Chapter Twenty-Eight
My life became a routine of sorts.
Mason left for work fairly early, but never missed leaving roses on the nightstand waiting for me. He called the cell phone he gave me whenever he could, sending vulgar messages back to back.
We clicked. He made my life easy. He didn’t lock me inside anymore; I spent a large part of my day outside with the dogs. I wish I could say everything was perfect, but that was far from the case. He was hiding something from me, and it became clearer every day. I kept my mouth shut, waiting for him to slip up, but he never did. He was always so careful; it was like everything he did was planned beforehand.
Sometimes, I worried that whatever was between us was nothing but an act. He still used sex to thwart my questions. My mother seemed to have disappeared as well. Every time I called the number I had for her, I was sent to voicemail.
What if they were working together?
No, I couldn’t go there. I didn’t know how I would deal with something like that.
A throat cleared from behind me, pulling me back to reality. Turning around, I saw the man who always ran the lawn mower standing with his hat in his hands.
He gave me a friendly smile and a little wave.
“Um. Can I help you?” It was the only thing I could think to ask.
“I’m Leroy, but you can call me Roy.”
“Okay, Roy. Did you need something?”
He took a small step forward. I stood from my lawn chair and took one back.
Don’t trust him.
“Hey, I’m not here to hurt you.” He held one hand out and continued to approach me, as if I were a wild animal that would bolt at any given moment.
“I just started working here four months ago. No one lived here then. Now all a sudden you’re here all the time. A guy said if I had any questions I could find him in his office.” He continued slowly walking towards me, “Something isn’t right in this town. I saw you in the window the other day and knew I had to stick around. When did you get here? Why haven’t I seen you until now?”
I watched his eyes begin to drift over me; I was in a pale blue sundress. I knew he would see every cut and every hand shaped bruise – then, he would jump to conclusions.
“Leroy, I don’t know what you think is going on. Nothing bad is happening to me here.”
“Were you with the redhead? Are there more of ya? I tried to help her, but I don’t know if she got away. The police wouldn’t listen.” He ignored me completely, starting to glance around with a timid paranoia.
I didn’t know anything about a redhead, but I was aware this man knew more than he was supposed to. The thought of him bringing harm to Mason sent my heart into a tailspin. I had to get him away from here.
“You need to leave, right now.” I could feel myself beginning to panic.
“Fuck, lady. I’m not leaving you here! You don’t know what kind of crazy motherfucker you’re dealing with.”
“He’s not crazy! You’re the one who showed up –What the hell are you doing?” I screamed at him when he lunged forward and picked me up.
I was not going to be manhandled by the damn gardener. Unable to break free, I used my mouth, biting down on his shoulder.
“Ow, shit!” He unceremoniously dropped me onto the blacktop, glaring down at me as I crab-walked backward.
The warm sunlight beamed down on a little green pickup sat off in the corner of the U-shaped driveway, and he headed for it.
“Just go!” I yelled at him, wondering why he wouldn’t listen to me. Today of all days, I’d left the dogs inside. I could hear them going ballistic at the front door.
Roy charged forward, lifting me up again, similar to the way Mason had, and tossed me in the back end of his pickup. The air rushed out of my lungs. I sat up, just to fall back on my side again, rolling as he started the truck and peeled down the driveway.
The wind whipped at my face, bringing stinging tears to my eyes. I watched Mason’s house grow smaller the further Leroy got.
He sped around corners as if he forgot I was in the back. I held onto a black bar to stop myself from flying all over the place like a kite in the wind. All that was going through my head was that I couldn’t leave Mason.
Holding onto the side of the truck, I waited until he slowed, going around a bend, and jumped out.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
I cried out, biting my lip to muffle the sound as I landed on the ground.
Leroy screeched to a halt further up ahead. His brake lights went out, and he shot off again, his engine fading as he put distance between us.
Forcing myself to roll onto my stomach, I gritted my teeth as pain shot through the right side of my body. Pushing up onto my knees, I saw blood on my arm and leg from where skin had torn away.
I didn’t think anything was broken, but everything fucking hurt. The cherry on top of this fucking day was that there was no way to tell where I was. All the trees looked the same, as they did in Mason’s backyard. He lived in the middle of nowhere.
Going back the way I just came was the only thing I could think to do. Picking myself up off the ground, I gripped my arm in a self-made sling and began hobbling back up the street.
The sun began to fall from the sky, and I still had no idea where I was. A light rain and bits of hail added to my misery. I didn’t want to ask how my day could get any worse, but seriously. How could it?
My bare feet were numb, bloodied, and dirty. The dress I had on was torn, and doing very little to protect me from the elements.
With my arms wrapped around my waist, I continued walking back the way I thought Mason’s house was, but as the rain started to come down harder, I veered off the road, trying to find some kind of shelter beneath the tall trees. Twigs snapped and prodded at me; mud sank between my toes.
I’m not sure how long I long I walked before I got a reprieve. There was a large log cabin style home sitting by itself, down a steep hill.
There weren't any cars in the driveway, and all the lights were off. Whether someone lived there or not, I needed a break.
Limping up to the home, I hauled myself up the back stairs and peered through the square block window. After knocking twice and not getting a response or hearing a dog, I tried the door handle. It opened with a tiny click, surprising me.
Staring in, I weighed my options. This was a stranger’s home; they could get hostile if they came back and found me inside. My only other option, though, was to stay in the hail and keep wandering the dark woods.
If nothing else, they had to have a telephone or something I could use. Walking inside the warm house, I pushed the door shut behind me and looked down at the hardwood floor. It was clean; my feet were filthy.
I was in a cozy dining room; a kitchen was to my immediate right. On the opposite end of the room was a long fancy side-table with pictures on it. Everything else was momentarily forgotten as I walked towards them.
I had perfect eyesight, so I knew I wasn’t seeing things. There was a picture of my father in a silver frame.
Snatching the photo up, I turned it over and studied it. Looking at all the frames on the table, I fumbled to put it down, focusing on the larger one in the back.
Live. Laugh. Love was engraved into the glass. It was a wedding photograph. I shook my head, not understanding why. Not wanting to believe what was right in front of me. Mason was the groom, and the bride was my sister.
We tell her nothing. We both know she can’t handle the truth.
They weren’t talking about me; they had been talking about Annie.
No one lived here four months ago.
Is this where he spent all his time?
I squeezed the frame so tight, the glass cracked, similar to the feeling in my chest. I could have stood there for hours, dripping dirty water onto the immaculate clean floor.
A car pulling up the gravel drive had me springing into action. I ran out the back door and didn’t stop. Rain mixed with tears, and my pain only radia
ted from my head.
Was it all a sick game? Was I nothing more than a lump sum for him, too?
With so many questions and nowhere to go, I didn’t stop running until I didn’t have a choice.
I ran into the path of a blue sedan and everything turned black.
Acknowledgements
–Readers
If this is the first book you’ve read of mine, thank you for giving me a chance. If you’re one of the people who continue to read my books, I FLOVE you!
I pull every single storyline out of my head. The characters, the plots, I never stop thinking about them. I’m doing something I love to do and get to be a bit of a weirdo in the process. All the positive feedback, messages, and comments seriously brighten my day. <3
–My editor
Thank you for having patience, and being understanding about my mini rant over this book. I was ready to light my laptop on fire more than once. You give my books shine. <3
-Enticing Journey Book Promo
Thank you for working around my very last minute cover changes,(lol) and always, doing an awesome job.
-Bloggers
The irreplaceable people who take time out of their day to share, promote, and pimp books. I’m always amazed at how much you all do.
-Last, but most certainly not least, my husband.
My rock and number one supporter, you’ve believed in me since day one. There is no way in hell I would be this goal oriented without you. <3
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