Six Months Later

Patty’s penthouse was full of guests mingling and enjoying the baby games. Bridget and I were throwing a baby shower for Patty and Sam before they left. They were waiting to find out if they were having a boy or girl, so the theme of the party was rubber duckies.

CJ sat down next to me on the plush black couch. “How are you going to do with Patty leaving for six months?”

My father had demanded his first grandchild be born in Shialia, so Sam and Patty were leaving that afternoon for a six-month trip to Shialia. Sam would work on learning more about Shialia. It would be many years before Patty and Sam take over. They would assist in the everyday operations.

“Hey, sis, how are you doing?” Patty asked, sitting down next to me. She was resting her hands on the slight bulge on her stomach. I looked over to see Sam out on the patio. Even though he was outside, he still had an eye on Patty. He was having a conversation with Brock.

“Good. Are you enjoying the party?” I really hadn’t been doing well lately. I felt like I was losing my mind. Things kept changing places in my house. When I was driving, I always felt like someone was following me. I didn’t want to worry Patty or Sam with everything they had going on, though.

Maybe when they were gone, I’d ask Brock to analyze the security footage of my house. I looked at the video after some of my clothes went missing. I couldn’t find where it happened. It was like the footage was tampered with. Today is not about me worrying how my refrigerator reorganized itself. Or how some of my clothes went missing.

“You should come with us when we go. I will miss you,” Patty said.

Patty had been pleading with me to come with her, but I was not ready to face that demon yet.

Patty hadn’t dyed her hair since finding out she was pregnant, and it was strange to see her with the same color as mine. Her shoulder-length blond hair brushed against her shoulders. She was wearing a cute sunflower sundress.

I shrugged, not wanting to admit I was too scared to go back to Shialia—even though my original attacker was still in prison. “I will consider coming when you are closer to your due date.” It was the same statement I’d made a hundred times. She knew I was blowing smoke up her ass.

The chance of being kidnapped once was one in six hundred and ten thousand. I couldn’t find the stats of being captured twice. I knew the chances were low. I just wasn’t ready to face the fear. I also still had nightmares and suspected they would get worse if I went back.

Wanting to change the subject, I said, “Did you know babies born in May are, on average, heavier than babies born in any other month?”

“Thanks for letting me know I will get fat. Don’t think I didn’t notice you changing the subject. I will let it go for now. So, you know Brock said he would go with you when you come.” The thought of Brock sent shivers down my spine, straight to my clit.

At the mention of his name, I looked out the window to see him looking right back at me. I was lost in his hazel eyes for a moment.

Then Patty pushed my shoulder to get my attention.

“You should ask him out,” Bridget said while sitting in the white recliner next to the couch.

I would not admit anything, so I played dumb. “Who?”

Bridget burst out laughing and flung her head back. I didn’t think it was that funny or obvious that I had a thing for Brock. Who wouldn’t have a thing for him? The man was drop-dead gorgeous. The past few months, he’d consumed all my fantasies.

“We all know you have a thing for Brock. Why don’t you ask him out?” CJ said while sitting in the other recliner.

“We’re at Patty’s baby shower. Not an intervention on my sex life.”

Bridget moved Alonzo to her other arm. “I need some grown-up talk. It seems all I do anymore is talk about babies. Don’t get me wrong. I love this little guy. Back to your sex life. We can’t have an intervention on your sex life because you don’t have one.”

“I haven’t even been divorced a year. Better yet, my ex hasn’t even been in the ground for a year, and you want me to go out and find a new sex slave?”

“Yes!” CJ and Bridget yelled at the same time.

“You guys are ridiculous. I need to go get the cake ready.” I got up to walk away, but Patty’s words stopped me in my tracks.

“He watches you when you aren’t looking. He asks me every day how you are doing. Even though he spends half his time as your bodyguard.”

I walked back into the kitchen and pulled out a multilayered Reese’s peanut butter cake. Between each layer was a row of Reese’s. The frosting was chocolate and peanut butter and had Reese’s crumbled on top. When I opened the freezer to pull out the ice cream, I couldn’t find it. I looked through all the shelves—it wasn’t there.

Patty and Bridget were still in the living room, playing with Alonzo when I walked back in. “Hey, guys, I’m going to run to the store really quick and pick up some ice cream. Do you need anything else?”

Patty shook her head. “Make sure you take one of the guys with you.”

I ignored Patty’s request. We’d had nothing but shadows since Patty’s kidnapping. My ex was in the grave, along with Patty’s crazy friend. The tabloids still hadn’t made a big deal over my identity. There was no reason to bother the guys. I was running to the store. It was only a few miles away.

I grabbed my phone and purse and headed down the elevator. My black Lexus SUV was parked in the front spot next to Patty’s Range Rover. I jumped in and headed out of the garage, waving at the guard on the way out.

The streets were quiet for a Sunday afternoon. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d driven myself somewhere without a bodyguard or someone else dictating my life. Enjoying my freedom, I choose to take the scenic route. In the marshy grass, I spotted a momma alligator basking in the sun next to her baby.

I noticed a black Escalade in my rearview mirror. The windows looked tinted. When the car was close, I couldn’t make out the driver. They had a hat pulled down low, covering their face. It was going faster than it should on the back roads. The car was getting closer and closer. I accelerated. Clicking the hands-free button on my steering wheel, I called the first person who popped into my head.

“Where are you, Jessica?” Brock answered. “You aren’t supposed to leave without so—”

“Shut up! I need help.”

The car was getting closer. The more I sped up, the more it did. It was riding my bumper.

“What’s going on?” I could hear the panic in Brock’s voice.

The car behind me smacked my bumper, causing my car to lurch forward. I put my foot down on the gas, hoping I could outrun the Escalade.

“Someone is trying to run me off the road.”

“Try to slow down and see if they will pass you. It’s probably someone with road rage.”

“They hit my fucking bumper. They won’t pass me. Did you know in a seven-year study period, there were over two hundred murders associated directly with road rage? Let’s hope it’s not road rage, and they leave me alone.”

“Where are you? This is not the time for a fact check.”

“I took the scenic r—”

The car hit my rear right fender, causing my car to swerve to the right. My front tire got caught on the uneven pavement on the shoulder of the road causing the car to flip.

I couldn’t hear Brock anymore over the deafening sound of crunching metal. Glass flew into the car, and I could feel the shards hitting my skin.

“Brock, please find me,” I whispered before the lights went dark.