Worry and anxiety began to gnaw increasingly at my insides.
"I really hope he... you know, he hasn't..."
"He hasn't found you, Viv. Trust me. You're safe there. He might be smart, but we've taken every precaution we can to make sure you're hidden and safe."
"I just know how determined and persistent he is, Kerry. He's obsessed; he's not going to just give up."
"Look, don't worry too much about it, Viv. Carl's on it, and we will find Simon eventually, I promise you that. And besides, you're living a whole new life now. You're in a place where nobody from your past knows you, where—"
"Actually, there is someone from my past here," I said, interrupting her.
"Wait, what?! Who?!"
"I bumped into Angie Wells here."
"Angie Wells, from high school?"
"Yep, that Angie Wells."
"Wow... and she recognized you?"
"She did. She even called me by my old name."
"You did correct her, right? And tell her about the Simon thing, and why you need to maintain a high degree of secrecy and privacy?"
"I told her. She knows, and she understands. She's not going to go around announcing that she's hanging out with Alicia from high school."
"Wow... it's weird to hear you say your old name like that."
"I know... and it was even weirder to hear it shouted across a crowded bar, totally unexpectedly."
"Damn, that's how it happened?"
"Yeah, that's how it happened. We—"
Our conversation was interrupted by my phone ringing. I picked up the phone and saw a number on the screen that I didn't recognize.
"Oh, hang on, Kerry, I need to get this; it might be Everett calling about Jane."
"Sure thing," Kerry replied.
I answered the call.
"Hello?"
"Hi, is this Miss Vivienne Andrews?"
"Speaking, yes. Who is this, may I ask?"
"I'm Lieutenant Todd, Irvine Police Department."
A sudden jolt of uneasiness blasted through me; what if something had happened to Everett? What if the drug dealers had shot him again? What if... no, even if something had happened, they wouldn't be calling me.
"Good evening, Lieutenant, what is this about?"
"You are the proprietor of ABC Daycare, correct?"
"I am, yes."