The man stared at her for a moment before he slowly reached out and lightly touched the bruise on her face. She saw his eyes darken for a second and then he spoke.
“Baby, my name is Patrick. I’m friends with Larkin and Brylee. We’ve come to take you out of here.”
Her heart pounded viciously inside of her chest. “What do you mean? I can’t just leave.”
“But you can. You’re twenty-three years old, correct?”
“Well, yes.”
Larkin stepped forward. “You’re an adult. It’s against the law for your father to keep you here against your will.”
“But … where would I go?”
“You’ll come home with me.”
Eve’s gaze flew to Patrick’s.
Brylee took her hands in hers. “Eve, look at me. This is your chance to get away from your father. We will protect you. You’ll never have to see him again if you don’t want to. We will all take care of you, and you will never have to worry about anything again.”
“But why would you do this?”
Larkin curved an arm around Eve’s waist. “What if our roles were reversed? Wouldn’t you do anything you could to help me or Brylee?”
“Yes.”
“Let us help you,” Brylee pleaded.
A spark of life, and something, maybe anticipation, made her blood soar through her veins and her heart start to pound in hope.
“What do I have to do?”
“We’ll pack what you want to take with you. You’ll leave your father a note that we’ll help you with, and then we’re out of here,” Patrick said. “But we need to get going. I want us to be long gone by the time he gets home.”
Eve drew in a breath and then nodded.
Brylee and Larkin cheered and jumped up and down, making Eve smile.
“I don’t have a lot I want to take.”
He wrapped a hand around her upper arm. “Show us.”
Eve led them up the stairs and into a small room at the end of the hall. A tide of heat spread across her face at the apparent look of shock and aversion on her friends’ faces.
****
Patrick watched her glance around in embarrassment, trying to maybe glimpse at the place through their eyes, but she’d probably never known anything different.
Larkin shared a look with Patrick and Brylee.
The room was worse than sparse—a twin bed with no headboard and plain white pillow and blanket. There were no toys or books besides the bible sitting on the nightstand.
The only other furniture was a small, uncomfortable-looking chair.
Eve showed them her closet, where several long dresses like the one she wore hung in line and three pairs of shoes.
“This is it.”
He grabbed all the dresses and shoes and took them out to the car. He came back in with a bag. “What about underwear, female products, and pictures?”