"Everleigh. Are you sure you're okay? Do I need to come over there?"
"No." Shit. She had not done a very good job hiding her voice. She should've waited until she wasn't so upset to call.
"Have you talked to Roman? Is he going with you?" Jenny asked.
"Why do you ask?" Why was she asking me about Roman? That was so weird.
Everleigh could hear Jenny's hesitation loud and clear. "I just thought if you were upset that you needed someone to be with you."
That was sweet, but she had survived everything difficult on her own. Her entire life she'd had only herself to rely on. She wasn't sure why she thought it would be any different now.
"Or if you were actually sneaking away for a little romantic holiday, then that would be okay too. I can cover for you," she said conspiratorially.
Everleigh’s stomach rolled over at the thought. She had to get away. Now.
She ran to the closet and grabbed her hiking backpack. She could get everything she needed for both her and Eliza inside. Thank God they were shifters. How did humans in this situation survive? A human mother and her child would need money, food, and shelter. Escaping would be overwhelming.
She and Eliza could survive in the woods and out on the tundra. It was best if they could live in a place where bears lived naturally, but thankfully in Alaska and Canada, that wasn’t an issue. Was Canada too close? The Northwest Territories were huge, and surely she could hide there. But maybe one of the lower forty-eight states would be a better idea. Sutton and several of her family members didn’t have the paperwork required to fly or drive across a border. They could still cross over as bears, but it would be more work for them. She wasn’t sure they’d bother.
But Roman would. He would come after his daughter.
And Roman did have the proper paperwork. He’d had it all made back when he first came to her office, five years ago.
She threw the documents she needed into the bag. Then paused. If any of them had enough sense to hire a PI, or if any of them reported her missing, then they might be able to track her if she used public transportation. She’d have to make a show of leaving town. Last time she hadn’t planned nearly this much. She’d packed her stuff, recalled an article that said Juneau was hard to get to, and gotten on a plane.
Now with Eliza to consider, it was tougher.
She crammed her bag behind the seat of her car. Dammit. She had to get the cat. She ran back in and grabbed him. She’d have to figure out his survival plan later. He meowed while she drove to the office. None of them could hear her pounding heart. But they could see her sweating and chewing on her lip. Humans were just as astute as shifters were, and they didn’t even have the enhanced senses to back it up.
She took a deep breath.
"Hey!" Jenny said. She got up from her desk. "I thought you weren’t coming in."
"I’m not. I’m still going to see my aunt in Florida. She just moved there, and she needs some help. Since Eliza’s only in kindergarten, it’s the perfect time to go."
"Okay." Jenny had a weird look on her face. "How long do you think you’ll be gone?"
"Probably about two weeks." Forever, unfortunately. She didn’t want to leave Juneau. This was two homes she’d had to leave because of Roman. But there was no point in lamenting about it now. She had to protect her daughter.
She hugged. "I’ll send you some pictures of the beach."
"Please do." She grabbed Everleigh’s shoulder. "Are you sure you’re okay? You’re so pale."
"I’m fine. I have a sinus headache, that’s all." Maybe coming in person hadn’t been the best idea she’d had. She was not a good actor, apparently.
"Give Eliza a hug for me."
She hugged her friend. "I’ll text you when I get there." She’d have to get rid of her phone. Her clan was influential enough in the shifter world that they probably had someone inside a law enforcement agency that could trace her phone. She would put nothing past them.
But she’d also have to get a new phone and let a few people hear from her. The shifters wouldn’t report her missing, but her coworkers might. She’d need to let Eliza’s teacher know too, and withdraw her from the school district. Humans really did have a lot of paperwork.
She drove straight to the school. She’d withdraw her from the district, and then they’d get on the road. The sooner, the better.