’t be the last. But Elle couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to the note than that. There was something more personal to it. The woman had known her name, had known who she was. A random stranger couldn’t have known that, could they?
“Elle, honey, are you okay?” Derek called through the closed door.
“Yes,” she called back, but the door opened, and she knew he didn’t believe her. “I’m fine, lover.”
“Don’t do that,” he said, moving so that he was seated next to her.
“Do what?”
“Pretend you’re not hurt.”
Elle sighed. “It’s probably nothing, right? I mean, just someone messing around.”
“Yeah, totally,” he lied. Elle could hear the uncertainty in his words.
“But what if it’s not?” she asked, her voice cracking. “She knew my name. You could argue that someone picked up on the fact that the four of us are together and have a problem with it, but why would they single me out? And how would they know my name?”
“Maybe they heard Thomas say it?” Derek suggested.
“Yeah, maybe,” she murmured. “I don’t remember him saying my name, though. I don’t know.” Elle sighed. “I just needed a minute to . . . not freak out, I guess. You know how silly I get.”
“You’re not being silly,” he insisted. “And I’ll give you a few minutes, but don’t lock yourself away too long. Everyone should be here soon.”
Elle nodded and waited until Derek left before she stood and leaned against the vanity. She knew he was right, of course. There had many times over the last six years that she found herself feeling anxious or overwhelmed, afraid that someone was
after her. Two crazy abusers had put her on edge, but she reminded herself that Leo Donavon and Trixie Maxwell were in prison. They weren’t going to be able to hurt her ever again, and nobody else would, either.
She hoped.
Elle changed into a pair of sweats and a T-shirt before joining everyone downstairs. Her parents, James and Helina, had already arrived. As had Sadie’s mom and dad, Claudia and Bruce. Five years ago, they left their home state of Texas and moved to California, saying they’d already missed too much of their children’s’ lives and wanted to be closer. They commissioned Elle to design them a house the four could share and, though Elle hadn’t been confident in their decision, the past five years had been great.
“There’s my beautiful girl,” James gushed, scrambling to his feet and rushing over to Elle, scooping her into a warm embrace. There had been a time when he wouldn’t have hugged her, when he made his intolerance for how she lived her life painfully clear. But they’d spent years rebuilding their relationship and now, they were close.
“Hey, Dad,” she murmured, laying her head on his chest.
“You okay?” he asked, bringing his hand up to the back of her head.
“Yeah,” she lied, and leaned away from him.
It wasn’t a complete lie. A part of her—the rational part that told her to let the note go—believed that she was okay, that her lovers were right to shrug it off. But the other side — the one that always worried — didn’t feel safe.
“Long day. Hell, it’s been a long week.”
“Mommy said a bad word!” Willow giggled and scrambled off the couch and rushing into the kitchen. She came back with a clear plastic jar in her arms that was halfway full of money. “Pay the jar, Mommy.”
Elle groaned, but walked over to where her purse lay and dug a dollar out. “I’m sorry Mommy said a bad word.”
“That’s okay. Daddy said one, too. He put five dollars in and said it was credit,” Willow chirped, taking the dollar and stuffing in the jar before pointing at Derek.
“I’m sure he did, sweet girl.” Elle laughed and walked over to where Helina was waiting patiently for her.
Their relationship had been even more problematic than Elle’s with James. Helina had spent the first twenty-six years of Elle’s life reminding her of all her faults. She wasn’t pretty enough, smart enough, talent enough, and she was a slut. Helina made her disgust much more obvious than James did, and when she walked in on Elle and Sadie in a compromising position at Ivy and Nick’s wedding, Helina disowned Elle.
Elle had been devastated, of course. All she wanted was for her parents to love and accept her for who she was, and not who they wanted her to be. Months passed without word from them, and then on Christmas Eve, James and Helina showed up at their front door with Claudia and Bruce, and the four of them begged for one more chance, saying they’d changed.
It hadn’t been easy, and more than once Elle lashed out at her mother for the cruel abuse she’d suffered for years, but she wanted her mother’s love enough to forgive and mostly forget.
“Hey, Mom,” she said and when Helina started to stand, she held her hand up. “Please sit.”
“You look tired,” Helina said. “Beautiful, but tired.”
“I’m fine,” Elle said, sitting on the couch next to her. “How’s everything with you? You had a doctor’s appointment today, didn’t you?”
“Yesterday,” Helina said. “Dr. Baker ordered a full round of blood tests, but said I seem fine. Nothing to worry about. Just had to get a physical to keep the insurance company happy.”
“Well, I’m glad to hear that,” Elle said, dropping her hand onto her thigh.
“A lot of pain?” Helina asked, tilting her head toward Elle’s leg.
“Not more than normal,” she said.
Helina gave her a look that clearly meant she didn’t agree, but wouldn’t push it for more.
The doorbell rang and Callum hurried over. He came back a few minutes later with his arms full of Chinese. The girls cheered and rushed into the kitchen to get plates, forks, and napkins. As everyone filled their plates and conversed over their busy days, telling funny stories, Elle’s thoughts were on that note and who thought she was whore this time.
Five
“Whore . . . whore. . . Where are you, whore? I know you’re in here?”
Elle knelt behind a pile of cardboard boxes, trying to keep from screaming, from being heard. She had no idea where she was, why she was there, or how she got there in the first place, but she did know that there was someone chasing her. Someone dangerous. Someone methodical.
“Whore,” they sang. There was something oddly familiar about their voice. “I’m gonna find you, little whore.”
A chill filled her as she scooted further into the darkness. Heavy footsteps crept closer, and a scream filled Elle’s throat, but as her pursuer crept around the pile of cardboard boxes, a loud, annoying alarm filled the air.
Startled, Elle sprang up in bed, her hand clenching the front of her nightgown as she looked around the room, searching for any sign of the monster who hunted her in her dream. Of course, there was nobody else inside the room outside of her, Derek, Callum, and Sadie.
“Are you going to turn it off?” Sadie grumbled, burying her head against Derek’s arm.
“Um, yeah, sorry,” Elle muttered and reached across Callum and turned it off.
“You okay, babe?” Callum grumbled, his hand sliding onto her thigh, his first assumption that her leg was hurting. It usually was, but she felt this pressure in her chest that she couldn’t shake.
“Yeah,” she whispered. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
“No, you’re not,” he said, leaning up on the elbow and facing her. By now, Sadie and Derek were wide awake, too, and all three of them were watching her with expectation. But before he could question her future, the silence that filled the air was interrupted by the shrill of the phone ringing.
Elle scrambled out of bed and yanked it from the base before anyone could stop her. She clicked talk without thinking and brought it to her ear.
“Hello?”
“Elle? Is that you?” Leigh asked. “Hello?”
“Hey, yeah, it’s me. Everything okay?”
“I don’t know,” she whimpered. “You tell me.”
“Me?”
“Thomas never showed up last night. They don’t have any record of him boarding his flight. Said he picked up his ticket, but he didn’t board the plane. We’ve called him a hundred times, but all we got was his voice mail. Do you know where he is?”
“No,” Elle said. “Last time we saw him, he’d made it through security and was on his way to his terminal. He was excited about getting back to you and Ty.”
“Then where the hell is he?” she cried.
“Have you called the police?” Elle asked, drawing Callum, Derek, and Sadie’s attention.
“They said they can’t do anything until he’s been missing for at least forty-eight hours.” Leigh cried harder. “You don’t think he . . . left us, do you?”
“Oh, hell no,” Elle insisted.
“How can you be sure? He didn’t want to move, but, well, my mom and dad needed us, you know?”
“I do, and that’s why he wouldn’t have left you and Tyson, Leigh. He loves you. I’m sure he’s fine. Probably just got on the wrong plane and his phone died or something.”
“I hope you’re right,” she murmured, sniffing back her tears. “If you hear from him, you’ll call?”
“Of course, I will,” she said, immediately. “And you’ll keep us updated?”
“Yeah, yeah, of course,” she mumbled. “If something happened to him . . . Elle, I . . .”
“I know,” she said, softly. “Just try to be positive. We’ll look around the city, see if he’s around, okay?”
“Thank you,” Leigh cried and ended the call without a goodbye.
Elle sighed and dropped the phone onto the bed. “Thomas never made it to Atlanta.”
“What?” Callum gasped, standing up. “Where the hell is he?”
“They don’t know,” she said, and proceeded to tell them everything Leigh had told them. “She’s really freaked out.”
“I imagine so,” Sadie murmured. “Where would he be, though? Back at the house? Gold Rush?”
“I guess,” Elle said.
“Okay, Elle, Sadie, you two get the girls up and to school. Callum and I will check the house and diner, see if anyone has seen him.”
Agreeing, Elle and Sadie rushed into the bathroom to shower before getting the girls up. Elle couldn't shake the feeling that whoever sent her the note at the airport had something to do with Thomas’ sudden disappearance, but who? Who would go after him to get to her?
—FA—
“Flora Hope, move your butt, little lady!” Elle yelled, tapping her nails against the top of her cane as she stared up the staircase and waited for her daughter to come down. They were running late, mostly because Elle had been distracted.
“Willow, are you sure you have your book?” Sadie asked, zipping Willow’s backpack.
“Yes, Mommy. I checked three times!” Willow rolled her eyes, but either Sadie didn’t see, or she chose not to make a fuss out of it because she didn’t chastise her the way she normally would. Either way, Elle wasn’t in the mood to argue with her strong-willed daughter and would let it go, as well.
“Flora!” Elle yelled again.
“I’m coming, Mommy!” the small girl called back and a moment later, she skipped down the staircase with her shoes in her hands. “They were hiding under my bed.”
“Thought you said you looked there?” Elle asked, following Flora to the couch and sitting with a wince. Her thigh hurt more than usual, but she’d deal with it. She always did.
“I did!” Flora exclaimed while Elle slipped the right shoe on her foot.
“Clearly you didn’t, sweet girl, or you would have found them the first time you looked.”
“I did, Mommy, I did!” Flora insisted, tears filling her eyes as she pulled away from Elle.
