Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 73042 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73042 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
I remember a few secrets from my youth.
Who to call to get a fake ID is one of them, and to my surprise it’s even easier now with technology. I had to jump through many hoops to get my papers to leave the country and I forged many more documents while I was abroad. Today? It was easy.
Perhaps I’m still being followed. I don’t know.
But I do know there’s no tracer on this rental. There is one on my Mercedes, no doubt showing my grandfather everywhere I go. It wasn’t difficult to find it, and I left it there. Let him think he’s controlling me. At the moment, my car is at my parents’ house.
The car I rented is a beige Ford. Non-descript. It’s perfect. It’s tiny, and my long legs are cramped in the driver’s seat, but I don’t care.
If I could get the hell out of here—and take Raven with me—I’d be happy to drive this car for the rest of my life.
I’d be happy to live in a hut in the hills.
But that’s not my destiny.
My destiny is to take down my grandfather and destroy the legacy of our family.
I will do it.
I get out of the car and go to the door, knocking lightly. Raven opens the door with a smile on her face.
Only…something is wrong with her smile. Normally when she smiles, her eyes crinkle really adorably, and a tiny amount of blood rushes to her cheeks, making them glow. Right now, her eyes are a little distant, and her face is pale. It doesn’t seem…real.
I haven’t known this woman long, but already I feel like I can read her. Something’s bothering her.
Maybe I’m wrong though. She is recovering from cancer. Even though she’s well on the road to recovery, she might just be a little more spent than normal today. Hopefully not too spent, because I have been looking forward to dinner—and maybe even a little dessert—with her since she called and arranged our date.
“Hi, Vinnie. I’m so glad you could make it.”
I walk through the door, give her a kiss on the cheek. “You okay?”
And then, to my surprise, Raven bursts into tears.
I guess she’s really had a bad day.
I go to her, take her in my arms. Kiss her head, her cheeks, her neck. “Raven, baby. What is it?”
“Do you think we can speak freely here?” she asks.
I drop my jaw and pull back from her. “What’s going on, Raven?”
“I shouldn’t tell you this. But when I was at CJ’s the other day, I called an Uber to drive me home. At some point I must have dozed off, and when I woke up, the driver had pulled over to the side of the road—”
I go rigid.
What did this driver do to her? Did he hurt her? Force himself on her?
I can’t help but wonder if my grandfather is behind this. He’s always trying to assert himself over me. And he knows who my Achilles heel is.
But we shouldn’t talk about this here. Raven is right to be concerned. No one has lived here for the past several years, and my grandfather did know where I was the other night.
Anyone could’ve come in and put in surveillance equipment. And nobody would’ve been the wiser.
“Jesus fuck.”
“He didn’t hurt me, Vinnie. I swear.”
“Are you sure? If there is one mark on you…” I look around her house. I didn’t pay much attention the other night as I couldn’t wait to get her into bed. Then I left so quickly and took her home.
If the house is bugged…
“Do you have a security system here?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “No. I was going to get one, and then I got sick.”
“When was the last time you were here? The other night? With me?”
“No. I was here yesterday cleaning up. My doctor gave me the okay to drive, and then I came over today and got groceries, and—”
I place my fingers over my lips to quiet her. “Let’s go outside.”
She nods and leads me through the foyer to the kitchen and out the French doors. We walk off the large redwood deck and into the grassy area behind her house. The pool house and swimming pool are off to the right, and an alcove with a gazebo sits to the left.
She leads me there and we sit down.
“Tell me everything. Did he hurt you? Is there a mark anywhere on you?” My heart is racing, and my hands are balled into fists.
“No, there isn’t. I swear to God, Vinnie. I’m unharmed. Other than the fact that he scared the hell out of me.”
“Did he have a weapon?”
“Not that I saw.”
“Where did you stop?”
“On one of the back roads between Austin and Summer Creek. I suppose I could’ve gotten out of the car and run, but where would I have gone?”