Grace

“How long is this media circus going to last?” I asked. We pulled into the hospital parking lot and there were cameras stationed out front.

Ian squeezed my hand. “Once you speak at the press conference this afternoon, it should die down a bit.”

The past two days, Ian and I stayed hidden from the press. Connor had made it back safely to Blake and Hadley’s, as if nothing ever happened. My father had announced I was alive, but I was still under protective custody. I knew there were going to be a ton of questions thrown my way. However, the only answer we didn’t have was why Daniel wanted to kill Ian in the first place. I had a feeling we’d never know.

“Are you sure you want to go in there?” he asked, nodding toward the hospital.

“Yes. It’s time I talked to Jared.” He’d called and texted me non-stop ever since the night at Daniel’s.

Ian shut off his truck and sighed. “All right, let’s go. If they get too close, I’ll barrel through them,” he said, referring to the camera crews.

Before we could get out, my phone rang. I pulled it out of my purse. “Dad?”

“Hey, sweetheart. I take it you’re on the way to see Jared?”

“Yep. I figured it was okay to go out in public and talk to him now.”

“You should be fine. However, there’s something I wanted to tell you.” He sounded happy and I couldn’t help but smile.

“What is it?”

“I think we found him.”

I grabbed Ian’s arm, eyes wide. “You think you found Daniel? Where?” I switched the phone to speaker so Ian could hear.

“In the woods, a few miles from his house. The body’s a little mangled, but we’re going to run some DNA tests to make sure.”

“Oh my God, that’s awesome,” I squealed.

“Let us know as soon as you find out the results,” Ian said.

“Will do, Chandler. In the meantime, be safe. I’ll see you both at the press conference.”

“Thanks, Daddy. I love you.”

“Love you too, baby.”

We got out of the truck and it was as if I had a neon sign over my head saying who I was.

“That’s her,” some of them shouted.

Ian grabbed my hand and pulled me in close. “Keep walking.”

I did as he said, and the reporters followed alongside us, hollering questions. Once we got inside, we went straight to the elevators. Breathing a sigh of relief, I leaned against the elevator wall. “I’m so sorry. You’re totally going to lose your anonymity through all this. I mean, the media’s seen you with me. They’ll ask questions. Plus, Jared knows you’re an FBI agent. The secret’s out. There’s no telling who he’s told.”

He waved it off. “Don’t worry about me. My job will be fine.” The elevator doors opened and we walked down the hall to Jared’s room. Some of the nurses froze and stared at us, but nothing was said. We stopped at Jared’s room and Ian nodded toward the waiting room. “I’ll be over there.”

The door to Jared’s room opened and Emily walked out. Looking up, she saw me and gasped. “Oh my God, it’s you!” she cried, throwing her arms around me. “Zoe, come here.”

Zoe shrieked and raced over to us, hugging me from behind. They both sobbed and I cried with them. “I’m okay.” They squeezed me even harder and I laughed. “Can’t breathe, girls.”

They let me go and stepped back. Zoe glanced down at the floor, choked up. “I had to go in for questioning yesterday. Your father told me I was a suspect at one time.” Tears fell down her cheeks. “What would ever make you think I’d want you dead?”

Emily agreed with a nod. “Same here. I was told the same thing. Then again, I guess it did look suspicious sneaking around with Brad.”

“It did,” I said sadly. “I’m sorry you had to be involved. We only wanted to find who was responsible, and nobody was considered off the list. I never wanted to believe either one of you wanted me dead.”

Zoe hugged me again. “We’re friends, Grace. Yes, I might have gotten a little full of myself after I was offered your job, but it was a huge boost for me. I needed the pay raise.”

“It’s okay.”

“Oh, and another thing,” she said, letting me go. “Tell your boyfriend no hard feelings for all the work I had to put into his company party, but I am mad at him for making me look like an idiot.”

I giggled. “Yeah, you were pretty bad with your flirting. I could hear everything.”

She smacked a hand to her forehead. “To be fair, I had no idea he was your boyfriend! I’m so embarrassed. It won’t happen again.”

“Grace,” Jared called out.

Emily and Zoe looked over at him, then back to me. “We’ll give you two some privacy,” Emily said, opening the door. Once they were gone, I slowly walked into the room. Jared’s foot was all bandaged up and in a cast, but he looked good.

I sat down in the chair beside him and smiled. “You should wear your hair like that more often.” He ran a hand through his messy brown hair and tried to smile, but failed. “How are you feeling? I heard you get to go home tomorrow.”

He shrugged. “Physically, I’m fine, other than missing two of my toes. Mentally, I could be better. My father’s dead, my sister betrayed me, and my best friends turned out to be monsters. What makes it worse was that my father was a part of it all.” Tears fell down his cheeks and he angrily wiped them away. “I’m so sorry about what happened. My sister’s going to pay for what she did. They all are.”

Taking his hand, I held it between mine. “I know this might not make a difference, but my father told me Andrew didn’t know about Daniel’s plans for you or me. He didn’t betray you.”

Jared shrugged. “At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter. He’s not who I thought he was.”

“I know,” I murmured. “Now your friend, Marcus, on the other hand, knew. He tried to flee but the cops caught him.”

A look of disgust passed across his face. “I just don’t know how I couldn’t see it. Makes me sick. What hurts me the most is knowing you thought I had something to do with what happened to you. You know I care about you.”

The pain was clear on his face and it made my chest ache. I grabbed his hand and squeezed. “It was hard not to think you might be involved, when one of your best friends was the one who abducted me. Not to mention, your father knew what was going on.”

He nodded. “I understand. In fact, I wasn’t sure if you were going to come see me or not. You haven’t returned any of my calls.”

“Things have been a little hectic outside of here. Ian and my father thought it’d be best if I laid low until the press conference. After I leave here, that’s where I’m going.”

“I’ll be watching,” he replied sadly. “I don’t even know what all Daniel did to you.”

I shook my head. “Nothing I couldn’t handle. I got away from him before they could touch me or hunt me.”

“Thank fucking God. I don’t know what I’d do if you were dead. What are you going to do now that you’re free?”

Swallowing hard, I looked right into his bright blue eyes. “I’m going to find another job. I hope you understand.”

“Of course, I do. And just so you know, I’m selling the hotel. I don’t want any part in it.”

“What?” I gasped. “Where are you going to go?”

“Somewhere far away from here, so I can start over. I mean, how could I build my legacy off blood money?” He shook his head. “No. I don’t want any part of it.”

“When are you going to leave?” I asked, eyes burning from unshed tears.

He squeezed my hand and let go. “As soon as I can. I need to get away from here.”

“What about Daniel? He’s still out there.”

“I’m not afraid of him. If he comes after me, so be it. I’m just glad you have someone who can protect you.”

A light knock sounded on the door and Ian stuck his head in. “It’s time to go.”

I stood and tried to smile. “Take care of yourself, Jared.”

“You too. I’ll stay in touch.”

“You better.” Ian opened the door and I waved to Jared, before he shut the door behind me. “When this press conference is over, I’m going to need help to relax.”

He smiled mischievously. “Don’t worry, buttercup, I think that can be arranged.”