by Harlow James
“Glad I could keep you warm. Are you okay?” I ask, hoping maybe she’ll admit to the conversation she just had that has clearly scared her. “I thought I heard voices.”
“Yeah, I’m great. No one here but me. I did just realize I don’t have much food in here though. I need to go to the store. Maybe we can get dressed and grab some breakfast instead of eating here. Then I have a bunch of errands I need to run before I go back to work tomorrow.”
She’s rambling, and it’s unnerving. My intuition about Piper hiding something was right on the money, and I’m cursing myself for not listening to my gut. But now, I’m head over heels for this girl, but she’s keeping something from me, and so many questions rack my mind, I don’t even know where to go from here.
“Yeah, that sounds great.”
We get dressed and make it through breakfast in comfortable silence, reliving the announcements we were a part of last night as I realize the contentment I felt with Piper yesterday has almost been completely wiped away this morning.
When we part ways, I kiss her goodbye, comforted by how her kiss still connects me to her, but there’s an obvious shift in our mental connection from both of us.
After getting dressed in my uniform and driving to work, I arrive at the station about a half hour early, debating whether what I’m about to do right now is the right move. Birdie has encouraged me not to go here, but after the conversation I overheard this morning, my doubt is too high.
Pulling a print I lifted from my truck on a piece of tape, I scan it in the system as I search Piper Davis in the computer. My knees bounce and my hands are shaking while I wait for the results.
And when the face of the woman I thought I knew pops up twice on the screens with two different names, my heart sinks down to my stomach.
Piper Davis is really Pfeiffer Winters. And I’m about to puke.
Chapter 21
Piper
Eight Months Ago
“Dad, I think you’re overreacting.” The dark blue eyes I inherited from him stare down at me with the most fear I’ve ever seen my father exhibit.
“There is no such thing when it comes to the safety of my daughter. I will not stand here and wait to see if they are serious. Mason has messed with the wrong people, and as a result, our family’s safety is in jeopardy—but most of all, your life is in danger.” His hand is shaky as he lifts his glass of scotch to his lips, taking a sip in an attempt to calm his anger and nerves. One brush of his free hand through his white hair, and then he crumbles in front of me. “I will not let them take my only daughter from me, Pfeiffer. Your mother and I have sacrificed everything for you. They can have money, but they can’t have you.” Tears stream from his weathered eyes down his wrinkled skin, and my heart drops along with them.
“So then just pay them off! Give them what they want so we can clean up this mess!”
“But that’s the point—it’s not about the money. Because if I give in and pay them off, who’s to say that Mason won’t keep gambling? Now they know he has a weak spot. They know that they can use you as collateral to get what they want from him. The minute he mentioned our family’s name and the fact that you’re engaged to him, he put a mark on you. You have to leave. I don’t know what else to do.”
“Mom? Do you agree with this?” I turn to see my mother crying on the couch, holding her composure as best as she can. She loosened her signature bun when the conversation started and even untucked her blouse—all indications that this is rattling her nerves as well. When my mother is not put together, portraying the poised and perfect woman she displays to the world, I know life is forcing her to cower to its will.
“Pfeiffer, as much as I don’t want to see you go, I think your father is right. We can’t take the risk, darling. You are our world, and a world without you in it, is one we don’t want to fathom.” She stands and then retrieves a manilla envelope from her purse, handing it over to my father.
“This should cover you for a few months, or longer.” He hands the envelope to me, my hands shaking as I nervously open it. A stack of cash that would take more than a few seconds to count, a new ID, keys to a car, and other papers I can’t completely identify stare back at me.
“What is all of this?”
“Your new life. Your new identity. It’s the only way I know I can keep you safe.”
I extract the ID, scanning the information.
Piper Davis. Resident of Colorado?
“You want me to go to Colorado?”
My mother nods her head. “I have a family friend that lives there, very under the radar and wouldn’t be traced back to us. With a new name, you will have the opportunity to still take the NCLEX and become a nurse, Pfeiffer. I don’t want this horrid situation to derail all of your hard work and your dream. Please, just do this… for us. Once we can get a handle on the situation, you can return home.”
“How… how long do you think this will take?”
My father sighs. “It could be a while, sweetheart. I’m getting lawyers involved quietly right now to see if we can take legal action against Mason and the Montevallo’s, but without concrete proof your life is being threatened, we have little to go on.”
“What about Mason? What do I do?”
I haven’t spoken to him really since I overhead his conversation on the phone and we had dinner at the Italian restaurant that the coined Montevallo’s own. That was five days ago, and so much has happened since then. As soon as I told my mother about the phone call I eavesdropped on, she called my dad to warn him about Mason’s intentions during their lunch. Sure enough, he propositioned my father for money that day, saying it was for an investment he was looking into that would make them both a lot of money—a piece of property that they could turn into a high-rise condo building they could create from the ground up. My father asked him for time to think about it and then looked into Mason’s extracurricular activities later that night when he had him followed.
Being so busy with nursing school and both of us leading practically separate lives, it seems that Mason had taken up with some questionable company in an underground gambling ring, ran by Theo Montevallo, the son of Theo Sr., a very well-known businessman on the East coast who apparently makes his money in other ways than just his restaurants. I wouldn’t classify him as a mob boss, per se—but the name is known high and wide as a family with power, money, and connections—the trifecta of qualities to avoid when you aren’t actively looking for trouble. But apparently Mason was a regular in their underground gambling ring and had been for years, betting large sums of money in poker games, coming out on top for a while. And like anyone with a gambling problem, when he began to lose, he was convinced he was just on the other side of a win, so he started borrowing, taking out loans, and soon wracked himself up over a million dollars in debt.
When the collector called him that day looking for his money, Mason was already on a thin rope with the family. Apparently he was also convinced that my family could help unbury himself from his mountain of debt by manipulating my father into giving him the funds as an investment. Clearly using his poor judgment, I don’t think he realized that by dropping our name he would put us in danger—although maybe he did. He obviously knew who he was dealing with and what the Montevallo’s are capable of. Either way, his complete disregard for my family’s safety and well-being, as well as our relationship, was such a life-altering wake-up call to me that I had been with a man my entire adult life—the past eight years—that I never truly knew.
I want so badly to take the blame, admit that I suspected something or that I should have asked questions about what he was doing with his spare time while I was so concentrated on school. But the truth is, I never imagined it would be something like this. I figured he was spending time with the boys we grew up with, our circle of friends from the country club that he would usually golf with on the weekends or catch a beer with sometimes in the evenings. The last thing I could anticipate was a secret gambling problem and owing money
to the wrong people.
“You don’t worry about Mason, dear. We will handle him.”
“He’s going to wonder where I went, what happened…”
“And we will tell him enough of the truth to understand the fury we feel that he threatened your life, even if that wasn’t his intention.” My father moves to refill his glass and then sits down on the couch beside my mother.
“I’m going to miss you both, so much. How do I do this? How do I just move on with my life and pretend all of this nonsense isn’t going on at home? I’ve never lived anywhere else. What about my friends? Our family? Won’t they all ask where I’ve gone?”
My mother grips my shoulders and stares intently in my eyes. “You look forward and focus on your goals, Pfeiffer. Nursing—that’s all you’ve ever wanted. If you stay here, that may not be a possibility. Don’t worry about everyone else, we will think of something. But here,” she reaches down to her purse again and retrieves two phones. “You can use these to keep in contact with us. One is for your father and me. The other is for Rachel. I will get this number to Rachel, but listen—you cannot tell her where you are, do you hear me? Only your father and I will know where you end up…”
The sinking feeling in my gut only magnifies as my eyes bounce back and forth between my parents, the only two people on the planet that I care about more than life itself. And in that moment, I know what I have to do.
I have to do this for them. I have to do this for myself. I cannot let Mason’s stupid decisions jeopardize my future.
This will all get resolved—it has to. Losing me would destroy my parents, and I can’t do that to them, knowing how much they have sacrificed and supported me throughout my entire life.
“Okay. I’ll go.” My voice is low as I utter my decision—and then I break, lunging for the two of them as arms and hands tangle in a mess of desperation and love.
“This is the best thing for now, Pfeiffer,” my mother finally speaks after a few minutes, wiping furiously beneath her eyes.
“I know. If I had another idea, I would offer it—but I still can’t even wrap my head around the fact that Mason was living this double life. But it’s got to work out, right? This will all blow over?”
My dad declares with the most confidence I’ve heard from him since this conversation started, “I will make sure of it.”
“So, when do I leave?”
My parents share a look and then my mother starts crying once more. “Tonight.”
“Tonight?” As if the nausea in my stomach couldn’t get any worse, the timeline of this plan is like taking a ride in the DeLorean.
As my father stands again, my eyes trail him across the room. “Michael is waiting for you to pack. He will drive you to a warehouse where the car that those keys belong to is waiting.” He gestures towards the envelope of documents I placed at my feet. “Your mother’s friend is waiting for you to arrive in Colorado in a few days. An itinerary of where you will stop and rest is in the car you’ll take from here. Rooms have been booked in your new name and there is enough cash in that envelope to live on for a year, if need be.”
“Do you really think I’ll be gone that long?” My strength is crumbling as I take in every detail he’s planned to make sure I’m safe.
“I don’t know, darling. But if we need to get more money to you, we will make it happen.”
“Go. Live as Piper Davis, sweetheart.”
“Piper Davis, huh? How’d you decide on that one?”
“Well, your name is the German version of Piper, and Davis—well, you know that is your mother’s maiden name.”
“You don’t think the Montevallo’s will catch on to that?”
“We’re hoping not. But we wanted to give you a name that wasn’t far from your own and you could easily adapt to.”
“You need to go pack, Pfeiffer,” my mother says, reaching for my hand. “Then we can say our final goodbyes.”
After shoving as many of my belongings as I could into two suitcases, my parents and I crumble once more as we cling to each other for the last time. I had to believe this wouldn’t be the final time we saw each other, but without a time limit to this situation being resolved, there was no way to tell.
“I love you both, so much.” My lips are trembling, my eyes so full of tears, the two people that I owe everything to are nothing but a blur in front of me.
“We love you too, darling. Now go,” my mother waves me off before turning into my father’s chest, burying her face so she doesn’t have to watch me leave.
With every ounce of strength I possess, I walk out the door of my home and meet Michael, our family’s head of security, at the end of the driveway. Opening my door for me, he ushers me inside of the black sedan with windows so dark, no one could see inside even they shined a flashlight to them.
“Michael…” The sadness and fear in my voice as I only say his name is enough to alert him to the fact that I’m moments from breaking.
“I know, Pfeiffer. But this is for the best. We’ve already received a letter threatening your life,” he speaks to me in the rearview mirror, cranking the engine, and taking off for the warehouse where a white BMW waits for me.
Michael loads my suitcases in the trunk and shows me my itinerary for my trip, pointing out each stop and commanding that I check in at those points using the phones my mother gave me. One last check that I have everything associated with my new identity, and then he gives me a hug.
“Take care of yourself. Listen to your gut. Watch behind your back. And don’t give up hope.”
My eyes well once more as I acknowledge his words with a bob of my chin, unable to speak any more about the change my life is about to take. Before I know it, I’m on the road, heading out of New York, straight to the highway in the black of night, and on a trip that leaves one life behind and another completely fuzzy before me.
I drive for days, every few hours contemplating turning around and refusing to do this, fantasizing about ripping Mason’s balls off and shoving them down his throat. Part of me would love nothing more than to see his face when he realizes I’m gone. But since Michael took my old phone before I left, he has no way of getting in contact with me from here on out.
I feel so lost, even though I have a set of directions right in front of me telling me exactly where to go. But here’s the thing—even a well-formulated plan can make you feel uneasy about following it. Half of me knows this is what I have to do. The other half is fighting every instinct in my body that tells me I need to run. I don’t run from problems, I’m a fighter. I always have been. Even though I’ve been fairly quiet around others and a professional at minding my own business, I’m never hesitant to stand up and speak up when I know something’s wrong. And what Mason did was wrong. But I can’t stay here and fight him when my parents need me to be safe more than I need to defend myself.
So, I run—for the first time in my life.
I run towards the sense of peace that at least this entire situation has prevented me from marrying a man I barely knew. A man who lies and cheats and manipulates others because his bad habit is more important to him than the people in his life.
I run towards the job I have been working tirelessly to have for years, an opportunity that I cannot let slip through my fingers, a job that I feel deep in my bones I am meant to do.
And I run towards the promise that one day, I will find a man that is worthy of me, who won’t lie and cheat and manipulate, but that will offer me the honesty that I never got from Mason. I just hope that when that day comes, I will be free of the chains that Mason’s lies have bounded me to—this brand new life as Piper Davis and the inkling on my spine of always having to look over my shoulder.
Chapter 22
Cash
“Do you see what I’m seeing?” I gesture to the computer screen in front of me, Piper or should I say, Pfeiffer’s, gorgeous face staring back at me twice.
“You’ve got to be shitting me,” Cooper shakes his head as his eyes
widen, leaning forward to get a closer look.
“I… I don’t even know what to say,” Luke admits while I stare mindlessly ahead.
“Does she have a record or something?” Cooper asks, turning to me now. But I can’t remove my eyes from the truth right in front of me.
I knew it. I knew there was something there, something under the surface telling me to trust my gut, that she was hiding something. Well, here it is—apparently she was hiding her real identity. Piper Davis is really Pfeiffer Winters, and I’m a fucking idiot blinded by a beautiful woman.
“It doesn’t look like it,” Luke answers Cooper for me as he reads the screen, clicking on a few buttons, searching through her information. “Then why change your name?”
“Maybe this isn’t that big of a deal. People change their names all the time, Cash. Maybe she didn’t like her old name, maybe she had a falling out with her family. I mean, I met the woman, and she doesn’t seem like she’s got demons.”
I want to hear what Cooper is telling me, allow his words to place a sliver of doubt about how brutal the truth could be, but my mind is racing with possibilities. I don’t think I’ve experienced this much emotional whiplash in such a short amount of time in my entire life. Piper or Pfeiffer—fuck, I don’t even know what to call her at this point. Piper (let’s stick with that) waltzed into my life here and made me yearn for someone for the first time ever. Then she shot me down, made my pulse race, and made me fight for an opportunity at a relationship, when I’ve always avoided them. Now, I’m bordering on contemplating if love is what I’m feeling, and I get hit with this tidal wave, wiping my feet completely from under me and slamming my ass on the ground.
I’ve never been in love, so it’s hard to name the ache in my chest when I’m not near her, the anticipation I feel every time I’m about to see her, or the calm that she gives me when there’s no one else around and we’re just two souls connected by time and space. But if that is in fact what I’m feeling—that I’m in love with Piper after only a few months of knowing this woman—then this is some fucked up shit.
