She must feel my gaze on her because she slowly opens her eyes, the blue dull as they connect with mine. That’s when I realize she doesn’t need me to fill the silence, all she needs is to know I’m right here.
Slowly, I move my hand, resting it over the top of hers and squeezing slightly. She didn’t want me to touch her earlier, and I respected that. But I can sense she needs this right now.
I want to tell her I can’t even comprehend what she’s going through in this moment, that I won’t go anywhere, but instead, I lift her hand and bring it to my lips, kissing her knuckles before laying it back in her lap and letting go.
“Don’t,” she whispers, taking hold of my hand again and pulling it toward her as she sits up. “Please... don’t let go.”
I swallow, nodding slightly, trying not to figure out what she means by that and looking back out the windshield, pressing my foot to the gas pedal.
“We’re nearly there,” I croak out, my voice rough from not talking for several hours. “You’ll be safe here until…” I trail off, not knowing when until is.
“Until I’m eighteen,” she provides. “Four weeks and then I’m free… right?”
“Right.” I nod in confirmation, but inside I know she won’t be truly free just because she turns a certain age. The fact that she’s only seventeen has a part of me wanting to take her to Charlie, to let him deal with this in the right way. But I know more than anyone that it doesn’t matter how much you beg people to help, sometimes they won’t.
This is her only option, and even though I have a thousand things on my mind right now and two other places I should be, none of it is as important as keeping Lily safe.
Turning down a side road, I go off track, weaving through the trees that surround the house before it appears. It may be in the middle of nowhere, but I still don’t trust anything—not now, not ever.
“Stay here while I check it out,” I tell her, turning the engine off and jumping out of the car.
The leaves crunch under my boots, the stairs creaking as I walk up them and onto the wraparound porch. It isn’t the best-kept house, the white paint peeling off the sides and a couple of boards cracked and broken in places. But it’s out of the way and no one knows about it.
Crouching down, I pull up a board closest to the door and find the key before standing up and twisting it in the lock. Dust particles greet me as I open the door and I wave my hand in front of my face to move them aside.
The house consists of a small living space, a kitchen to the right complete with a small table and two chairs, and then a bathroom and bedroom off to the left. It’s all on one level; windows in every room that I go around and make sure are locked before heading back into the living space. I nearly jump out of my skin when I see Lily standing in the doorway, a small smile on her face as she looks around the bare house.
“I told you to stay in the car,” I reprimand, but there’s no conviction in my voice.
She shrugs, stepping farther inside. “I didn’t want to be out there on my own.” She moves toward the fireplace. “What is this place?”
“A safe house of sorts.” I move toward her, watching as she runs her fingers over the gray, brick mantel. “We used it on a job a couple years back.”
She nods, but I’m not sure she’s really hearing what I’m saying.
“Want me to give you a tour?” I hold my hand out to her when she turns around.
“Sure.” She offers me a slightly bigger smile this time, but instead of taking my hand, she walks past me into the bathroom I just came out of.
“It’s not much,” I say, following her. “But it’ll do for now. It’s more a stopgap than anything.”
She runs her fingers over the top of the sink in the same way she did the mantel, biting her bottom lip. “Are you staying with me?”
Leaning against the doorframe, I tilt my head. “For a couple of days. I’ll show you around the small town and make sure you have everything you need, but then I gotta head back to the compound.”
“Right.” She clears her throat. “And… you’ll come back?”
Pushing off the door, I step toward her. “Do you want me to come back?”
She doesn’t hesitate before she says, “Yeah.”
“Then I’ll come back, angel.” She looks up at me, her head tilted back with how close we’re standing. “I’m gonna get you a burner phone so we can keep in touch while I’m gone, but I’ll be back a few days after that. Okay?”
She’s silent for several minutes and I can see the wheels turning in her mind before she looks away, pushing her shoulders back and standing to her full height.
“Okay.” She looks back at me, pushing a huge smile on her face that I know is for my benefit.
“You don’t have to do that,” I tell her, frowning down at her.