“I’m wounded,” he teases. “And to think, I actually thought you liked me.”
I do like him. As a friend.
Maybe, in another life, I’d even like him like he likes me. As more than a friend.
This one is too complicated. Plus, my heart is a mess for someone else right now.
“You’re one of the only friends I have,” I admit. “I need your help. I’ll figure out a way to repay you.”
“I don’t want you to pay me back. I just want to make sure you’re okay.” He glances over at one of the men watching us intently and then lowers his voice. “I’ll leave a discreet note when I have the money. We can meet up and go from there.”
Now all I have to do is find a way to leave again.
“If I don’t surface at the meeting place because he has me trapped, then I’ll need you to create a distraction so we can slip out of there unnoticed.”
“Want me to wait twenty-four hours and then make my move?”
“Yes. Thank you.”
He leans closer and kisses my cheek. “Everything’s going to be okay.”
I can’t even allow myself to hope.
* * *
“We’ll walk you inside, miss,” the neck tattooed guy grunts. “You’re dismissed.”
Ty ignores the rudeness and presses a goodbye kiss to my cheek. I can tell he wants to say and ask a lot of things, but wisely doesn’t with our audience. Despite the stress I’m under, I did enjoy Ty’s company. He’s light and funny and caring. Dread fills me to my brim and spills over the second I walk into my quiet home.
“I’ll go speak with Mr. Croft,” one of the guys says while the other three wait outside the condo.
I skirt past him and head to Della’s room. The door is locked. Softly, I knock on the wood, not that she will hear me anyway. Panic clutches my throat as a thousand what-ifs play in my mind.
What if he’s in there with her?
What if he hit her while I was gone?
What if he did much worse?
I start slapping the door and putting my weight against, trying to either get her to unlock it or bust through it.
“Miss Croft,” Sandra hisses, hurrying down the hall toward me. “Have you lost your ever-loving mind?”
I wriggle the handle. “I need to make sure she’s okay.”
“Throwing a tantrum isn’t the way to do it.” She scowls at me and then produces a key from her pocket. “Go see your sister. And be quiet before you upset your father.”
She unlocks the door. I don’t wait to be told twice. Rushing into Della’s room, I find her sitting in the corner surrounded by all her stuffed animals. Her head is bowed as she strokes the pink cat’s fur. When I kneel in front of her, she jumps. Wild, panicked eyes meet mine and then relief has her leaping at me. I hug her to me, unable to keep the tears at bay. Her small hands clutch onto the fabric of my dress like I might leave her again.
Never again.
The next time we leave, it’ll be for good.
She pulls away from me and starts signing rapidly. He spanked me with his belt. I wasn’t listening. But I didn’t hear him, Landry. I didn’t. He doesn’t use sign language. Fat tears roll down her cheeks and she trembles. I hope he dies.
Me too.
God, I feel the same.
I just hate that a child her age has to feel that way. It’s wrong. The way he treats us is wrong. We’re not his daughters. We’re his trophies to display however he pleases and if he’s tired of looking at us, he banishes us to our rooms.
Look at me, I sign with my back to Sandra who’s still in the doorway. Can you read my lips?
She nods, focusing hard on my mouth.
I’m going to get us out of here. I mouth the words, but don’t let any sound come out for fear of Sandra overhearing.
Again, Della’s head nods. Tears continue to fall down her pink cheeks. She signs, Forever?
Forever, I sign back.
Can we get a real cat? She smiles hopefully at me.
We can do whatever we want, Della.
All we have to do is wait for Ty to make good on his promise. We’re almost out of here. Almost. I can hardly wait.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Scout
I stare at the text I received this morning and shake my head. Not exactly what I had planned for the day, but I’m also not ready to give this up. Bryant told us to cease this “job” but he’ll soon learn he doesn’t control me. I only play along when it suits me.
Ty: Meet me at that sandwich shop near work for lunch. I need to talk to someone.
While I wait on Ty to get to the restaurant, I read the text again. I’m curious to see what has him all flustered. I know he’s flustered because usually when he texts me, he throws in stupid emojis and a lot of LOLs. This text is curt and to the point.