Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 99766 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 499(@200wpm)___ 399(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99766 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 499(@200wpm)___ 399(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Un-fucking-believable.
“He belongs in prison,” I growl. “To rot for the rest of time.”
Penny sits up. “Are they checking into what I said? What he told me about his wife?”
“Yes,” Fitzgerald says, “but that will go outside my jurisdiction. Feds will need to be involved. Normally, a claim like that isn’t one we’d follow up on, but since we’ve been presented the evidence of alleged child abuse, the violent assault, and the disappearance of his wife and stepdaughter, it’s been rerouted to the feds.”
“What happens with Zella?” I demand. I know what needs to happen, but so far, I’ve been getting fucked at every angle.
“You’ll be awarded temporary custody over her until your attorney can prepare something more concrete and lasting.” He smiles. “Your attorney is a good one. She’ll make it happen.”
“So we just wait for him to get caught?” I go to rub at my eyes and nearly knock my glasses off in the process. This shit will take some getting used to. “What if he comes here?”
“We don’t think he’ll come back, but if he does, we’ll be ready. I would suggest keeping the girls safe in numbers.”
“Just get a cop to sit outside,” Cal suggests.
“This isn’t the movies,” Fitzgerald grumbles. “As much as I’d love to say we could do something like that, we don’t have the manpower or budget. It’s just the cold, hard truth.”
“And you wonder why some of the town’s citizens prefer a little vigilante justice,” Cal grinds out.
Fitzgerald hangs his head in shame.
“I’ll hire a security firm,” Garrett assures us. The man always has the fucking answers. “Frankly, I’m over the incompetence of the police in this town. My daughters both have been on the losing side. I’ll make sure they’re protected.”
“Now, Mr. English,” Fitzgerald says with a sigh. “We’re doing the best we can.”
“And it’s not good enough,” Garrett says simply. “If that’s all you have to say, may as well get going. These kids are exhausted.”
“I’ll keep you all informed.” Fitzgerald stands and gives us a nod. “Good evening.”
As soon as he leaves, I rise to my feet, Zella still asleep in my arms. “Garrett, take Penny home.”
She jolts up, frowning at me. “I want to stay here.”
Garrett’s eyes narrow as he darts them back and forth between us.
“No, Penny. It’s time for you to go home.” I pin her with my firmest stare. “You’re hurt and your dad is a doctor. Just go.”
Anger flashes in her blue eyes, but I don’t stick around to argue with her. I need time to process what happened. While I’m thrilled to have Zella with me, I am disgusted that Penny’s been going over there God only knows how many times, endangering herself.
I need a break.
I need to think.
I need to focus on Zella and I can’t do that right now with Penny.
I just can’t.
Penny
One week later…
“Hey, bruiser,” Jace says from the kitchen. “You look like hell.”
I flip him off as I move past him for some cereal. Truth is, I feel tons better. My face is still wrecked from what Jack did, but I survived. But, when all the bruises fade, I’ll still be this mess of a girl on the inside.
It scared me.
So bad.
I’d never felt like my life was truly in danger. Not when I held a gun to Ryan’s face for attacking Charlotte. Not when Cal’s parents’ house was on fire and we were trapped inside. Not when Eli and his goons tried to rape me. Not when he and Grayson shoved me into the boys’ bathroom.
But at Jack’s?
When he was beating the living crap out of me?
A sense of overwhelming self-preservation washed over me. I knew it was flee or die. I had to escape or I wouldn’t live to tell it.
Jace sets his cereal bowl down, making me jump. I freeze, but don’t shove him away when he hugs me from behind. It’s a dad hug. And since Dad is off with Elise this morning, I could use a dad hug.
“Want to talk about it?” he asks.
“Nope.”
“Didn’t think so.” He sighs. “They’ll find him. You know that, right?”
A shudder wracks through me. “Yep.”
“If he shows his ass up here, I’ll throw him off the balcony, Penny. No one is hurting my girl under my watch.”
A smile tugs at my lips. “You’re such a badass, pet.”
“Not nearly half as badass as you,” he teases. “Now cheer up. You gotta help me reply back to this chick who wants to fuck but only if I prove I’m not a psycho.”
“But you are a psycho,” I drawl out.
“Yeah, but she doesn’t know that. You’re better at words than I am. You know I hate this online dating shit. In my day, we saw someone we wanted to fuck, we bought them a drink, and then we fucked. Simple. Now, they want a goddamned résumé and personal references. I’m not savvy enough for this.”