Kade

“Daddy, I’m scared,” Lola says into the phone. I’ve been keeping her on the line with me while I speed home.

“I know, sweetheart.” So am I. Terrified. My palms sweat as I grip the steering wheel, trying to understand what happened. “I’ll be there soon. Just do what Sophie said and keep the doors locked. Okay?”

“Okay.”

It was difficult to understand her when she’d first called because her words had been mixed with sobs. All I know for sure is that Sophie told Lola to lock herself in the house and call me.

“You said a man picked you up from school. Did he tell you his name?”

“He said he was friends with Sophie. That he wasn’t a stranger.”

I drag my fingers through my hair, trying to hold back my frustration and anxiety, because she should have known better than to go with the man. And where the hell were the teachers?

She’s still crying when she says, “He said he was my Uncle Charlie.”

The hair on the back of my neck stands on end, even though I was already sure it was Sophie’s ex who’d picked her up.

What the fuck? I’ll kill the bastard for messing with my daughter.

“Where did Sophie go?”

“I-I don’t know.” She starts crying again. “I’m sorry, Daddy.”

“I love you, baby girl. And you’re safe. But I need to make some calls. Just stay in your room and I’ll be there soon.”

An ambulance with its lights on passes me, followed by a cruiser driven by Damon.

“What’s going on?” I ask when he answers my call.

“Accident on the highway. Is Lola safe?”

“She’s at home.” I can hear the sirens fading, but still loud through the phone. “I think Sophie is with Charlie.”

There’s a long silence. “I’ll come over as soon as I can.”

I know it’s all he can do right now, but it’s not enough.

As I pull into my driveway, I call Quinn. “Can you come over?”

“What’s the matter?”

“I may need someone to watch Lola. Sophie...”

“Is she all right?”

I slam my truck door and race towards the house. “I don’t know.”

“Okay. Zee and I will be there soon.”

I’m not even sure I’ve ended the call as I rush towards Lola’s room, scooping her into my arms when I find her curled up on her bed.

“Daddy.” Her arms wrap around my neck, her tears soaking through my thin cotton shirt.

When I finally get her settled down, I put on a movie for her and tell her I have to make a few calls.

Damon still hasn’t called back, and there’s no sign of Sophie. The bags that she brought over earlier today are still in the corner of my bedroom.

Our bedroom.

This is supposed to be her home now.

I can’t think the worst, but when I see her shoes still sitting by the front door, where she left them earlier, I know I’m kidding myself. Something is wrong. And there’s nothing I can do.

I pace the front hall until I hear a vehicle outside.

Quinn hugs me when I open the door. She’s followed by Zee, who’s carrying Jaxson in a car seat, a diaper bag slung over his shoulder.  

“Sorry we took so long. There was a really bad accident on the highway,” Quinn says.

“At least one fatality,” Zee adds grimly, a shudder racing through him. “We saw them covering the body as we drove by.”

“Shit,” I mutter, but my thoughts are only on Sophie.

On finding her.

Protecting her.

Like I promised her I would.

I usher them into the kitchen where Lola can’t hear us, and I tell them everything.

“Oh my God,” Quinn says, steepling her hands in front of her mouth, her eyes wide with shock and sympathy. “Poor Sophie. I can’t believe she’s been holding all that in.”

“Do you think she went with him willingly?” Zee asks, his voice tight.

My old insecurities want to push through, but I mute them, knowing the truth in my heart. “Only if he threatened her with the two things she cares about. Me and Lola.”

There’s a tense silence that follows.

“She’ll come back,” Quinn says, touching my arm.

I want to believe she’s right, but he’s already proven how dangerous he is, and after what happened with Noah, I know Sophie would put her own life and her own happiness on the line to protect Lola.

The front door opens, and Damon walks in.

“Thank God,” I say walking towards him. “We need to—”

“Kade.” That one word stops me in my tracks, because I hear the gravity of it.

“What?”

“You need to come with me. The accident...”

Zee’s words come back to me. We saw them covering the body as we drove by.

Bile rises in my throat.

No. It can’t be.

I have to reach out to steady myself on the wall. “Don’t say it.”

“Sophie was in the truck.”

Numbness climbs, clots, and suffocates me.

Quinn lets out a small sound behind me, and I hear Zee’s breath catch.

My world tilts and turns.

“Did...” I try to focus on my brother, but I’m already unhinged, and the words come out gritty and rough. “Did you see her?”

He nods, grief distorting his features. “She’s in rough shape.”

It takes a few seconds for me to understand what he’s saying. My words are merely a breath. “But she’s alive?”

“Yes, but—”

I shake my head, not wanting to hear anything other than that.

Because as long as she’s still breathing, my heart is still beating, and the future I’ve dreamed about is still possible.