Chapter 7
The first week with Lily full-time was... hard.
She had nightmares every night. Woke up screaming, sweating, convinced she was back in the freezer. I'd hold her, rock her, sing to her until she fell back asleep. She refused to eat anything cold. No ice cream. No popsicles. No even cold milk. Everything had to be warm.
She also refused to talk about Taylor.
Every time I mentioned her mother, Lily would shut down. Clam up. Change the subject. Her therapist said it was a defense mechanism—that part of her still loved her mother and couldn't reconcile that love with the knowledge that Taylor had let her be hurt.
Then, on the eighth night, everything changed.
I was making dinner when my phone rang. It was Detective Marquez.
“Mr. Hayes,” she said. Her voice was urgent. “You need to get Lily and get out of your apartment. Right now.”
My blood ran cold.
“What's wrong?”
“Evelyn Carter is missing. She wasn't at her house this morning when officers went to pick her up for her arraignment. Her car is gone. Her phone is off. And we just got a report from a neighbor who saw a woman matching her description near your building about an hour ago.”
I looked toward the living room. Lily was on the floor, coloring, completely oblivious.
“She can't get in,” I said. “The building has security. There are officers—”
“The officers assigned to your building were reassigned forty minutes ago. A false report came in—shots fired at a school across town. It was a decoy, Mr. Hayes. Evelyn made the call. She cleared the way.”
Fear seized me.
She'd outsmarted us.
“I'm on my way,” Marquez said. “Units are en route. But you need to get Lily out now. Use the fire escape. Go through the back alley. Don't stop for anything. Don't take anything with you. Just go.”
She hung up.
I ran to the living room, grabbed Lily's hand, and pulled her up.
“Come on, baby. We have to go. Now.”
She could see the terror on my face. She didn't argue. She just ran with me.
We made it to the front door. I had my hand on the lock when I heard it.
A soft knock.
Then Evelyn's voice. Calm. Sweet. Completely wrong.
“Ethan? I know you're in there. I just want to talk. About my granddaughter.”
I froze.
She was on the other side of my door. Ten feet away from Lily.
“Go to the bedroom,” I whispered to Lily. “Get in the closet. Hide. Don't make a sound. No matter what you hear, don't come out until I come get you. Understand?”
She nodded, her eyes huge with fear, and ran.
I backed away from the door, looking for something to use as a weapon. There was a heavy metal lamp on the side table. I grabbed it, gripping the base like a baseball bat.
“Ethan?” Evelyn knocked again. Louder this time. “Don't be difficult. I know you're alone with her. Taylor told me the police detail was gone. She's such a good girl, my Taylor. Always does what her mother tells her.”
Taylor.
She'd helped Evelyn.
She'd given her information. Maybe even helped plan the decoy call.
The betrayal hit me harder than any blow.
“Go away, Evelyn,” I shouted. “The police are on their way. If you don't leave right now, you're going to prison for the rest of your life.”
She laughed. A soft, chilling sound.
“Prison? Oh, Ethan. You still don't understand, do you? I own half this town. The mayor plays golf with my husband. The chief of police owes me his career. Those judges you're so impressed by? I put them on the bench. Nothing is going to happen to me. Nothing.”
Her voice dropped, becoming harder. Colder.
“But you... you've been a very naughty boy, Ethan. Taking my granddaughter. Telling lies. Turning my own daughter against me. That cannot go unpunished.”
I heard a click.
The sound of a key turning in my lock.
She had a key.
Taylor must have given it to her.
The door started to open.
I raised the lamp, my heart hammering against my ribs. I could see Evelyn now through the crack. Her hair was perfectly styled. She wore a nice coat. In her right hand, she held a small silver handgun.
May you like
She smiled at me.
“Now,” she said, stepping inside. “Where is my Lily?”
