I blink in surprise. But, really, after all Daddy told me about Scotty King, I’m not that surprised. And I’ve always felt like Dad’s my guardian angel. This, today, him picking me up might prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt.
“Yeah? Really?” If this were just anyone, I’d ask if it’s a rooming house for prostitutes and if I’m about to become an indentured servant, but Scotty was one of Dad’s best buds, so, no way. I feel in my gut I can trust him.
“Yep. Change your name. Change your habits. Do not contact anyone from your old life. I’m assumin’ it’s the Steele brothers who are after you. Or else the Papalia crew.”
“How’d you know?”
“Good guess. Cabbies are the eyes and ears of a city. I saw the guy you were hidin’ from, too, and don’t know him but know he’s a dirty cop and know who he consorts with. I’m sure your old man told you stories – we sit here and either shut up and drive while fares have all sorts of conversations in our back seats. Or a good chunk of ‘em tell us their secrets, feeling like they can, for some unknown reason, trust us based on looking at the backs of our heads. We know shit. Don’t tell me which of the two it is that’s after ya. The less I know, the better.”
“With you, I bet it’s the eyes in the mirror. Your eyes look kind.”
Laugh lines appear around those kind eyes just briefly before the concern is back. “Give you my number, too. You get stuck, you call me, and I’ll see how I can help. Memorize it and hand it back before you get out of this car.” He passes me a card. “Your father was a good man. His friends felt that loss, we all took it hard. He probably spoke to the big man upstairs and made it, so I was here to see you runnin’ in those pointy shoes. What’s in the bag you’re hangin’ on so tight to? Or do I wanna know?”
“A whole lot of cash.”
A lot of it. I haven’t counted it, but I suspect there’s enough in here to last me a good long time. “You want some?” I offer.
He sighs. “Shit, Alyssa. How much trouble you in?”
“Lots, I think.”
“You’ll need all the cash you can get. Listen, don’t spend any more than you have to; save it in case you need to get gone again after Baltimore. And then get gone and save the rest in case you need to get gone again. If it’s the Steele brothers especially, you’ll need resources. You hear?”
I nod.
“You have the foggiest idea of what you’re dealin’ with?”
Another nod from me.
Obviously, he knows what I’m dealing with too by his offer.
“Okay. Memorize that phone number yet?”
“I’ll do that right now.”
1
Ally
San Diego, California – Several Months Later
Present – The Day After Carly and Aiden’s Wedding
I stick the key into the bottom lock on the door of apartment 1406 and test the knob. It turns. But I haven’t unlocked the deadbolt, so it shouldn’t.
Before the door is all the way open, my heart is racing. Has someone been here? Are they here waiting for me right now?
I’m constantly telling myself to be aware of what’s happening around me. Never, ever oblivious. It’s critical. People who think they know me have no idea I’m continuously surveying my surroundings to see if anything sticks out, if anything suggests I should make a run for it.
I take precautionary measures daily to ensure I’m safe.
Is it time to bolt, to turn around and abandon my life in San Diego? Or is this how it ends? My system is clearly flawed, and I know this only now because it’s failed me. If someone is in there, they’ve seen the knob turn and so they know I’m on the other side of this door and maybe they have a gun ready and aimed at me.
I had no choice but to use my actual passport to go to St. Kitts because there was no time to get a fake one, and it’s been nagging at me. But it’s not like I could miss Carly’s wedding. Aiden flew us all there and back, but the whole thing was spontaneous so there was no advance warning and I needed to show my passport coming and going.
Is the jig up?
I love my life here. I love my job. My friends. I love being Ally Kingston, even though that’s not who I’ve always been.
Alyssa McQueen vanished into thin air months ago and I’ve been hoping vehemently that she’ll never be discovered. In fact, it’s critical she isn’t.
I did my best to cover my tracks and I had help. Lots of help, actually, courtesy of Scotty by helping me connect with Tori, but the rest of it – with Tori and that bag of money. Scotty would give me crap for taking a variation of his last name for my San Diego job, but he likely saved my life by connecting me with Tori. And Tori connected me with her brother Wade, who has helped me immeasurably since I got here.